Articles

Reading room

Written by Physician Poh Yu Min. Educational rather than prescriptive — what TCM looks at, and where a doctor's care sits alongside it.

A young woman resting on her side in bed, holding a pink hot water bottle against her lower abdomen
Women's health

Cramps, irregular cycles, cysts and PCOS: what TCM looks at

Four different things that often get discussed as one. What a TCM consultation asks about each, and what it does not claim.

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A person scratching a patch of red, inflamed skin on the back of one hand
Skin

Hives, eczema and skin that will not stop itching

Why a consultation about your skin asks about your sleep, and where a dermatologist's diagnosis sits alongside it.

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A tape measure held around a woman's waist over sports clothing
Weight management

Weight: what TCM asks about, and what it does not measure

A consultation about weight is mostly about digestion, sleep and routine. Why it is not about calories, and when to see a doctor first.

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A pregnant woman standing by a bright window, both hands resting on her belly
Fertility

Trying to conceive: what a TCM consultation covers

What the physician asks both partners, how TCM describes what it finds, and why an IVF cycle changes the timing of everything.

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A man sitting on a sofa leaning forward with both hands pressed to his upper abdomen, a red glow marking the area
Digestion

Acid reflux: what TCM looks at, and what needs a scope

Why the consultation asks when you eat rather than what, and the symptoms that mean seeing a doctor first.

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A man sitting on a sofa holding his knee with both hands, a red glow marking the joint
Pain

Joint pain: what TCM looks at, and what separates wear from inflammation

Why the physician asks whether a joint is worse in the morning or by evening, better for warmth or for cold — and the one joint that is a hospital problem tonight.

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A woman sitting on the edge of a bed with one hand pressed to her lower back, a red glow tracing down the back of her leg
Nerve

Nerve pain: what TCM looks at, and the rash that cannot wait

Burning, tingling, pins and needles, a touch that should not hurt but does — why the physician asks where it starts and which side, and the three-day window that belongs to a doctor.

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A close-up of a woman's face showing weakness down one side, with the mouth and eyelid drooping
Nerve

Bell's palsy: what TCM looks at, and why the first day belongs to a doctor

Sudden weakness on one side of the face is a same-day medical problem before it is anything else — and what a TCM course involves once that has happened.

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A man asleep in bed on his side, curled against a pillow
Sub-health

Tired, but the tests came back normal

What the term sub-health means in TCM, what it does not mean, and why normal test results are worth having first.

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A physician in a white coat resting both hands on a young child's abdomen as the child lies on a treatment couch, looking up at her
Children

Paediatric tui na: what a session with a child involves

For parents. What the physician does, what she will ask you, how long it lasts — and when a child should see a doctor first.

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A wooden table of dried Chinese herbs in compartment trays, a stone mortar and pestle, a cup of tea and an acupuncture model, with TCM diagnosis charts on the wall behind
TCM basicsFirst published in PRIME Magazine

What to expect from a visit to a TCM practitioner

What actually happens at a first TCM consultation — the four methods of diagnosis, and why the conversation takes so long.

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