Classical Chinese Medicine incorporates the ancient texts, theories and meridian systems that comprised the foundation of this tradition prior to the formation of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), which is the predominant form found in the United States and China today.  Many of these texts and systems were lost when Communism came into China in the 20th century.  The Chinese government attempted to streamline the medicine in order to make it easier to teach and disseminate.  At this time, Chinese Medicine became more "Westernized" by standardizing treatment methods and reducing the number of meridian systems that practitioners use.  This is the form of acupuncture known as TCM that is being taught in most Chinese Medicine schools.

Under the tutelage of such leaders in the field as Jeffrey Yuen, Cissy Majebe and Josephine Spilka, under whom Soñée has studied, many acupuncturists are striving to reclaim the classics in order to explore a more comprehensive form of this medicine.  Daoist Traditions College of Chinese Medical Arts, where she obtained her Masters Degree, is one of the few Classical Chinese Medicine schools in the nation.  This return to the classics is equipping practitioners with a deeper knowledge of Chinese Medicine and providing more diverse tools with which to treat patients.  Within the Classical Chinese medicine model Soñée uses Primary Channel Theory, Luo, Sinew, Divergent and Eight Extraordinary Vessel Meridians, and Five Element Theory. These systems address different levels in the body where pathogens and illness can enter or reside. 

Cupping is a technique employed for drawing blood to the surface of the body by application of a glass, plastic or silicone vessel, from which air has been evacuated  to form a partial vacuum.

Generally, cupping is combined with acupuncture in one treatment, but it can also be used alone. The suction and negative pressure provided by cupping can loosen muscles, encourage blood flow, and sedate the nervous system (which makes it an excellent treatment for high blood pressure). Cupping is used to relieve back and neck pains, stiff muscles, anxiety, fatigue, migraines, rheumatism, and even cellulite. 

Like acupuncture, cupping follows the lines of the meridians. There are five meridian lines on the back, and these are where the cups are usually placed. Using these points, cupping can help to align and relax qi, as well as target more specific maladies. By targeting the meridian channels, cupping strives to ‘open' these channels - the paths through which life energy flows freely throughout the body, through all tissues and organs, thus providing a smoother and more free-flowing qi (life force). Cupping is one of the best deep-tissue therapies available. It is thought to affect tissues up to four inches deep from the external skin. Toxins can be released, blockages can be cleared, and veins and arteries can be refreshed within these four inches of affected materials. Even hands, wrists, legs, and ankles can be ‘cupped,' thus applying the healing to specific organs that correlate with these points.

This treatment is also valuable for the lungs, and can clear congestion from a common cold or help to control a person's asthma. In fact, respiratory conditions are one of the most common maladies that cupping is used to relieve. Three thousand years ago, in the earliest Chinese documentation of cupping, it was recommended for the treatment of pulmonary tuberculosis.

The Korean style of acupuncture is closely linked to the Five Elements theory  and considers each patient’s particular constitution when deciding on a course of treatment. The Korean style of acupuncture is differentiated by its specific focus on stimulating pressure points in the hands. Korean Hand Therapy (as it’s sometimes called) is a relatively new style of this ancient modality: it grew out of the work of Dr. Tae Woo Yoo in the late twentieth century.

Gua Sha literally means "rub/scrape sand" or "to scrape away fever" is also known as ‘coining’ - due to the common use of coins for this technique in Asia.  Gua Sha is the therapeutic use of friction applied with a blunt edged hand tool to the skin, either over muscle tissue, joints or specific acupuncture channel pathways. Cupping and Gua Sha are cutaneous techniques which encourage circulation of blood, lymph and Qi and the removal of metabolic waste in the skin and superficial muscle tissues. Gua Sha "Clears Wind and Heat" from the surface (skin, superficial connective tissue, & muscle layers) and "Dredges Qi and Blood" in the Channels & Collaterals to treat various painful conditions - especially muscle, tendon, ligament, & connective tissues disorders, sports injuries - and is used to enhance the immune response when fighting colds & flu.

Gua Sha tools may be made of plastic, porcelain, stone (often jade), and even animal horn or bone are traditionally used. Various sizes and shapes accommodate differing needs and anatomies.

Practically, the tool is rubbed or scraped with the addition of a thin layer of oil or balm on the affected areas or channels.  This causes mild extravasation of blood from the peripheral capillaries and may result in sub-cutaneous blemishing (ecchymosis), which, depending on intensity and duration of treatment will fade in minutes to days. The color of sha varies according to the constitution and nature and severity of pathology, appearing from a dark blue-black to purplish to light pink, but is most often a shade of light red. 

The sensation of Gua Sha is memorably strong - many also find it feels similar to certain massage techniques - and a treatment leaves one feeling relaxed and rejuvenated.