Falling into the Ai River thermal moxibustion edge

  I am a follower of thermosensitive moxibustion, my master and doctoral research are both in the field of thermosensitive moxibustion, and I have grown and developed with thermosensitive moxibustion, and I have a deep love for thermosensitive moxibustion.  My relationship with thermal moxibustion dates back to 2001, when I was a master’s student at Jiangxi College of Traditional Chinese Medicine under the supervision of Professor Chen Rixin. I was initially attracted by the phenomenon of thermal sensitization, which is a small moxa stick that can penetrate deeply into the body, conduct and march throughout the body, or spread over a large area, and these interesting phenomena cannot be fully explained by modern biological, physical, and medical knowledge. I was convinced by the efficacy of thermal moxibustion, so I got deeper and deeper into the clinical and research path of thermal moxibustion.  I was impressed by a case of multi-organ prolapse at the beginning of my study. This was a female patient in her 50s, who complained of stomach cramping and distension. In addition to the feeling of stomach drop, this patient was accompanied by many other problems, including overall fear of cold, especially strong stomach, poor mental health, lack of energy, inability to eat, and insomnia. We looked for heat-sensitive points on the patient’s abdomen, and when the moxa stick came near the middle cavity point, the patient said he felt very comfortable, and a heat flow penetrated into his body from the point to the stomach, and the whole stomach became very warm, and the heat flow seemed to be gently lifting the stomach upward. I finished the first treatment with half an hour of suspension at this heat-sensitive point, and the patient came back 9 days later and was very happy, telling me that the whole person was very comfortable after the moxibustion, and that the feeling of stomach drop was almost gone, and that the whole person was less afraid of cold in the past few days, and her appetite was much better, and she was able to sleep. In addition, she said that she was embarrassed at the initial consultation and did not tell me that her uterus and anus were prolapsed, but after the moxibustion, they were all back to normal the next day. It was unbelievable that this patient could see such good results, and it made me feel confident in thermal moxibustion therapy, and my conviction to continue the research and application became stronger and stronger.  In the past 9 years, under the leadership and guidance of Prof. Chen Rixin, we started from the first thermal moxibustion project (Jiangxi Provincial Health Department project) for systematic observation and standardized research, to the projects of the State Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine and the National Eleventh Five-Year Plan for Science and Technology Support, 973 projects, and the National Natural Science Foundation of China, to establish and improve the theory and technology of thermal moxibustion step by step. My master’s graduation project was the clinical efficacy observation of thermal moxibustion for some kind of pain, and my graduation project when I was a doctoral student in Guangzhou University of Traditional Chinese Medicine was the basic research of thermal moxibustion, mainly observing the infrared radiation characteristics of thermal acupuncture points and the objective display of thermal sensitization reaction. She is a very strict teacher, and her previous research direction did not involve thermal moxibustion, so at first she did not believe in thermal moxibustion phenomenon and efficacy, but after a period of clinical observation and slowly trying it by herself, she finally believed and convinced, and now she is devoting a lot of energy to research thermal moxibustion. Many postgraduates are conducting clinical and basic research work. I was attracted to thermal moxibustion at first sight, and I fell in love with it when I saw the phenomenon, and Professor Li fell in love with it over time, and we were all attracted by the charm of thermal moxibustion.  After I graduated with my doctorate, I went to work at Guangdong Provincial Hospital of Integrative Medicine and continued to keep close contact with Professor Chen to develop the career of thermal moxibustion. The Guangdong Provincial Hospital of Integrative Medicine is a tertiary level A combined Chinese and Western medicine hospital, which was awarded “Guangdong Famous Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine” by Guangdong Provincial Government. But before 2007, moxibustion was hardly practiced. We started from scratch and have grown step by step by relying on the charisma of thermal moxibustion. So far this year, there are two doctors specializing in moxibustion clinic and five moxibustion therapists. The hospital also gives great support to moxibustion therapy and provides a very good policy environment for the business development of moxibustion, which shows that thermal moxibustion is also loved by the in-laws after it has settled in Guangdong.  In addition to the development of clinical business, we also actively conduct scientific research. At this stage, we have undertaken a National Natural Science Foundation of China project to study the biophysical characteristics of thermal point, and we also have a city science and technology project and some other cooperative projects for thermal moxibustion clinical research. These high-level basic and application topics can play a good role in promoting the development of thermal moxibustion.  In the Nei Jing, it is said that “moxibustion is appropriate for what the needle does not do”, and in the Introduction to Medicine, it is said that “moxibustion is necessary for what the medicine does not do and what the needle does not do”, which fully reflects the status and value of moxibustion therapy. However, up to now, the application and research of acupuncture and moxibustion in the world are mainly based on acupuncture, while the research and application of moxibustion, which has the same important status, are neglected. Therefore, the research and promotion of the application of moxibustion therapy is of great significance in maintaining the academic integrity of acupuncture and moxibustion and promoting the overall development of acupuncture and moxibustion. We also hope to use our wisdom and strength to promote the development and growth of moxibustion and let the fire of moxibustion start a prairie fire!