Saturday, January 15, 2011

Kum Kwat Seeds for a Divorced Lady

A former Stanford professor finished her treatment session and met her friend in the waiting room.  She introduced her to me, “Dr. Ng, meet my good friend.”  After saying hello to her friend, I plucked a few fresh kum kwats from my tree which I bought to celebrate the Chinese Lunar New Year.
 
I explained the name “kum kwat” to them: “Kum means gold, kwat means tangerine.”  Both of them tasted the kum kwats.  They said that it tasted sweet and at the same time very sour.  They laughed loudly and asked what is the benefit of eating kum kwats?  I told them it can make the stomach better and regulate the qi better.  My patient asked, “Can it make my friend feel better? She just went through a divorce and she is not happy.”  I told her that she could also chew and eat the kum kwat seeds.  Her friend said,  “Really!”  I said, “Yes, sometimes when I don’t have time to cook herbs for myself (because I am being driven nuts by my patients), I eat kum kwats or oranges, and I also chew and eat the seeds.  I feel better.”  So her friend ate a few kum kwats and chewed the seeds.  As we kept on talking, the divorced lady said she felt better; I explained to her that the feeling of fullness in her chest is better and easier due to the qi (qi could also mean air) being adjusted.  But she was also doubtful and asked, “Could it be psychology?”  I responded, “Talk to your friend; she will explain it to you.”
This lady asked, “Dr. Ng, qi also means air?” I answered, “Yes, there are many kinds of energy, you can call it qi, and if you want to learn more, you can talk to your friend.  I have told her many things about TCM.”  She said, “By the way, how is my friend doing?”  I said, “You can get the answer from her smile.”

I told them that we often cook the seeds to serve to patients, but very seldom do I let my patients chew them, but since I myself did it once in awhile, it couldn’t hurt.  I also told them there are many kinds of herbs that I have tried myself so that when I give them to my patients I do so with the confidence that they are safe to ingest.

Treatment Principles:
¨     Energy that is “stuck” can be understood as gas.
¨     Kum Kwat seeds can neutralize gas.

1 comment:

  1. I eat but never chew. It's sweet and sometimes too much and you'll stop eating.

    Next time when I'm not feeling happy, I'll definitely try to chew the seeds.

    A good tool for the readers of 'Sword & Lute' where they can realize 'THE MEANING OF LIFE' and even can find some effective prescription.

    ReplyDelete