🌿 Folk Prescriptions

Tonification and sedation are fundamental principles in traditional Chinese medicine. “Cold conditions treated with heat, hot conditions treated with cold”—this is standard therapeutic practice.
Many people believe tonification and sedation apply only to herbal medicine. In fact, although acupuncture and herbs use different methods, their underlying therapeutic principles are consistent. The application of tonification and sedation techniques in acupuncture must be based on clear differentiation and diagnosis. Abstract discussion of tonification and sedation without proper diagnostic context is impractical.
Acupuncture is an external therapeutic tool that promotes disease recovery. However, achieving tonification of deficiency and sedation of excess requires internal physiological functions (such as organ qi transformation) to take effect. Therefore, appropriate tonification and sedation techniques must consider various factors—including illness type, constitution, age, emotional state, climate, and environment—and integrate them organically with the principle of tonifying deficiency and sedating excess. Clinical experience shows that either excessive or insufficient manipulation in tonification/sedation can lead to treatment failure or even worsening of the condition—such cases are common.
Acupuncture achieves tonification and sedation through specific needle techniques. As stated in *Ling Shu: Nine Needles and Twelve Origins*: “The essence of tonification and sedation lies in the nine needles; the technique is achieved through the needle.” Tonification refers broadly to methods that invigorate the body’s vital energy, restoring diminished function to vitality. Sedation refers broadly to methods that expel pathogenic factors, normalizing hyperactive functions. Ancient physicians developed numerous acupuncture tonification and sedation techniques through long-term clinical practice.
Tonification is used for various deficiency syndromes. Small rotation angles, light force, slow frequency, short duration, thumb moving forward, index finger backward; during lifting and inserting, insert shallow then deep, press heavily, lift lightly, small amplitude, slow frequency, short duration, emphasizing downward insertion; insert slowly, remove quickly; needle tip follows the direction of meridian flow, inserted along the meridian; insert during exhalation, remove during inhalation; close the needle hole after removal. These are key considerations when applying tonification.
Sedation is applied to various excess syndromes. Large rotation angles, strong force, fast frequency, longer duration, thumb backward, index finger forward; during lifting and inserting, insert deep then shallow, insert lightly, lift heavily, large amplitude, fast frequency, long duration, emphasizing upward lifting; insert quickly, remove slowly; needle tip opposes the direction of meridian flow, inserted against the meridian; remove during exhalation, insert during inhalation; do not close the needle hole after removal, and even widen it by shaking. These techniques yield excellent results for excess conditions.
Two special complex tonification-sedation techniques—“Burning Heaven Fire” and “Penetrating Heart Cold”—are rarely used clinically due to their complexity.
For conditions where deficiency and excess are unclear or mixed, clinicians often adopt balanced tonification and sedation. After obtaining Qi sensation, uniform lifting, inserting, and rotation techniques are applied.
In special circumstances (e.g., coma), where patients cannot cooperate, practitioners must carefully observe objective signs, using treatment efficacy as the primary criterion. As *Ling Shu: Small Needle Explanation Chapter Three* states: “For deficiency and excess, it is as if one has gained or lost. When tonifying, one must feel as though something has been gained; when sedating, one feels as though something has been lost.”