The first time a TCM practitioner looked at my tongue and asked about lower back pain, I nearly fell off the table. She had not missed it in my intake forms. She read it in my tongue.
The Four Pillars of TCM Diagnosis
- Looking: Tongue, face, body
- Listening: Voice, breath, odors
- Asking: Medical history
- Touching: Pulse
Looking: The Tongue Map
Color: Pale=Blood deficiency, Red=Heat, Purple=Blood stasis.
Coating: Thin white=Normal, Thick=Dampness, Yellow=Heat, No coating=Yin deficiency.
Regions: Tip=Heart, Sides=Liver, Center=Spleen, Root=Kidney.
Listening and Smelling
Voice: Weak=Qi deficiency, Loud=Excess.
Body odors: Foul=Heat, Sour=Liver heat, Fishy=Kidney issues.
Asking: Key Questions
Energy: Morning tired=Yang deficiency, Afternoon=Spleen deficiency.
Emotions: Anger=Liver, Worry=Spleen, Sadness=Lung, Fear=Kidney.
The Pulse
Floating: Exterior issues. Sinking: Interior issues.
Rapid: Heat. Slow: Cold.
Quick reference:
- Tongue check: Morning, before eating