It’s become increasingly common amongst healthcare professionals to dismiss thousands of years of knowledge of mental health worldwide and brazenly attribute it to religiosity, magical forces, and demonic possession. After all, most people believe mental health has only really existed for the last 70 years. And why wouldn’t they believe this? Western psychiatric orthodoxy has dominated the way we think about mental illness, often at the expense of ignoring other cultures and societies, both past and present.
I've been going to a doctor of traditional Chinese medicine and homeopathy for about a decade now, so I loved reading a bit more about the history of its integrative approach going back thousands of years. Well written, thank you.
This is an interesting article although it may potentially be anachronistic if one were to evaluate it historically. Foremost, the concept of exercise is a rather modern concept I do not think the ancient Chinese has the concept of habitually doing exercise during their leisure times, except when the physical labour has got to do with their livelihood perhaps. On that note, patterns of physical activity would often be correlated to class, and social hierarchy, which I believe would demonstrate a very differentiated attitude or view towards physical activity. Primarily, Chinese scholars, gentlemen, and intellectuals ranked the highest on the social ladder, and they were masters of the four arts. The notion of balance is also predominant in Western medicine or during the age of heroic medicine, it's known as the four humours theory, by that note, perhaps the 'West' may have discovered 'mental illness' as well.
Ancient Chinese Scholars Understood Mental Health as a Delicate Balancing Act
I've been going to a doctor of traditional Chinese medicine and homeopathy for about a decade now, so I loved reading a bit more about the history of its integrative approach going back thousands of years. Well written, thank you.
You only have to quote from the Yellow Emperor's Classic of Internal Medicine to win my approval!
Well described. Interesting read.
Amazing read!
It's my understanding that Ayurvedic medicine also shares some of the same principles, no? Good read.
This is an interesting article although it may potentially be anachronistic if one were to evaluate it historically. Foremost, the concept of exercise is a rather modern concept I do not think the ancient Chinese has the concept of habitually doing exercise during their leisure times, except when the physical labour has got to do with their livelihood perhaps. On that note, patterns of physical activity would often be correlated to class, and social hierarchy, which I believe would demonstrate a very differentiated attitude or view towards physical activity. Primarily, Chinese scholars, gentlemen, and intellectuals ranked the highest on the social ladder, and they were masters of the four arts. The notion of balance is also predominant in Western medicine or during the age of heroic medicine, it's known as the four humours theory, by that note, perhaps the 'West' may have discovered 'mental illness' as well.
Question 1: are diagnostics like Braveman Test "normal"? https://www.bravermantest.com/
Question 2: Since personality is highly genetic, are humors/elements circumstantial?