Simon & Schuster Handbook of Chinese Medicine and Ayurveda: An Integrated Practice of Ancient Healing Traditions

For anyone interested in Ayurveda and TCM, this is a gem. Bridgette puts a wealth of information, and makes this complicated information accessible so a layman can understand. As far as people who give negative reviews about this book, it is simply amazing that people can give 1 or 2 stars to a book of this quality. Additionally, anyone who claims to be a practitioner of these modalities and give it 2 stars, I would never let you touch me as your critical nature and negativity would not only corrupt your work, but would be a perversion of these healing traditions.

Bridgette Shea takes two complex and, for westerners, foreign, modalities and beautifully describes and explains how they relate to one another and to the western approach to health care. An invaluable resource for the person just beginning to explore either of these ancient approaches to the body, mind and spirit. As a Licensed Massage Therapist, an RN, and now a student of restorative yoga therapy, I have been introduced to Ayurveda and Traditional Chinese Medicine, but this book helped me really begin to have some basic understanding of it for the first time. With other books and even with live instruction, I always just felt lost and overwhelmed by how different these systems seem than the western model. So basically I would just give up trying to understand. Now, I feel excited to finally be bridging to a new and larger understanding of these amazing systems. Bridgette Shea is both a true healer and a gifted teacher and writer. Buy this book.

loved the readability in layman's terms. it is a wealth of information. Bought one for my daughter as well.

This book is fascinating and eye opening! If only our current Western medical model would fully embrace and integrate with Eastern philosophies, we may finally realize a decrease in so many diseases that plague or society today. Western medicine tends to treat the symptoms, as opposed to deeply investigating the root of the problem, which may go so much deeper than the physical body. Bridgette invites us to investigate the deeper layers by introducing the concept of chakras and energy centers as well as qi and prana, nadis and meridians. This book offers tools towards self assessment with treatment modalities that may offer alternatives to embrace a more holistic intervention.

This book is a fabulous and informative journey into the world of tradional Asian health and healing. As a newbie into this genre, I was so impressed with Bridgette’s easily understood explanations and examples throughout the book. The glossary is a wonderful reference to refresh and clarify many terms which were new to me. In addition to the fascinating discussions on these ancient traditions, the author offers a wealth of suggestions for self-care, remedies, nutrition, and specific well-being practices. This book is a treasure of wisdom on Asian health and healing.