Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 28, 2026

A Multiple Integrated Social Stress Model for Psychiatric Disorders in Female C57BL/6J Mice
Published on: July 15, 2025
Unbalanced Flows in the Subtle Body: Tibetan Understandings of Psychiatric Illness and How to Deal With It
1School of History, Archaeology and Religion, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK. SamuelG@cardiff.ac.uk.
Abstract:
Much of what Western medicine classifies as psychiatric illness is understood by Tibetan thought as associated with imbalance of rlung (wind, breath). Rlung has a dual origin in Indian thought, combining elements from Ayurvedic medicine and Tantric Buddhism. Tibetan theories of rlung seem to correspond in significant ways with Western concepts of the autonomic nervous system (ANS), and Western medicine too has associated psychiatric issues with ANS problems. But what is involved in relating Tibetan ideas of rlung to Western ideas of the emotions and the ANS? The article presents elements of the two systems and then explores similarities and differences between them. It asks whether the similarities could be the basis for a productive encounter between Tibetan and Western modes of understanding and treating psychiatric illness. What could Western psychiatry learn from Tibetan approaches in this area?
More Related Videos
07:50Author Spotlight: Integrating 2D-HPLC-MS and Molecular Networking in Natural Medicine Analysis
Published on: December 8, 2023
09:24Standardized Identification of Compound Structure in Tibetan Medicine Using Ion Trap Mass Spectrometry and Multiple-Stage Fragmentation Analysis
Published on: March 17, 2023
Related Concept Videos
Classification of Illness
An illness is a response to a disease in which the person's level of functioning is changed compared with a previous level. The general classification of illness includes acute and chronic.
Acute illness is severe...
Factors Affecting Illness
For instance, risk factors are connected to illness,...
Understanding the Self
Concepts of Health and Illness
Dimensions of Health and Illness
Understanding Self-Concept