Joints, tendons and sport

Carpal tunnel and hand numbness

Western The median nerve crowded at the wrist, or a hand nerve caught higher up at the elbow, chest or neck.

Classical 木 Qi and blood stasis in the Pericardium, Heart and Lung channels of the wrist, often with damp.

Often with Dry needling, Active Release, Electro-acupuncture

Sports and overuse injuries

Western Overuse injuries build when repeated load outpaces how quickly muscle, tendon and fascia can adapt and repair.

Classical 木 Read as injury to the sinews, where qi and blood stop moving through the sinew channels on a terrain of Liver blood.

Often with Dry needling, Active Release, Functional movement

Western Most shoulder pain involves the rotator cuff tendons, the space they glide through, and how the shoulder blade moves.

Classical 木 Read along the channels that cross the shoulder, where cold, damp or strain have stopped qi and blood moving.

Often with Dry needling, Active Release, Functional movement

Western The capsule of the shoulder joint thickens and tightens, stiffening the shoulder in every direction, often in stages.

Classical 水 The classics called it fifty-year shoulder: cold and damp lodged in the sinews of the shoulder, then blood stasis as it sets.

Often with Acupuncture, Dry needling, Moxibustion

Tennis and golfer's elbow

Western Overload of the forearm tendons where they anchor at the elbow: outside for tennis elbow, inside for golfer's elbow.

Classical 木 Called elbow taxation in the classics: overwork drains the blood that feeds the sinews, and stagnation settles in.

Often with Dry needling, Master Tung's acupuncture, Active Release

Tendonitis and tendon pain

Western Tendon pain from overload, where a tendon's ability to adapt falls behind the demands placed on it.

Classical 木 The Liver governs the sinews; tendons that keep flaring are read as blood that no longer nourishes them, with stagnation on top.

Often with Dry needling, Master Tung's acupuncture, Functional movement

Western Hip pain can come from the joint, the gluteal tendons at the outer hip, the hip flexors, or be referred from the low back.

Classical 木 The Gallbladder channel arcs through the outer hip; chronic deep aching is read through the Liver and Kidney beneath it.

Often with Dry needling, Active Release, Functional movement

Western Knee pain often reflects how load reaches the knee from the hip and ankle, as well as the joint, cartilage and tendons themselves.

Classical 水 The knee is the house of the sinews; long-standing knee pain is read through the Kidney, which governs the bones.

Often with Dry needling, Functional movement, Active Release

Plantar fasciitis and heel pain

Western Overload of the thick band of tissue under the foot where it anchors to the heel, often tied to a tight calf.

Classical 水 The Kidney channel passes through the heel; stubborn heel pain is read as Kidney depletion with stagnation in the foot.

Often with Dry needling, Active Release, Master Tung's acupuncture

Western Osteoarthritis is thinning cartilage and remodeling bone; rheumatoid and other inflammatory types are immune conditions.

Classical 水 Read as painful obstruction, 痹: wind, cold, damp or heat lodged in the joints, on a ground of Liver and Kidney depletion.

Often with Acupuncture, Moxibustion, Herbal medicine