WordPlay: Clarifications on Medicine



Longmontaacupuncture.net



Words conjure images; and we instantly build a collage of snapshots in our mind. 

From these images we have specific associations rooted from our own personal connotations; whether they are postiive, negative, true or false, is purely bias unless thorougly educated.   

• "Traditional Chinese Medicine"
• "Oriental Medicine"
• "Complementary Medicine"
• "Alternative Medicine"
• "Western Medicine"
• "Acupuncturist" 



Mark Parisi



I love words.  I have a BFA in Screenwriting; freelanced with USA Today and am quite the accomplished People's Magazine crossword puzzler. 

As I enter this field that is ancient yet still quite new in the Western world, I believe using the correct terms is just as important as inserting needles.  As soon-t0-be-practitioners, I'm beginning to understand the bulk of our work is not going to be under a clinical setting -- It's going to be in education.  Whether we're chatting about what we do or guiding the misinformed.



Kasamaproject.org


Currently, my blog states, "Traditional Chinese Medicine" (TCM).  The history of TCM has a terrible connotation; and I'm still trying to figure out if the definition of those words have changed.  It's a lot like the concept of gentrification.  Sure, it's great to have the convenience of a Duane Reade but what does that do to the identity of the neighborhood?  Do you keep the old with the new?  Is that even possible?  What happens when Starbucks finally moves in; and the corner liquor store turns into a fancy wine shop?

The term Complementary Alternative Medicine (CAM) is typically used today, I've never liked the term "Alternative Medicine" because going through my own teen-angst phase of skater-punk-grunge scene, "alternative" is never a positive thing in modern society.  In fact, it makes the medicine sound like I don't shave my pits and I've got dirty dreads. 
 I prefer to simply use "Complementary Medicine" because I believe in a fully integrated system of healing.  I am a strong believer that diseases, imbalances and disorders are complicated and multi-faceted.  Therefore, it seems crazy to me to treat them with just one method of healing.  However, I am not an advocate of treating isolated symptoms; nor a proponent of most pharmacological drugs.  I believe medicine should aid in returning the body back within a range of balance; and focus on prevention and wellness.    At the end of the day, I'm a huge proponent of simply getting people healthy, in the least invasive manner as possible with an emphasis on prevention.


Jacqueline Young Complementary Medicine for Dummies



Put "Western" on anything and it makes people feel comfortable because it sounds legit.  Add "Eastern" on anything and suddnely, it's exotic with smokes and opium pipes.  I like, "Biomedicine" because the "West" (whether it's the States, Europe, Australia, or Canada) has natural medicine (Naturopathology) which has existed thousands of years ago that is not within the realm of so-called conventional medicine (ie. St. John's Wort).

I also have to stop telling people that all I study is acupuncture or that I'm going to become an acupuncturist because at OCOM, we study a helluva lot more than just sticking needles.  When I graduate, I will have a toolbox full of healing treatments incoporated in my practice.  Additionally, I will also have a solid biomedical foundation in terminology, anatomy, physiology, biology, chemistry and physics. 



Cancercompass.com



A well-rounded treatment includes not one treatment but a variety depending on each individual. 

So in order to clarify the language barrier...

I am a medical student studying East Asian medicine which includes primarily Chinese medicine but also Korean and Japanese:

• Acupuncture
• Herbs
• Body/Energy work
• Diet/Nutrition
• Cupping
• Moxa
• Biomedicine foundation

My intention has always been to break down Eastern medicine without the esoteric, hippie stuff.  However, I've realized I don't need to "dumb-down" the lanaguage in order to do so.  I have to have faith people are willing to learn a new terms in order to have a better understanding on their own personal health.

Cartoonstock.com



Pinch Me

"You are physically manifesting a vision." 

Michael J. Gaeta, President of the Oregon College of Oriental Medicine

I am officially a full-time medical student of the Oregon College of Oriental Medicine (OCOM). 

During my search for the best school (for me), OCOM stood out in a quiet yet powerful manner.  It doesn't have a big, fancy campus (not yet... Wait until 2012!) and it didn't give a flashy admissions presentation.  In fact, the school catalogue is a plain, white booklet and a quote at the bottom, "The science of medicine, the art of healing."

However, it was the first to...

• Be nationally accredited by the AAAOM
• Develop a doctorate program
• Be the first school to receive funding from the National Institute of Health to research the effects of acupuncture 

As I plan to further my education/career into research, it was important for me to find a school that offered a doctorate program; and prepped its graduate students with a research foundation. 



Menucha - Washington & Oregon view


Aside from all its educational brownie points, OCOM (out of 5 schools I visited and multiple others I researched) was the only school which required its students to attend a 2-day orientation at an off-site retreat center.

Schools typically have an hour-orientation but this very act of gathering its incoming first-year students and faculty at Menucha, which is located near the Gorge River with views of Washington and Oregon, laid out the values of its school - Community. 

As a quintessential New Yorker and a typical Type-A, the idea of community is foreign; however, it is a concept I want to desperately embody.

In 2012, OCOM will be moving its location from the Middle-of-Nowhere to the City Center.  At the orientation we were presented with photos and floor plans of the new building purposefully located in the historical section of Portland, Old Town Chinatown. 



Pres. Gaeta Relocation Presentation


The $15M, LEED Gold-certified (!!!), 5-story building will be nearly 4,000 square feet larger with 17 private treatment rooms, 1 community treatment space, LEED Gold certified, a rooftop garden and feng-shued to the wha-zoo by Yale-graduate, Alex Stark.

Like a typical Portlander, the school opted to purchase a historical building and renovate it; which not only means it saved a gorgeous architectural staple but a good chunk of the renovation is being paid for by Uncle Sam. 

My class will be the first and only class to have the opportunity to experience the transition, growth and journey of OCOM expanding from beginning to end. 

I can't help but get excited at how honored I am to attend this school at this very moment of its own vision taking form right before my eyes.

As our health care system continues to fail us and we consistently become a mockery of the Western world, I honestly feel this medicine will grow.  However, I'm a firm believer it can only grow with the intent of educating the community on re-evaluating the true definition of "health".  

President Gaeta ended his presentation with the emphasis on our personal journeys.  Every single one of my classmates, including myself, have come to this point in our lives to not only dream of serving people but to courageously take the steps to manifest the vision. 

It's the wildest feeling to have my dreams slowly take form outside of my mind.  No matter how many times this happens, it still feels unbelievable.  It truly is an awesome feeling; and it makes me want to keep doing it.



Me & MOCO

 "There are some people who live in a dream world, and there are some who face reality; and then there are those who turn one into the other."

- Douglas H. Everett

Branded For Life



Finca


I took my trusty Eagle Creek backpack to Nicaragua solely because... Because...

Well, because I don't know how else a person travels. 

A rolling luggage to a third world country seemed ridiculous even if I was staying on an gated, organic farm high in the mountains of nowhere with a prompt housestaff and an infinity pool.

Is it weird that I always take the soap? 

Or that I carry an extra T-shirt for a pillow case? 

Or quadruple my sarong as a towel/scarf/blanket/coverup?

Whether I like it or not, I've been unknowingly branded to always be a "backpacker"; and this will always be an innate distinction within me.  Recently though, I've discovered this ain't so bad.

Sunset at Cloud Farm

After 3 days of luxurious Cloud Farm, I could hear a little voice in my head whisper,

"Stay longer." 

I now believe, this voice is the Traveling Spirit within me. 
(Shoot me) 

The same Spirit that makes my feet itchy.  The same Spirit that logs onto Kayak.com... Just out of curiosity.  The same Spirit that slightly perks me up whenever I hear someone who's been out of the country. 

All I needed was a little push which came in the form of a casual statementfrom another camp-member whom I now refer to my "Sister In Mind", "You should stay longer."

Boat Surf Trip to Playa Hermosa

I took it as a sign; and within an hour, I changed my flight.

I'm getting better at this:  Listening to my soul without neglecting my mind.  I'm learning to compromise which I feel will be incredibly important as I train to become a medical practitioner. 

TCM, like everything in Life, stresses the importance of balance.  As I embark on my journey into medical school, I realize this concept of balance needs to become an action rather than a theory. 

It's easier for me to balance the obvious things in my life like diet; exercise; study hours; free time...

But it's  a challenge to balance my Past, Present and Future Selves. 

I thought I needed to neglect everything about my past in order to become present and stronger in the future.  However, I now realize, it's my past that has brought me to my present which will make me stronger in the future.  Without any of the brandings from my past, I wouldn't be where I am today. 

Caught the biggest, longest wave (for me)

I flew from Managua, Nicaragua to Newark, NJ with only a day to pack up my entire belongings and move across country to Portland, Oregon.  I forgot to pack a lot of crap but I don't regret staying in Nicaragua longer because I had the opportunity to surf & get better, met some badass people and discovered I actually like being a backpacker which only means one thing:


Private beach surf



I like to travel.

After nearly 2 years in SEA, I never wanted to travel ever again.  However, after my recent trip, I I realized there are different types of traveling. 

Good friends & traveling strangers

Traveling doesn't always have to be a soul-searching-journey.  In fact, I believe, traveling is really meant to be done when you have a strong grasp of your soul.  Only then, can you fully appreciate it for what its worth. 

But I'd never come to this conclusion without my past.  Without my past, I would have never (ever!) changed my flight. I would have never gone for tacos.  I would have never dumped homemade whole-wheat bread into a garbage bag for lunch.  I would have never slept on the bottom bunk.

As I begin to slowly figure out what sort of medical healer I would like to become, I hope to find a compromising balance of my Past, Present and Future because I truly believe the connection among the three will make me a better servant to my community.

San Juan del Sur, Nicaragua