Foundations of German Auricular Acupuncture

General objective of the program

This seminar is for practitioners who have therapy resistant patients or who simply want to have a uniquely effective approach in their toolkit. We are creating a course that includes the foundational material as well as the hands-on practical elements to offer for the first time in Europe a full training in Auricular Medicine as it was developed by Dr. Frank Bahr and Dr. Beate Strittmatter of Germany, and as it is taught in Canada.

Students will come away with clinically applicable knowledge and confidence to start seeing the ear as a window to the brain!

Learning objectives:

• Understanding of principles for point selection and case management
• Familiarity and ability to precisely locate pathological points on the ear
• Integration of and ability to communicate about blockages to healing
• Ability to clinically apply auricular medicine in assessment and treatment
• Understanding of the Vascular Autonomic Signal and its use in assessment and treatment
• Knowledge of precise points for Energy, Psychology and Stress illnesses

Detailed course description

Detailed description of each topic covered, time frame and the schedule that will be followed during the seminar.

Thursday, April 11th

• Welcome! Introductions and Opening
• Visual and Tenderness assessment in groups of 3
• Mesodermal and Endodermal Point localizations
• Key functional points for common musculoskeletal conditions
• Principles for point selection
• Demonstration using point finder for assessment and treatment (4 point treatment)
• Pointfinding (in pairs, search for the points via tenderness, visual and pointfinders)

During the first day we begin by getting our hands on each other’s ears and use our colleagues as our case studies. We start by familiarizing ourselves with several different ears and learn the basics of visual assessment. We will learn the ear map and the landmarks, which orients us to find our way around this new world. Then we learn how to use the map. There are so many points, how can we choose the best ones? Day one’s afternoon will consist of a demonstration on finding and treating points using a pointfinder (PointoSelect DT), tenderness and needling – which is followed by supervised practice.

Friday, April 12th

• Check in and Opening
• Focus Activity: Defining it and Finding it
• Chronic Pain explored
• Enhanced Case Management including Symptoms, Functional Support and Foci
• Case Presentation using Case Report Form
• Demonstration of Enhanced Case Taking and Treatment
• Case study Practice (Small groups)

Day two will include a discussion about focus activity, or blockages to healing and their key role in making this system of Auricular Medicine so unique. We will talk about the theory of chronic pain and why this medicine is so perfect for clearing it when nothing else has worked. We will go through the preferred method of treatment including all three categories of points; symptom (so they feel better right away), systems/functional support (to give the system more power to heal) and the focus (to resolve the blockage to healing). The afternoon, again, will begin with a demonstration of how all these pieces go together, which is followed by supervised small group practice.

Saturday, April 13th

• Check in and Debrief of Experience from yesterday’s Practice
• VAS: What are we feeling, and what can we do with this information?
• Use of 3v hammer for pointfinding: VAS Practice (small groups)
• Use of 9v bar and blue cord
• Use of lasers and frequencies for auricular pointfinding and treating
• Demonstration
• Supervised Practice

HAPPY VAS DAY! This is what I usually say at the beginning of this day. We will go through the history and physiology of the Vascular Autonomic Signal. Now we get into a practice that is much more elegant and precise. After demonstrations of a simple point finding with a basic tool, the 3v Hammer, we go into supervised practice. After lunch we will begin to explore a few of the many uses of the VAS, including the 9v bar and the blue cord methods which allow us to get even more specific in our category in our search for active points. We will discuss and demonstrate the use of lasers and frequency as well to get even more information from the ear.

Sunday, April 14th

• Check in and Questions
• Orthopedic Assessment
• Review of points to consider for common conditions
• VAS Practice
• Supervised Practice in small groups
• Final Review and Evaluation

The last day will be focused on the student getting more practice and clarifying what they might feel is still needed to feel confident in their ability to apply this experience in the clinic as soon as they return. We will review common points and discuss more points used for energy, psychology and more. We will see how the VAS can also be used to find problems such as orthopedic directly on the body. Practice will be the main focus of this last day.

Describe the evaluation process

Assessment is achieved by the instructor paying attention to each individual and making sure that everyone leaves with a level of confidence in their ability to apply the medicine with skill and effectiveness. Our goal is to uplift our students through their own practice and experience, and we have found that our students leave the seminar prepared to apply what they have learned in their clinics.

Students will have an opportunity to complete an evaluation form to provide input to the instructor at the end of the seminar

Required books

Ear Acupuncture: A Precise Pocket Atlas by Beate Strittmatter, MD

About the author

Dave Maybee, RMT has been involved with the growth of Auricular Medicine since 2005. He is the lead instructor for the Canadian Institute of Auricular Medicine. Dave specializes in treating unresolved chronic pain using Auricular Medicine.

Location & Time

• Thursday: 9am – 6pm
• Friday: 9am – 6pm
• Saturday: 9am – 6pm
• Sunday: 9am – 6pm