The Best of 2008 on CMNotes
Posted on December 29, 2008 by Yael
I’m bouncing back into action after being sick for a week or so.
As it is the end of 2008, it is only right to look back and see what on earth I’ve been upto here on CMNotes!
Turns out, I have some good stuff:
Dr. Leon Hammer is one name that keeps coming up here, as it did since my second year or so of school.
I was lucky enough to have a number of chats with Dr. Hammer over e-mails, and one of the posts I am most proud of is the interview I got to do with him.
One of his students, Ross Rosen, was kind enough to write our very first guest post here on CMNotes, about Chinese Pulse Diagnosis.
I am not a herbs fan.
I know this annoys some, and I know that many out there think that herbs are the main method for treatment.
I do not think so, not because I’m trying to annoy anyone (really I don’t), but simply because I think acupuncture is a finer way of treatment.
I got some heat for these kind of remarks on Twitter, and even here on CMNotes- but hey, it really makes the conversation a whole lot more interesting, doesn’t it?
Another post I am happy about is The Problem With Chinese Herbs, I think it shows that it is not very easy to take Chinese herbs, even if you are from the Chinese Medicine community. I think that as practitioners we sometimes tend to forget that it is not a given, to make a commitment by taking herbs, for various reasons.
2008 was for me a lot about Prof. Heiner Fruehauf.
I was fortunate to take part in the ICCM Congress here in Israel, and Heiner was one of the guests this year.
I think that one of the things I wish for myself is to hear Heiner again. I thought I’d be able to do so in the upcoming Rothenburg congress, but it turns out I will not be able to attend, so who knows when I’ll hear Heiner again?
You can read about my Heiner Experience here and the second part, here, from a different perspective.
Another post I am very proud of is My Own Private Small Intestine.
Being a mother indeed made me understand Chinese Medicine on a deeper level, and helped me look at the “bigger picture” a whole lot better.
To be honest though, it started during pregnancy.
I wrote The Foundations of Pregnancy in Chinese Medicine during my pregnancy (the Hebrew version, this is a translation), and while I was studying a year of Chinese Gynecology. Right there, I started to understand Chinese Medicine on a deeper level. Funny how that works, isn’t it?
And of course this goes on.
I have started to read Julian Scott’s book about acupuncture in children, because I feel Chinese Medicine has a very good grasp on what is going on during those early years.
I haven’t read anymore because of different reasons (will update you soon about them), but I will get back to it very soon, I hope you’ll join me!
Speaking of Julian, and one of the most fun posts I wrote was about Julian Scott.
Hmmm. This name comes up a lot on CMNotes, doesn’t it?
I will mention 3 more names, which I was happy to have an e-mail-interview with:
Phillipe Sionneau, a French practitioner with an interesting view on Chinese Medicine;
Arya Neilsen, a practitioner that has everything to do with Gua Sha;
And Peter Deadman, the man behind the JCM and much more- he really doesn’t need an introduction from me.
Another new category in CMNotes is The Library, which will grow more and more as 2009 unfolds.
3 posts in here that I think have important value:
The 7 Emotions- a review on one of the most beautiful books I have ever read;
Abdominal Acupuncture- a very interesting article by Tuvia Scott (no relation to Julian);
Never Market Again- a review on Burton Kent’s eBook, which is becoming more and more important to all of us!
I was very happy to write about Kamedis, a line of products for various skin disorders that are based on Chinese herbs. As I have tried some of them myself, I think they are wonderful, and I was happy to write about this line and let you know about it- if you are not familiar with it by now.
This year I was touched by the story of Randy Pausch, I brave man who battled cancer in an uncommon and very brave way. He passed away on July 2008, but I will always remember him and his brave family.
Another post that was important to me was about poverty, as a part of Blog Action Day.
I still can’t believe that there are many people in the world that can not afford medical care- of any kind.
The thought that medical care is a privilege and not a basic right alarms me almost every time I think about it!
I had a lot to say on 2008.
I think I’ll have a lot more to say on 2009. 
Happy New Year everybody!
