"Ayurveda: An Introduction" talk - Free!

I'm pleased to present the very exciting "Ayurveda: An Introduction" event this Thursday.

Ayurveda is a form of traditional Indian medicine based on diet, massage and exercise. It has a strong emphasis on the use of herbs, food and oils, and bases its treatments on a theory of internal elements. Dr Eduardo Cardona-Sanclemente, who has taught pharmacology at King's and is a leading research scientist and ayurvedic practioner, will be giving us an introduction to the principles and methods of Ayurveda, and its relevance to common diseases in the UK, such as Hypertension, Diabetes and Arthritis.

Refreshments will be available on the night and there will be an informal Q&A afterwards.

What? "Ayurveda: An Introduction" talk by Dr Eduardo Cardona-Sanclemente
When? Thursday 17th November, 5:45pm (5:30 for refreshments)
Where? Percy Roberts Room (bottom floor of Gordon Museum) Hodgkin Building, Guy's Campus.

You're welcome and indeed encouraged to come with friends, and it'd be great to see everyone there!

Lots of love from IMS,

Alison Liu
IMS President 2011-2012
ims.kcl@gmail.com
imskcl.blogspot.com
07815762852

Ayurveda Event - Free!

Hi Guys,

Great news!

We have an Ayurveda speaker scheduled to come in next week!
So look out more more details which will be posted / emailed tomorrow. :)

~Alison Liu
IMS President 2011/2012
ims.kcl@gmail.com

Acupuncture Workshops: Sessions 2&3

It was great to see everyone again at the 2nd and 3rd workshop sessions, and I think I can safely say we had a brilliant time trying out Acumedic's electro-acupuncture equipment!

Prof Mei talked us different types of acupuncture and its modern day uses, including:
1) Chemotherapy side effect reduction
2) Pain Relief (eg Chronic Back Pain, as indicated by NICE)
3) Surgical anaesthesia in patients allergic to conventional anaesthetics

He also described possible mechanisms for how acupuncture works:
1) Pain Signal Blocking
2) Neurotransmitter Stimulation
3) Stimulation of Immune system and Auto-repair mechanisms

We got to try out some cutting edge electo-acupuncture pens, slippers and acupressure equipment, and learnt the locations of some useful acupuncture points, including the "Student's point", which is meant to improve concentration and memory - very handy!

The last session covered more on diagnosis and the key parts of a Chinese medicine consultation.

We learnt about tongue and pulse diagnosis, including how to take a pulse and differentiate a 'Floating' pulse from a 'Sunken' one. We also compared our own tongues to a fantastic library of patient tongue images illustrating different syndromes and diseases.

Herbal medicines and the health benefits of tea were discussed, and we discovered the basics of tea drinking and how to work out if a tea is 'White', 'Green', 'Oolong', 'Red', 'Poo'erh' and more.

This year's Acupuncture course has been a real success and I hope everyone has really enjoyed it!
Look out for certificates soon, and for those who missed the course this time, we will be arranging another one after Christmas.

~Alison Liu
IMS President 2011-2012
ims.kcl@gmail.com

Acupuncture Workshops: First Session

It was great to see everyone at the Acupuncture Workshop.
Professor Man Fong Mei took us through the basic philosophies behind chinese medicine and acupuncture, covering topics such as:

1. Ying and Yang interactions
2. Qi: life force and health
3. 5 Elements theory
4. 'Relativity' - emotions and the organs; Disease and hot/cold states
5. Types of Acupuncture: Medical, Trigger and Traditional
6. Sub-health, infertility and chemotherapy: where Chinese medicines have had success

The workshops will continue to run for the next 2 Thursdays, and I hope to see lots of you there. If you want to be put on the reserve list, email me at ims.kcl@gmail.com saying "I'm interested in attending the Acupuncture workshop".

Free! Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine Workshop 2011

IMS brings you an amazing opportunity to learn Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine.

This is a free 3 part course run by Professor Man Fong Mei of the Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, one of the most respected professionals in his field and is a world expert regarding Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine. It involves an introduction to the theory and methods behind Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine, through talk, demonstration and open Q&A.

Time: 5:15 - 7:15pm
Dates: Thursday 6th October, Thursday 13th October, and Thursday 20th October
Location: Acumedic Clinic, 101-105 Camden High Street, London, NW1 7JN
Cost: Free!

Everyone who attends will get a certificate for the course, and each session covers one aspect, so don't worry if you can't make all of the sessions. We will be meeting as a group at London Bridge Underground station at 5pm, and going to Acumedic via Camden Town Underground Station, so if anyone is unsure how to get there, we can pick people up on the way to avoid getting lost.

I hope to see as many of you as possible, as this truly is a unique and amazing opportunity.

How to register:
1) Check if your name is on the 'Interested' list (at bottom of post). If it isn't, email ims.kcl@gmail.com saying "I'm interested in attending the acupuncture workshop"
2) Join Integrative Medicine Society at the SU or kclsu.org (membership fee is £5).
3) Let me know if you want to meet us at London bridge or Camden Town

That's it! Just make sure you turn up on Thursday!

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.
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It was great to meet everyone who came to IMS Welcome. More information on upcoming events will follow, as will steamed buns and tea.

Warmest regards,

Alison Liu
IMS President 2011
ims.kcl@gmail.com
www.kclims.blogspot.com
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Acupuncture Signups:

Alex Lai Ivy Rai Zara Hayat Tania Bhadun Divya Rajani Sonia Sharma Lucas Brammall Christine Weaver Megan Barton Lianne Yearwood Suganiya Nadarasa Patricia Ramji Vinusha balakrishnan Achvini sriskanthanathan Fiona Hickling Georgie Kendall Felicia Yeung Vijay Sadhvik Gareth Wilson Raghda Ibrahem Sait Mohammed Ashvin Babbar