About Lobsang Dhonden Soktsang
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Lobsang Dhonden Soktsang has life-long experience in the field of Traditional Tibetan Medicine, and has studied and practised over the past thirty years in Tibet, India and the United Kingdom. He trained at the Central Medical Institute for Traditional Tibetan Medicine in Lhasa, and graduated with the first class honours degree. After graduating, he worked at the Lhasa Mentsi Khang Hospital, a centre of excellence of Traditional Tibetan Medicine. Later he studied in Dharamsala, India, where he was awarded the men-rampa (masters in Tibetan Medicine). Lobsang gained further experience in various clinics before establishing his own practice in Orissa India.
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Lobsang Dhonden Soktsang came to UK at the invitation of Akong Tulku Rinpoche, trustee of Tara Trust (then Tara Rokpa Edinburgh) and Director of the Tara Institute of Tibetan Medicine in 2001 as the 5th visiting Tibetan Doctor to be invited by the Institute to hold Clinics and teach. Akong Rinpoche and the other directors of Tara Institute of Tibetan Medicine requested Lobsang Soktsang to stay permanently to provide the highest quality of Tibetan Medicine in its clinics in the UK. In 2004 Lobsang Soktsang’s wife and children moved to Edinburgh to join him and the whole family achieved British nationality in 2007. He continues to be employed by Tara Trust in Edinburgh where he maintains his main clinic. The Trust also arranges clinics in London, Eskdalemuir and Dublin.
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He is a founder member of the British Association Traditional Tibetan Medicine (BATTM) which is committed to statutory regulation of herbal and traditional medical systems in the UK and Europe. Lobsang continues to reside in Edinburgh with his wife and two teenage children.
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About Tibetan Medicine
Traditional Tibetan Medicine (TTM) has absorbed two great Asian systems of medicine, namely those of India and China, as well as elements of Mongolian, Persian and other medical systems. It is a vast and highly evolved medical science which can no more be summed up in a few web pages than can modern Western medicine. Its depth, vastness, subtlety and maturity as a medical system strike nearly all who come to study it. In Tibet, these theoretical medical studies took at least five years (with a very intense curriculum), followed by years of internship or apprenticeship for practical experience.
This is what a consultation with a Tibetan doctor typically involves:
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Examination:
Imbalances are predominantly detected by examining the patient's pulse. This is not a simple counting of heartbeats. The Tibetan doctor uses it to 'listen in' to to the workings of the entire body including all the major organs. Depending on this assessment, the doctor may make further examinations.
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Treatment:
Treatment focuses on four areas: diet, behaviour, herbal medication and external treatments such as acupuncture.
Diet and behaviour:
The doctor may suggest changes in lifestyle and diet which may bring relief and improve health.
Herbal medication:
Herbal medication may be prescribed. This is usually in the form of powders or pills.
External treatments:
The doctor may occasionally use acupuncture or moxibustion, usually in short courses or consecutive days, if it is thought necessary. Moxibustion uses heated herbs on specific points similar to those used in acupuncture.
The herbs:
Tibetan medicines are prepared from rare plants and herbs grown mainly on the Tibetan plateau. The medicines are made according to an age-old tradition, which follows strict methods, and uses sophisticated processing techniques. Each Tibetan doctor has their own supplier, to safeguard provenance, and ensure that the medicines are made to their exact specifications.
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What to expect:
The first consultation lasts approximately 30 minutes. Tibetan doctors, just like their Western counterparts, see their patients in strictest confidence. Further consultations will depend on the patient's response to the treatment.
The therapies/treatments on offer are not being offered by Kagyu Samye Dzong London but by the practitioner/doctor personally. Kagyu Samye Dzong London is not responsible for the treatment and accepts no liability in respect thereof.
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