Blood
Blood is thought of not just as a fluid in the body, but more importantly in terms of its function:  filling the vessels and maintaining pressure, carrying nutrients and oxygen to the sinews and tissues, warming the body, and nourishing the Qi.

Cold Foods
In Chinese medicine, foods are sometimes classified by temperature. Foods such as garlic and ginger are hot, mutton and basil are warm, licorice and salmon are neutral, and so on.  If you are recovering from an injury, or if you suffer from diarrhea or often feel tired after you eat, it is best to avoid cold and even cool foods. This includes raw vegetables, many raw fruits, and some foods like tofu and clams. You can remove the cold quality from raw vegetables by cooking them, if only a little bit. Any method is fine, so long as they change color slightly. This signals that the cell membranes have burst and the nutrients have been released. As for tofu, clams, watermelon, and ice cream, it is better to avoid them altogether until you have recovered. Once your body is not challenged with the responsibility of healing itself, its energy can be more easily diverted from time to time to deal with cold foods.

Contusion
Bruise. Bruises are often considered insignificant, and usually heal on their own within a few days.  However, because a contusion is the result of ruptured vessels leaking blood into the surrounding tissues, they can be quite serious. If a bruise does not heal relatively quickly or is not treated properly from the beginning, the blood and fluids which stagnate locally can cause discomfort, swelling, even limited muscle use and range of motion years later. Some bruises, usually black in color, are deep enough to be at the level of the bone. Also, if a bruise resolves its color but is still sore when pressed it is a clear indication that stasis exists deep within the tissues, and only the top-most layer of blood stagnation has been removed. Bruises like these can literally glue muscle fibers together, leaving painful and limited range of motion as the consequence.

Dysmenorrhea
Painful or difficult menstrual period

Fascia
Fascia is the connective tissue of the body. It covers not only muscles, but also internal organs.  Fascia also lies between the skin and muscle (or adipose tissue). One example of fascia which can cause significant pain and limit range of motion when active trigger points are present is the ITB band on the side of the leg. 

Qi
M most texts describe qi as ‘vital energy.’ Others translate it as ‘matter on the verge of becoming energy, energy on the verge of becoming matter.’ While this is true, I prefer to think of qi in terms of its functions:  qi is the source of all movement in the body, as well as movement itself. It is the function of the organs, and the quality of those functions. It is the warming factor of the body as well as the transformative factor responsible for the extraction of nutrients from food and water. Often elevated to mystical heights by those wishing to sell something, Qi is really just movement and heat. The Chinese character for Qi is about as ordinary as can be: it depicts steam escaping from a pot of cooking rice.

Moxa
Dried leaves of the Artemesia plant (Mugwort), used as a form of therapy in Chinese medicine. Moxa is said to enter the acupuncture channels, drive out cold, relieve pain, and restore deficiencies. After harvesting the plants and drying the leaves, a sort of “moxa wool” is formed and can then be used in a variety of mediums:
1) rolled into cigar-shaped moxa sticks, ignited, and held at a safe distance above the skin, this is probably the most popular application here in the US;
2) attached directly to the handle of a needle and ignited to drive the warmth directly into the acupuncture point;
3) rolled by the acupuncturist into rice-grain sized pieces and ignited directly on the skin producing a warming sensation and stimulation of the immune system.

In Chinese medicine, acupuncture (“jiu”) is rarely referred to without mentioning moxibustion (“zhen”). Thus the character depicting acupuncture is commonly “zhen jiu." Moxa’s effects on the body have become the subject of much medical research, especially in Japan where moxibustion clinics have existed for centuries, treating patients with moxa alone.

Moxibustion
The process of using moxa in the treatment of disease, injury, or other conditions.

Myofascial
R elating to muscle and the fascia which surrounds the muscle.

Trigger Point
A tight “knot” or a point of what Dr. Janet Travell termed “exquisite pain,” commonly found in muscles and fascia. Trigger points (TrP’s) can cause intense pain locally, or can refer pain, tingling, numbness, or even weakness to distant areas of the body which mimic other diseases. For example, trigger points in the left pectoralis minor muscle can refer pain down the left arm, mimicking pain characteristic of heart attack or angina, while TrP’s in the scalene muscles of the neck can refer pain and numbness into the fingers of the hand mimicking carpal tunnel syndrome. Regardless of differential diagnosis, TrP’s can cause pain, numbness, or tingling in areas of the body which inhibit range of motion and limit daily activities for many patients.