ETCs: Journey To The East - On Trying Traditional Chinese Medicine

(image from City Data)

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(image from Cliker)

(image from Cultural China)

I used to have a lot of allergies growing up I've tried almost everything that the doctor could come up with. It doesn't get rid of it, but it does help relieve some of the manifestations. A few years after I graduated from college, I learned about a clinic in Ortigas that offers both eastern and western medicine. The clinic was called SynergyMed Center located at Discovery Suites. I don't think it still exists, but if you guys have an idea if they moved to a different location, do drop me a note.

I still remember when I went there for a consultation. Two doctors will be diagnosing me separately, an eastern medicine doctor and a western medicine doctor. Both will be giving recommendations, but they will leave it up to me to decide as to which one to follow. The first doctor that I was escorted to used western medicine. Being trained in the western craft, he would try to convince me to stick to it because he couldn't guarantee the effects of eastern medicine. Expected statement. Now comes the eastern medicine doctor. She's from Mainland China and had a Fil-Chi doctor with her that served as her translator. She suggested a concoction that composed of who knows what and just looked like ground tree dirt. I figured that I've been using western medicine for so long that it wouldn't hurt to try the eastern one since the contents of what I'm supposed to consume are things that are found in nature.

At that time, like year 2003 time, I was supposed to drink 5 packs of the medicine. Each pack costs Php125. I was advised that if I didn't like the taste of the drink, I can just add sugar and it will taste like Milo. I opened a pack, dissolved it in water. It taste like ground tree dirt. I can still remember my boss laughing at me for pushing through with a crazy idea. But hey, it's been paid for, so I'll stick to it. I added in sugar to make it taste like Milo as the good doctor advised. It tasted like ground tree dirt...with sugar. If that's how Chinese Milo tastes like, I'm sticking with the Philippine blend. So, what happened to me after going through 5 days of drinking crap? I haven't used an antihistamine up to this day. So, I was convinced that I was one of those who respond more to eastern medication.

Since I wasn't able to go back to SynergyMed or found something like it, I was back to western medicines except for cough medications that include:

Pei Pa Koa

(image from Banana In China)

Sea Coconut

(image from Amalux Herbal)

Snake Bile with Honey
(I don't know how you call it in Chinese, but I take this when the other 2 didn't work)

(image from Made In China)

I was reminded of my SynergyMed experience when I was watching an episode of Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern. It was this Hong Kong episode wherein he went to meet a Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) doctor who gave him a 5-day special tea drinking regimen that he gave up on after a few days. He described it like how my SynergyMed brew tasted like. So, I guess that gives me a tougher belly to stomach the 5-day challenge hahaha

Thinking about it though, maybe I need to revisit TCM for detox or realign my meridians or something. Hmmm