Listening is one of the four pillars of Traditional Chinese Medicine

In our clinical practice, listening with intent involves so much more than listening with our ears. The classical Chinese character for listen 聽 “Ting”  captures the true nature of really listening: “We listen with our mind and really try to process what is being said. With our eyes, we look, observe, and catch the unsaid gestures and body language. We are at one with the person speaking and give them our undivided attention. Our heart is in it as we listen with empathy and a true, inward desire to understand.” 

Being a good listener is part of our cultivation. We need a  clear mind to use the given information and figure out what that means in how we can help our patients. We need to listen without judgment and bias so we can connect with our patients from where they stand. Sometimes it’s a dance between knowing and not knowing. It is a yinyang experience that requires us to bring all of our attention and presence to our patients; yet, at the same time, brings awareness to our own internal responses.

Listening well allows us to be a facilitator and cultivator to our patient’s natural healing. We can communicate better with our patients, ask the right questions, gain better insights for a clear diagnosis, and, most of all, help our patients reconnect to who they are.

Chinese medicine is indeed both an art and philosophy that grows with us.