NEXT SCHEDULED CLASS IN 2008
| Date | Course | Instructors | Location | Cost | CEUs | ||
| Dec 6-7 |  |
Zheng Gu Level 1: Mobilizations of the Upper Limb | Tom Bisio, Frank Butler | PCOM-NY | $600 | 14 |  Register Now |
View Previously Scheduled Classes
Read the new review of Zheng Gu Tui Na Chinese Medical Massage from the Journal of Chinese Medicine.
Seminar on the Shang Han Lun May 25, 2008
This one time series of seminars is not to be missed. Taught by Dan Bensky, Craigh MItchell and Arnaud Verslyus this special event begins in August.
Website Redesign Feb 17, 2008
Our website has been redesigned to make information easier to find and to make things easier on the eyes. We hope you enjoy the new look.
Zheng Gu Tui Na Product Line Released Jun 14, 2007
Due to requests by students to make the herbal component of our treatments more accessible, we have now created a product line in collaboration with Kamwo Herb Pharmacy. This product line is composed of the most effective formulas for treating trauma and other conditions. These formulas, taught in our classes and used by us everyday in the clinic, are now available, already prepared and ready for immediate use. We have ensured that these proprietary formulas are prepared in the traditional way, which maximizes effectiveness and decreases the likelihood of skin reactions.
Zheng Gu Tui Na: Chinese Medical Massage Released Jun 1, 2007
This in-depth textbook with hundreds of photos will present all the material taught in Zheng Gu Tui Na levels 1-4 in detail including hand techniques treatments and Qi Gong exercises.
The Essentials of Ba Gua Zhang Released Mar 1, 2007
In this one of a kind book, Master Gao Ji Wu discusses the important points of Ba Gua Zhang and presents form and techniques from Beijing Gao Style Ba Gau Zhang.
Tui Na, literally “pushing-grasping,” is the name commonly used to refer to Chinese medical massage. It differentiates medical massage from other Asian massage methods such as “An Mo” or “Shiatsu.” Properly employed the theories and techniques of Tui Na are extremely effective at treating a wide variety of problems, including structural misalignment, orthopedic problems and sports injuries, as well as internal diseases.
Tui Na was originally taught in apprenticeship settings in which practical clinical techniques were emphasized. Today it is generally taught in classroom settings in modern schools of traditional medicine. Both in the West and in Asia, Tui Na is often considered to be a less effective adjunct to acupuncture and herbal medicine, or a just a spa, feel-good treatment offered at street fairs and walk-in massage facilities. This lack of effectiveness is usually stems from a rote based learning and treatment method and an incorrect understanding of tui na techniques and methods.
The founders of Zheng Gu Tui Na both learned in traditional apprenticeship settings. They have created a training method that duplicates intense, practical clinical experience of this method of learning without the lack of structure and organization which often characterizes apprenticeships.
Zheng Gu, which means “correct bone,” refers to the inclusion of Tui Na’s unique mobilization techniques which often quickly restore normal functioning and structurally re-integrate the body. These techniques have largely been lost in the push to “modernize” Chinese medicine and for the most part are not taught in the acupuncture schools today.
Tui Na techniques are not used in a vacuum. Although taught as a bodywork method, Tui Na does not fit neatly into the rubric of “massage.” Tui Na has always been inseparably integrated with the other modalities of Chinese medicine. The diagram below illustrates the interlocking nature of the theories and modalities of Chinese medicine.
Each of the four triangles in the diagram above contains three treatment modalities linked by a central theory;
- Herbal medicine, Acupuncture, and Tui Na linked through OM theory
- Ext Apps, Tui Na, and Zheng Gu linked through Martial Arts
- Tui Na, Acupuncture, and Zheng Gu linked through anatomy
- Acupuncture, Zheng Gu, and Qi Gong linked through meridian theory
On some level all the therapies in the diagram are based on the theories of traditional Chinese medicine. These theories as they are taught in modern TCM are most important in understanding Tui Na, acupuncture, herbal medicine and diet therapy, the three modalities emphasized by modern schools of acupuncture and traditional medicine. However the foundation of this structure is built upon the modalities of externally applied herbs, structural alignment of the soft tissue (Zheng Gu) and Qi Gong (used both as a type of physical therapy and as a method of self-cultivation and disease prevention).
The theories associated with these therapies, which actually form the foundations of Chinese medicine, are based upon a visceral internal understanding of body movement, anatomy and the meridian system. This knowledge is difficult to acquire in a school setting, yet it provides the all-important foundation for the practice of Chinese medicine.
By emphasizing body awareness through Qi Gong and a hands-on practical approach to teaching, Zheng Gu Tu Na can help physical therapists, massage therapists, acupuncturists, martial artists or anyone interested in promoting health through Chinese medicine understand the foundation principles and methods which make Chinese medicine so effective.