Page 630 - Total War on PTSD
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Moxibustion — Every time Lobsang visits the clinic, Dr. Jamling and I perform moxibustion on him, burning the herb Artemisia vulgaris on the front and back points of the body.
Aromatherapy — Dr. Jamling gives Lobsang a special rLung incense stick for him to burn at dawn and in the evening — the times of heightened rLung energy and anxiety. She shows him how to breathe it in. The theory behind incense aromatherapy is that the breath is intimately linked with the mind. By deeply breathing in the incense, the mind calms down. The special ingredients in the incense bring soothing herbs in minute quantities into the energetic channels where rLung resides. Some of the ingredients of this incense recipe include: aloeswood, myrobalan, asofoetida, Aquilaria, and roseroot. The herbal pills contain the same herbal ingredients as in the incense, but in differing quantities and combinations. Dr. Jamling actually makes this special incense in her monastery in Dharamsala. It is made from a “secret” recipe from The Four Tantras, the main Tibetan medical text. For generations it has been used to ease the symptoms of rLung Imbalance.
Bodywork — For Lobsang, both his stomach and his heart are affected by the rLung Imbalance. Dr. Jamling recommended massaging the rLung points on both the front and back of the body to help with this kind of imbalance. The warmed massage oil is a mixture of sesame oil, fennel seeds or star anise, caraway seeds, and nutmeg. Massage is an important part of the treatment, and Lobsang takes it upon himself to find someone to do the massage every day in the first weeks of treatment.
A Tibetan Healing Exercise to Help with rLung — Dr. Jamling recommended that Lobsang roll his head around completely three times in one direction, and three times in another, very slowly, every morning and evening after using the incense. This relaxed
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