Classical Chinese herbal medicine
You'll always be told why you're getting the herbs.
Classical Chinese herbal medicine is herbal medicine practiced from the classical texts of Chinese medicine. David was trained in the Tian-Zeng Lineage of classical Chinese herbal medicine by Dr. Arnaud Versluys, who founded the Institute of Classical East Asian Medicine. Not everyone takes herbs. Whether you do is decided by your pulse and your abdomen, not by default.
Reviewed by David Toone, L.Ac., Dipl. AHM, FICEAM ·
Only when the exam calls for them
Herbs are part of your plan only when your exam shows a reason for them. When they are, you'll hear the reason before you take any.
We start with one method at a time. Once we have a baseline, we add another if your care calls for it.
Care here can be acupuncture, herbs, or both, and it moves between them as your pattern changes.
We don't sell add-ons. If you leave with herbs, it's the formula written for you, and you'll know why.
Where the formulas come from
The herbal medicine here comes from two texts of the Han dynasty, the Shanghan Lun and the Jingui Yaolue, through a line of physicians: Tian Heming, then Zeng Rongxiu, then Arnaud Versluys, who founded ICEAM and trained David. Formulas are chosen from those texts for the pattern in front of us.
It is common for herbalists to call a formula "new" if it is less than 200 years old.
David began at ICEAM in 2010 and became a Diplomate in 2012. In 2015 he was among the first Clinical Fellows of ICEAM. The clinic is an authorized ICEAM training site, and he has served as a clinical supervisor there since 2024.
He is nationally board-certified as a Diplomate in Acupuncture and Herbal Medicine (Dipl. AHM) by NCBAHM.
Each herb in a formula has a role, the way each player on a team has a position.
If herbs are part of your plan
You'll be walked through it before you take any, and it's checked against whatever you already take.
Formulas are given as concentrated extracts, made to the dosages and proportions written in the classical texts.
Your formula is prepared here, on site.
Each herb is inspected when it arrives, for quality, freshness and the right species.
The honest first thing to say about them: they taste funky. Not exactly bad. Just funky. People take them anyway, children included.
If a formula doesn't sit well with you, tell us so we can advise you properly of the next step in your care.
After each course of herbs, David re-diagnoses your pattern by pulse and abdomen, and trues up the formula: adjusts it to fit what he finds. Sometimes it is simply refilled.
What herbs cost
Herbs are given five to six days at a time, with a few days off between to see how you do on your own before the formula is adjusted.
Care & pricing →Herbs aren't meant to be taken forever. Like the visits, they're meant to be outgrown.
At some point, we skip a week on purpose. No treatment, no herbs.
How treatment works →Ask about herbs at a free consult
Bring your questions. In about fifteen minutes you'll know whether this is the right place for you, and so will we. If it isn't, we'll suggest where to go instead.