Divergent Channels in the Treatment of Acute Infectious Diseases & Essential Oils: Pharmacopeia Update

Divergent Channels in the Treatment of Acute Infectious Diseases (Fri & Mon) (July 24 & 27, 2020)

According to the Huang Di Nei Jing, wind is the cause of ‘a hundred diseases’. While wind can be caused by multiple etiologies, one of the main etiologies is infectious. During an acute invasion, if the body is not strong enough to fight the pathogen directly, it directs the pathogen into areas of latency. One of the more important ways this happens is via the divergent channel system. The divergent channel system is a safety mechanism the body has evolved to deal with severe acute illness, and can also be used to deal with accumulated latency.  

Jeffrey will discuss the diagnosis and treatment of aggressive or deadly infectious diseases that challenge the constitution. Some examples will be taken from recent diseases such as the 2019-nCoV (recent Wuhan Coronavirus) and SARS as well as the management of deadly complications of diseases such as sepsis and encephalitis.

Essential Oils: Pharmacopeia Update based on the Experience of Jeffrey Yuen (Sat & Sun) (July 25 & 26, 2020)

Essential oils are the essence or Jing of plants. Through the doctrine of signatures, they are very useful in treating pathologies related to the jing, especially working with pathogens that directly threaten the yuan or constitutional level. As such, the oils can help us not only guide out or transform physical pathology, but also can influence our phenotypical expression and how we experience and interface with the world (our temperament).

In this class, Jeffrey Yuen will discuss new additions to the materia medica of essential oils based on a wide variety of oils that have become more commonly available in recent years. He will discuss physical properties of these newer oils as well as his clinical experience in how they can be used to influence the constitution, physical pathology and one’s temperament.