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Page B4
APRILS, 1998
(Elje Jlortlanb (©bseruer
Oriental Medicine
C arol T aub
For most o f us in Portland and in
the United States, Oriental Medicine
is a fairly new concept in health care
As practiced for thousands o f
years, and in its application today,
Oriental medicine seeks to promote
good health by helping people
achieve and maintain balance,
or harmony, in their body,
mind and spirit. It’s what
we call today a holistic
approach to medicine -
treating the whole person,
not just a symptom or ail­
m ent. B ecause O riental
m edicine offers this inte­
g rated , coh esiv e approach to
health care, it is gaining in popular­
ity.
The case o f Frank, an 81-year old
retiree who lives in Gresham, is an
example o f how a patient can benefit
from Oriental medical treatment.
“Acupuncture is the best thing that
ever happened to me,” he says.
Frank goes on to explain, “The
left side o f my face was cram ped
and ached all the tim e after I had
surgery. I was taking so much co ­
deine and m orphine, it m ade me
sick and I co u ld n ’t sleep at all. At
the suggestion o f a nurse at the
nursing home w here I live, I w ent
to the O regon C ollege o f O riental
M edicine Clinic and m et H ong Jin.
She treated me with acupuncture
and the pain w ent aw ay. It was
am azing. I went back to the h ospi­
tal w here they had tried to treat the
pain. W hen the d o cto r saw me, he
said ‘ I c a n ’t believe it’ because I
had a sm ile on my face and I was
not fighting the p ain .”
T his is not an isolated case. Pa-
by
tients commonly report dramatic re­
lief from pain and soreness after acu­
puncture treatments, especially those
involving bones, joints and muscles.
Another feature o f Oriental medi­
cine is the importance it places on
proper diet, herbs, excercise, good
health habits, meditation and stress
reduction as keys to a healthy
life. A practitioner trained
n O rie n ta l m e d ic in e
spends time observing
the patient, asking many
questions about what is
going on in that person’s
life, listening carefully to
responses, and then apply­
ing the principles o f Oriental
medicine to make a diagnoses and a
treatment plan.
Located in Portland, the Oregon
College of Oriental Medicine offers
three graduate leading to thedegree
o f Master of Acupuncture and O ri­
ental Medicine. Additionally, the
College sponsors a Medical Clinic,
which offers quality health care to
the community at low, affordable
rates.
Anyone in the community, includ­
ing students, senior citizens and low
income patients, can receive acu­
puncture and Oriental medicine ser­
vices at the Clinic.
Residents in our community have
a broad choice o f health care provid­
ers, representing Oriental and west­
ern medical traditions. If you would
like information about acupuncture
and Oriental medicine, or would like
to come to a free clinic at OCOM,
please call (503) 254-3566.
Carol Taub is the Dean o f Aca­
demic A ffairs at the Oregon College
o f Oriental Medicine
Earth Day Conference
Civil rights advocate and minister
Eldridge Cleaver and former Chief
o f the US Forest Service Jack Ward
Thomas are the keynote speakers for
Earth Day '98 on April 18.
Earth Day ’98: Honoring Connec­
tions as an Earth Day Interfaith Con­
ference & Celebration presented un­
der the auspices o f the Earth & Spirit
Council. The event takes place from 9
AM to 9 PM at the First United Meth­
odist Church, 1838 SW. Jefferson St.
Cleaver will speak at 9AM, and
Thomas will be giving his talk at 10
AM. Cost for attending the keynote
speeches is $ 10 for adults and $5 for
students and seniors. Other activities
and workshops are free o f charge.
A special feature at the confer­
ence will be music by African drum ­
mer Obo Addy, the Earth & Spirit
Chorale, the Spirit Learning Drum
and more.
An Interfaith Celebration will
present a dramatic conclusion to the
conference. The Celebration occurs
from 7 to 9 PM at First United Meth­
odist Church. This event will include
a ceremony, dance, prayers, music
and stories for the earth.
M a jo r Study Shows Kava H e rb
Reduces Stress o f Life's Hassles
The first clinical study ever co n ­
ducted to m easure the effects o f
the kava herb on daily hassles o f
life show ed dram atic decreases in
stress am ong all study subjects
w ho used it.
K ava is a m em ber o f the pepper
fam ily and has been used for cen ­
turies in the South Pacific as a
natural relaxant — w ithout inter­
fering in m ental processing.
Previous studies have been co n ­
ducted w ith kava related to effects
on lo n g -term m em o ry , m uscle
contractability, insom nia and in pa­
tients w ith anxiety, but never on
the stress that is associated with
the daily hassles o f life, according
to study leaders N irbhay N. Singh,
P h D ., professor o f psychiatry and
pediatrics at M edical C ollege o f
V irginia and directo r o f C om m on­
w ealth Institute fo rC h ild and Fam ­
ily Studies at V irginia C om m on­
w ealth U niversity, and C ynthia R
E llis, M .D ., assistant professor o f
pediatrics and psychiatry at M edi­
cal C o lle g e o fV irg in ia o fV irg in ia
C om m onw ealth U niversity.
Singh reported on the findings
durin g the T hird A nnual A lterna­
tive Therapies Sym posium and Ex­
position at the Sheraton San Diego
H otel and M arina on Saturday,
A pril 4.
Singh said the kava used in the
study was K avatrol, a brand name
p r o d u c t fro m N a tr o l I n c ., a
C hatsw orth, Calif.-based m anufac­
tu rer o f vitam ins, m inerals and
herbal supplem ents.
T he double-blind study, con-
(
ducted late last year, consisted o f 60
subjects between 18 and 60 years of
age — 29 in the Kavatrol group and
31 in a placebo group.
Subjects were assessed five times
during the study: baseline (weekO)
and week 1, 2, 3 and 4. They were
measured in five areas: interper­
sonal problems, personal compe­
tency, cognitive stressors, environ­
mental hassles and varied stressors.
In each o f the four weeks after
baseline, the Kavatrol group showed
statistically significant decreases in
stress in every category, while the
placebo group showed little varia­
tion.
“The study found that overal I stress
decreased with Kavatrol as a function
o f the time that a person was on the
product. That is, the greater reduc­
tions were evident with longer usage
o f Kavatrol,” said Singh.
The study also examined poten­
tial side effects of the herb and con­
cluded “it is not addictive and does
not lead to dose tolerance,” Singh
added.
Singh has been a pioneer in the
use and study o f kava. A native o f
Fiji, he first consumed it 40 years
ago in a ritual drink prepared by his
father. More than 10 years ago, he
conducted the first study on the
effects o f kava on long-term memory.
Since then, kava has received in­
creasingly more attention for its re­
laxation benefits, and in February
1998 the Wall Street Journal in a
major story said “kava is poised to
become the next blockbuster herbal
rem edy.”
Try
a Yoaa
class
J
CJ
by
Have you suddenly realized that
you’re not sixteen anymore be­
cause working in the garden for
two hours on Sunday after church
has had a stiffening effect? That’s
when Yoga comes into the picture.
Getting older cannot be halted, but
we can choose to conserve our
health and physical strength to
maximize our potential.
Yoga is the oldest physical dis­
cipline there is going back some
2500 years. It integrates with the
four natural stages o f life: the
learner or student stage, the nest-
builder or householder stage, the
self-fulfillment stage, and the spiri­
tual enlightenment or wandering
scholar stage. Yoga is needed in
each stage to achieve to the maxi­
mum.
Postures, traditionally called
asanas, and breathing, called
pranayama, are essential parts o f
the yoga system that integrates ones
mind, body and spirit. It is through
postures and breathing that you
learn to release the stiffness and
tensions that stifle movement. That
you learn how to move in rhythm
with your breath that you learn
how gravity affects your body.
How do you benefit from yoga?
Yoga will gently flex, stretch and
extend your spine. It will exercise
your muscles and joints which en­
courages strength and suppleness. It
will stimulate your digestive, circu­
latory, nervous and endocrine sys­
tem keeping you energetic and
healthy. The postures and breathing
will release tension and stiffness,
establish the balance o f your skeletal
system, renew your energy and re­
store your health to it’s greatest po­
tential. The restorative postures and
breathing reduce stress and help to
put you in touch with the inner
strength each o f us has.
Yoga has stood the test o f many
centuries. It works. It’s practice will
bring about a profound change in
your life. The human body has a
remarkable facility for change and
rebirth. Age is o f little importance.
Your personal history has affected
your body and how it functions. But
the boundaries o f your mental, physi­
cal and spiritual energies are much
greater than you think. Its never too
late to change for change we will
regardless. The question is what di­
rection we want to change towards.
Yoga is a wonderful, rewarding path
o
W hy did it happen? W hat was
the m eaning o f the carnage in A r­
kansas? W hat w ere the goals o f the
young boys w ho opened fire on
th e ir c la ssm a te s and te ach ers?
W hat did they w ant?
They w anted w hat anyone who
carries a gun wants: pow er. In a
w orld w hich glorifies violence, in
a w orld w here violence is seen as
play, w here violence is entertain­
m ent, w here m illions o f dollars are
m ade each day on the glorification
o f violent acts, they w ere ju st two
boys w ho w anted to have fun.
The goals o f the violent are al­
w ays the same: a pitiful attem pt at
projecting personal pow er in a
seem ingly pow erless situation. It
is pitiful in that the display, whether
openly or covertly violent, cannot
ever achieve the aim s o f the young
men. T he “show ” can never gain
pow er forthem . For the pow erless,
how ever, violence is seen as the
only road to pow er.
The futility o f the young boys’
behavior is evident once one un­
derstands w hat pow er is (and is
not). True pow er is the ability to
m anifest o n e ’s intentions. It in­
volves the w ill to m ove forw ard to
a c c o m p lis h o n e ’s o b je c tiv e s .
Pow er is N O T pulling the trigger
on a gun: that is an expression o f
pow erlessness.
W ith this definition, it becom es
obvious that our w o rld ’s young,
w hether in street gangs or in the
H e a rtla n d , c a n n o t w ie ld tru e
power. They are pow erless because
they have no collective intentions
or objectives. T heir show o f bel­
ligerency is ju st that: a show. Like
boats w ithout paddles or rudders,
they drift tow ard the chasm , know ­
ing som ething is w rong but not
know ing w hat to do about it.
The largely w hite rural H eart­
land o f A m erica is deeply dis­
turbed. People are surprised by the
violence in A rkansas and O kla­
hom a, but the real surprise is that it
d o e sn ’t happen m ore frequently.
Sim ilar in nature, the street gangs
o f urban A m erica are the leading
cause o f death in the black com m u­
nity. T he buzzw ords “black on
black crim e” m ask a violent reality
o f a society rotting from the inside
out.
W hat is the answ er?
The answ er lies in adopting a
sim ple but profound statem ent as a
w ay o f life: all o f life form s one
seam less, interrelated web. T here­
fore, anything I do to anyone, I am
doing to m yself. I choose to re­
solve all conflicts through nego­
tiation rather than confrontation.
P aul T ucker
Paul Tucker is an instructor at Holiday's Health
& Fitness Yoga Center
that supports the highest o f goals
o f hum an attainm ent. Y oga is for
you!
Join a class taught by a trained
teacher in an atm osphere that has
the p ro p er su p p o rts. C hoose a
te a c h e r by a sk in g w ho is the
teacher’s teacher. And who was
that teacher’s teacher. That know l­
edge will give you insight in what
to expect. You can also consult a
source such as the “Yoga Jour­
nal”, a monthly magazine with the
highest o f standards. Ask to take
one or two classes before you
com m it to a longer term class. If
you feel at all uncomfortable with
the teacher or atm osphere, try
anotherclass. What are you w ait­
ing for? Try yoga this week.
o o d V io le n c e
S h a rif Abdullah is a speaker,
educator, workshop leader and
c a ta ly st who s p e c ia liz e s in
inclusivity, community-building
and social/cultural engineering.
He is c u rre n tly d ire c to r o f
A person who is whole does not
have the need for violence.
We must be prepared to set an
exam ple and renounce violence
FIRST. Ifviolence is wrong for the
Iraqis, it is w rong for the A m eri­
cans. A nything less is asking an
adversary to hold still w hile you
beat him up.
To solve the question o f pow er­
lessness, we must address the ques­
tion o f goallessness. We must cul­
tivate a dialog in the schools, in the
hom es, in the com m unity, about
our goals, our pow er, both indi­
vidual and collective. A person
w ith a set o f coherent, achievable
goals sim ply does not have tim e to
feel pow erless, a w hole person
d o e sn 't want to carry and use guns.
It means helping to provide a sense
o f direction and purpose to an aim ­
less life. (The accum ulation o f
m oney is not a hole: rich people
lead pow erless, aim less lives, just
like the poor: they just cover it
better.)
To those who say that security
lies in everyone being capable o f
killing everyone else, think about
the caskets o f the children being
low ered into the ground. Think
about their classm ates behind bars
aw aiting trial. A re we any more
secure?
by Sharif A bdullah
Common way Institute, dedicated
to creating a world that works
fo r all. Sharif can be contacted
at (503) 281-1667, and through
the
In te r n e t
at
sharif@commonway.org.)
P R O I
E C T
Q U E S T
3117 NE M A R TIN LUTHER KING JR. BLVD.
PORTLAND, OREGON 97212
TEL 503-493-0288 FAX 503-493 0289
EXPLORING A N D DISCOVERING
OUR HEALING RESOURCES
PROJECT QUEST IS A NON-PROFIT, DIVERSE
C O M M U N ITY O f PEOPLE AFFECTED BY CHRONIC OR
LIFE-THREATENING ILLNESSES. THE C O M M U N ITY IS
GUIDED BY INTENTIONALITY. INSPIRED BY CREATIVITY
A N D PROVIDES A WELLNESS-FOCUSED ENVIRONMENT
FOR LIVING A N D DYING.
MENTAL HEALTH • GROUP & IN D IV ID U A L
THERAPY • N U TR ITIO N & COOKING PROGRAMS
THERAPEUTIC ART • MUSIC & DANCE PROGRAMS
ACUPUNCTURE • NATUROPATHIC MEDICINE
MASSAGE • HEALING & WELLNESS WORKSHOPS
RETREATS
k ä s itä
H o n o r in g C o n n e c tio n s
A n E arth D a y In te r fa ith C o n f e r e n c e & C e le b r a tio n
S a tu r d a y , A p r il 1 8 , 1 9 9 8 — 9 a m to 5 :3 0 p m
F i r s t U n it e d M e t h o d i s t C h u r c h , 1 8 3 8 S W J e f f e r s o n , P o r t l a n d , O r e g o n
In fo r m a tio n &
R e s e r v a tio n s : C a ll E a r th &
K e y n o t e S p e a k e r « <9 t o 1 1 : 3 0 a m )
5 0 3 .4 5 2 -4 4 8 3 , x 4
E l d r i d g e C l e a v e r <& J a c k W a r d T h o m a s
Eldridge Cleaver, a
former Black Panther,
author, civil rights advo­
cate, and minister who
received the Martin
Luther King award for
literature for his book,
Soul On Ice, now espouses reconciliation between
humanity and the rest of Creation.
S’
S p ir it C o u n c il @
Jack Ward Thomas,
author of the Spotted
Owl Report, is the
former Chief of the US
Forest Service, and
currently is Professor
of Wildlife Biology at
the University of
Montana.
M orning Keynote: $10 for adults & $5 for students and seniors.
Afternoon workshops and evening celebration: FREE.
Parking Available, or take the #57 bus.
T IC K E T O U T L E T S
New Renaissance Bookshop, 1338 NW 23rd. Phone 224-4929
Unity World Healing Center, Words of Wisdom Bookstore, 366 - 3rd St., Lake Oswego. Phone 697-9765
Cedar Mountain Drums, 2237 E. Burnside. Phone 235-6345
Looking Glass Bookstore, 318 SW Taylor. Phone 227-4760
Living Enrichment Center, 29500 SW Grahams Ferry Rd, Wilsonville Phone 682-5683
FIRST UNITED
METHODIST
CHURCH
©
¿Elje ÇJortlanô
(OhBerucr
deep e co.
LIVING ENRICHMENT CENTER
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