I practice a style of acupuncture known as Saam acupuncture, which is widely used in Korea. It was developed over 400 years ago by a Buddhist monk and physician whose name is uncertain, but was given the name SaAm, meaning “cave dweller.” SaAm meditated on the classic Chinese medicine texts and created a new system that paired the channels using the 5 Elements with the 6 Conformations, which differs from traditional Chinese medicine. This framework includes the yin-yang (陰陽) and five-phase (五 行) theories, mainly derived from the Yi Jing (易 經, Classic of Changes), Huangdi Neijing Suwen and Lingshu (黃帝內經素問靈樞, Huang Di’s Inner Classic – Plain Questions and Spiritual Pivot), and Nan Jing (難經, Classic of Difficult Issues). The diagnostic method I learned was passed down from Toby Daly, who learned it orally from his teacher, Doam, a wandering Buddhist monk. (I am grateful to Toby for his teachings and to Michael Max for producing his invaluable lessons.)

Rooted in the Mind-Body Connection
SaAm developed this acupuncture technique based on the philosophy that mental health can manifest as physical health, meaning one’s mind can influence physical symptoms and vice versa. We live in a holographic universe, where patterns appear throughout all aspects of life. SaAm used the Chinese Medicine classics as the foundation for these patterns, including up/down, inward/outward, hot/cold, and dry/wet, across the lifecycle. 

The mind-body connection is precisely what the late, great cardiologist Herbert Benson wrote about in his many books, and it is now becoming increasingly mainstream. This concept was present in Chinese Medicine 2000 years ago and in Korea 500 years ago, so the future is catching up with the past. Saam acupuncture is not only effective for emotional challenges but also very effective for physical symptoms such as pain and illness.

Saam acupuncture involves various diagnostic and treatment methods, all based on understanding how visible and invisible patterns appear in our bodies. Accurate diagnosis by connecting seemingly unrelated symptoms or patterns is key to successful treatment.

Point Locations
Patients who have received acupuncture before often find it surprising that Saam treatments use so few needles. Saam acupuncture targets acupoints below the elbow and knee joints, known as the five transport or shu points. These five shu points cover large areas in the brain’s cortical representation in the postcentral sensory gyrus. Saam acupuncture effectively activates specific body regions via the brain with just a few points. My job is to carefully select the point prescription for each patient on that particular day. I rarely perform the same treatment more than twice in a row, as each session begins with observing the patient’s physical and emotional state on that day.

Efficacy
I have studied with several world-renowned acupuncture teachers, and I have not seen the quick clinical results that I observe with Saam treatments. Every day in the clinic, I witness remarkable healing. You can search PubMed and find numerous studies demonstrating Saam’s effectiveness in treating a wide range of conditions.

I recently published an article in the Journal of Chinese Medicine about using Saam to help halt autoimmune progression.

With its powerful effectiveness, there is also a drawback: if the wrong treatment is given, someone might experience unwanted reactions. Fortunately, with Saam treatments, we can easily correct a mistaken treatment and rectify the situation. Please don’t worry, I am confident I will not administer an incorrect treatment, but if it happens because I do not see you clearly, the symptoms can be reversed immediately. I believe that for any condition, it is worth exploring Saam treatments to see if we can create a positive change. Every day, I am amazed by the human body’s ability to heal itself when given certain inputs, such as acupuncture needles at specific points. I hope you will be too.

Below is my published Saam case study.

References