President's Message

by Dr. Larry Ryan

As the lazy days of summer approach Yo San University students and faculty in both the master’s and doctoral programs continue the usual pace of content and Qi classes, on-campus and externship clinic involvements, gab sessions in the lounge and quick dashes across Washington Blvd. to Rainbow Acres for a healthy snack or enriched drink.

Our academic community does not slow down one bit during the months of June, July and August. One of the differences in these summer months is the abundance of daylight. During these months our Southern California neighborhoods and streets are light just after 5:00 am and remain bathed in sunlight beyond 8:00 pm.

With the extended daylight hours, whether in the early morning, mid-day or in the evening, these are days that invite you to take an excursion outside your usual path. Walk in a park. Ride a bike. Find a quiet street to explore. Stroll in a garden. Enjoy the colorful summer blooms. Roam on the beach. Practice your Qi exercises in a spot that provides that added measure of peace and nature. The energy that you can derive from a few minutes outside your usual path will sustain your through your hours of usual study, work and clinical activities.

Besides the extended daylight hours these months are well suited for summer reading. In this issue of Communi-Qi, we invite you to read about our recent fund raising event, “An Evening at the Hotel California with Don Felder.” Also notice that starting with the previous issue of this newsletter, in each issue there is included a pithy statement related to the Taoist foundations of the University. These brief “Taoist Perspective” articles are the result of an activity of the YSU Board of Trustees Taoism Initiative. The objective of the initiative is simply to highlight for the consideration of all members of our community factors that relate to the Taoist foundations of Yo San University. The “Taoist Perspective” offering for this edition of Communi-Qi was prepared by Dr. Mao. You may have also noticed that more of the artifacts in our building include explanation placards next to them. These placards constitute more good summer reading—brief and to the point—and immensely thought provoking. The placards are another activity of Board of Trustees Taoism initiative.

Read on, and remember…it is summer… go outside your usual path!

Don Felder, Legendary Guitarist, Rocks the Grammy Museum

Legendary guitarist and songwriter Don Felder lit up the stage last Saturday night in a benefit concert for Yo San University School of Traditional Chinese Medicine. The four-time Grammy Award winner Felder, best known for his mega-hit song “Hotel California” took the stage for over an hour, serenading the audience with some of The Eagles’ most memorable music, including Best Of My Love, Take It Easy, and, of course, Hotel California.

After glowing introductions from Yo San University co-founders Dr. Daoshing Ni and Dr. Mao Shing Ni, and Yo San University President, Dr. Larry Ryan, Don Felder shared personal stories with the audience, talking about his travels from a poor town in Florida where he was born to his years with The Eagles in the bright lights of the global stage. Then the music started – one hit song after the next -- and Felder had the entire audience on their feet, practically drowning him out with their appreciative applause. It was a priceless evening for every guest whose life has been touched by thirty-plus years of Felder’s extraordinary music. Felder’s down-to-earth charm made every moment precious.

Adding to an unforgettable evening of food, drink and brilliant music, Felder donated two guitars from his own personal collection to an end-of-the-evening auction. All of the proceeds from the auction and the concert will subsidize Yo San University acupuncture outreach programs for their clinical interns. These acupuncture programs are currently taking place at Childrens Hospital Los Angeles, Being Alive (West Hollywood), Premiere Oncology of Santa Monica and the Venice Family Clinic.

Special thanks must go to the Yo San University volunteers who labored to make the evening perfect: Julianne Gardner, Heather Grant, Lae Krasaeyan, Tobe Stacey, Diane Weiss, Ashley Wren and Bita Yadidi.

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

Yo San truly rocks!!!

The Practical Side of the Tao

Mao Shing Ni, D.O.M., Ph.D, L.Ac.

As students of Traditional Chinese Medicine we learn that illness is the result of pathogenic energy from the outside and negative energy from the inside. These two forces are the natural enemies of health and wellness.

As healers, it is so important that we seek to cultivate positive emotional-spiritual energy within and strong protective energy without in order to achieve health, well being and harmony.

We must also share what we know with those we are caring for. This is a fundamental Taoist concept, looking at both the ‘within’ and the ‘without.’

As healers, this is worthy of our constant attention.

Ask Julie

by Julie Chambers, L. Ac.

Question:

Why is the time of day important in determining pathologies of Yang or Yin deficiency?

Answer:

In the natural order of bodily functioning, yang activities should take over during the day, dawn through afternoon, and yin activities should predominate during the evening and nighttime. This is why we wake up and become active in the morning and naturally become quiet and calm in the evening. Two common conditions illustrate what happens when yang or yin are deficient. If a person is deficient in yang energy, when morning comes, their own yang cannot perform its warming function, and diarrhea may result. This is what’s known as daybreak, or cock’s crow, diarrhea. Why would this person not have diarrhea at night? Because night time is not when we expect yang to be at its zenith, but morning is when we do. For yin deficient patients, as afternoon and evening approach, the natural cooling and calming cannot take place. These people will have afternoon and evening heat, fevers or sweats, and insomnia, nervousness and restlessness. The yin energy cannot overcome the yang influence on the body, so the heat rises, unchecked.

This is why going to sleep at a normal hour is so important for health. When our Yueying Li helped me counsel a patient suffering from insomnia, she asked him what time he went to bed, and he said “1:00 am." She said, “That is the next day!” If people turn night into day, it is no wonder that their yin and yang will become disordered.

Please direct any questions you may have to Julie Chambers, L.Ac. at info@juliechamberslac.com

What's up, Doc?

by Ed Shaheen, M.D.

Red Flag : Snake bites

If you were a Girl Scout or Boy Scout, you probably received instructions on first aid for poisonous snakebites. Perhaps a few of you were from my generation and carried around a “snakebite kit”, which contained a tourniquet, a small lancet, and a rubber bulb for sucking out the blood, in case you didn’t want to use your mouth. Over the years there have been many versions of what one should do for immediate care. First of all, most bites are from non-poisonous snakes and should be treated like any other animal bite.

This article will discuss the latest recommendations for the poisonous varieties. In the United States, about 7,000 to 8,000 people are bitten by venomous snakes each year, and five to six of those bitten, die. Most of these bites are provoked rather than accidental.

If you exclude exotic species brought in as pets, there are basically two native groups of poisonous snakes in this country. These are the pit vipers, like rattlesnakes (Southern California and most areas in U.S.), and the coral snakes (Arizona, Texas and the southeast). A coral snake must be differentiated from a king snake, which has the same colored bands (yellow, red, black) as the coral, but in a different order. The king snake is a good guy/gal and beneficial for the garden. A coral snake has “red on yellow...fatal fellow”. For the king snake, red bands do not border yellow bands.

If you see or hear a rattle, it is a rattle snake (that was easy). They do not go out of their way to bite you unless they think that you are a threat to their safety. All pit vipers possess hollow fangs, slit−like, elliptical pupils, and a heat−seeking pit between each eye and nostril.

If you live in an area that borders on a forest or natural reserve or if you do a lot of wilderness hiking, you should familiarize yourself with the appearance of the local snakes.

There is a controversy about capturing the offending snake. For one thing, this often results in a second bite and even if the (hopefully dead) snake is brought in, it may no longer have a recognizable appearance.

So what about the venom? The venom can damage almost every organ system in the body. It is not to be taken lightly and requires immediate and professional treatment, i.e., in an emergency room. The pit viper bite usually causes sudden pain at the site which has been described as “severe stinging” or being “hit by a hammer”.

The amount of damage depends on the amount of venom injected. About 25% of bites occur without significant injection of venom. The downside can include local swelling and erythema, hemorrhage, systemic shock, death...or nothing.

First responders should direct their attention to supporting the airway, breathing and circulation (ABCs). Keep the patient calm. Arrange immediate transportation to a medical facility for monitoring and possible anti-venom. Remove any constricting clothing or jewelry, especially rings, before swelling can occur. Although this has not been studied, most experts believe that the affected body part should be immobilized in a neutral or slightly dependent position in relation to the heart. Outdated first−aid measures such as incision and suction, application of a tourniquet and immersion in ice have all been shown to be of no value and may be potentially dangerous, so these practices should be abandoned.

The moral to this story is:

“Look before you leap, for snakes among sweet flowers creep” [Proverbs]