My first introduction to traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) was topical herbs, specifically formulas called jows. Unlike many in my profession, my first encounter with TCM didn't take place in a clinic. Instead, it happened in a kwan one Saturday morning after months of doing a ridiculous number of push-ups, frog jumps, and horse stances for reasons that are still unclear. Finally, the day arrived when I got a break and had the opportunity to make medicine. At the time, this medicine wasn't cheap; I believe the herbs cost around 200 bucks, not to mention the two gallons of vodka I wasn't even old enough to purchase. Fortunately, even low-quality vodka worked for the task, so that didn't cost too much. The vodka would be used to soak the herbs once they were ground up. Speaking of grinding herbs, at that time, I hadn't even heard of an herb grinder. I suppose that was the price of being a good kid. Plus, it wouldn't have been of much help, as many of the herbs in these formulas were hard minerals that didn't easily grind.
However, Herb Day was a big deal, not only because it meant a lot of push-ups that day, but also because it signaled a shift in training. After all those push-ups and frog jumps, myself and the rest of the iron bone class were ready to start hitting stuff. The jows we were making were specifically designed to assist with the soft tissue trauma and bone damage that this training could cause.
Fast forward a decade or so, and I finally had the chance to go to school for this stuff and learn why the herbs worked, at least from a TCM perspective. I also discovered that there were numerous variations of jows, though most were essentially the same, and that TCM had even more specific formulas for topicals for different types of injuries. To be fair, Chinese martial arts and medicine aren't the only ones with topicals like this. In Southeast Asian arts, they are often referred to as Balor, and in the Filipino art of Pekiti, I have heard them simply called "monkey brains" based on what the herbs resemble.
Topical herbs work incredibly well for soft tissue and sports injuries. They can be customized based on the injured tissue, time since the injury, location, and condition of the patient, making them even more effective. Applying heat through an external source like a heat lamp or pad often enhances the effectiveness of the herbs. Moxa or mugwort was traditionally used in TCM due to its consistent burning and other herbal properties. However, if you don't have moxa readily available or don't want to explain to local law enforcement or your neighbors that it's just moxa, any heat source that won't burn you will do. I've even had people tell me they used a hair dryer. The key is simply to heat up the herbs and tissue together.
For those interested in learning more about herbal topicals, I strongly recommend reading "A Tooth from the Tiger's Mouth: How to Treat Your Injuries with Powerful Healing Secrets of the Great Chinese Warrior" by Tom Bisio. It can be found used for less than 10 bucks and is a great starting point. In the book, the author points out that while every Kung Fu school claims their formula is special and better than all the rest, they are mostly more or less the same.
The benefit of using topical herbs for injuries isn't just that they offer an alternative treatment, but also because, in many cases, they expedite the healing process without blunting or just masking the pain like treatments such as icing an injury are known to do. Additionally, they resolve bruising faster than anything else I have seen.
So, the next time you sprain an ankle or have a shin-to-shin collision with someone, perhaps consider finding a TCM herbalist and picking up a good topical. And if you're the kind of person who regularly finds themselves in shin-to-shin situations, get out of the way! Also, it might be a good idea to keep a bottle of jow in your gym bag. Seriously these topicals might just be the closest we mortals can get to recovering like Wolverine.
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