Bambú Clinic

About Bambú Clinic

Better health through the art of medicine.

Bambú Clinic is a center for Naturopathic and Classical Chinese Medicine in Portland, Oregon. Our approach to each patient is tailored to suit the individual's need. The practitioners of Bambú Clinic are licensed naturopathic physicians and/or licensed acupuncturists.

We work with people of all ages with acute and/or chronic disease. Using herbal medicine, homeopathy, clinical nutrition, dietary supplementation, and acupuncture, it is our goal to treat the cause of disease and not just manage symptoms. We engage in a personalized process with each of our patients to help them regain physical, mental, and spiritual balance in their lives.

Our Philosophy

By staying true to the philosophy of naturopathic medicine, we design an individualized health care program that will bring you to a place of optimal health:

First Do No Harm:  Naturopaths prefer non-invasive treatments that minimize the risk of harmful side effects.  We carefully consider how any medicine we prescribe may impact both your short and long term health goals.

Identify and Treat the Cause:  At Bambú, we understand that chronic illness is the result of an often long-standing dysfunction.  Therefore, we ask both patient and practitioner to be fully invested in the process of discovery that will ultimately reveal the deepest roots of imbalance. Only once the underlying cause of illness has been addressed can true healing be achieved.

Treat the Whole Person:  The physicians at Bambú Clinic recognize that the body is an intricate system of interconnections.  We find that healing occurs layer by layer, and thus must directly support the physical, emotional, and spiritual aspects of each person as they journey towards optimal health.

The Body Has Inherent Wisdom to Heal:  Naturopathic physicians believe that the body has the ability to restore its own health when challenged.  We believe that certain supportive interventions will set this healing process in motion.  Others cover up symptoms and overpower this physiologic function.  Symptoms, then, are the clues as to what supportive therapies are needed.

Doctor Means Teacher:  The primary goal of the naturopathic physician is to practice, teach, and inspire patients to embrace the principles of healthy lifestyle choices, thereby establishing a strong foundation of health and balance.  By cultivating a relationship and building trust with each patient, we are dedicated to guide you towards health, regardless of life’s challenges.

Prevention is Cure:  The naturopathic approach to health care is aimed at preventing imbalances, which, when left unchecked, can eventually manifest as chronic, degenerative disease.  Our practitioners teach ways of living that are most healthy and therefore most likely to prevent illness.

The naming of “Bambú Clinic”

We, at Bambú, often look to nature to understand the patterns that shape the journey to wellness.  When it came to naming our clinic, we applied the same guiding principles.  The bamboo plant represents a “perfect model of healthy growth in nature.”  It is the fastest-growing plant on Earth - it surges upward as fast as 4-5 feet in a single 24-hour period, and for brief periods of time, can reach a maximal growth rate exceeding 3 feet per hour.  In Chinese philosophy, our life’s purpose, like the rapid directional growth of the bamboo plant, is represented by skyward growth towards the sun ultimately revealing the heart’s true desire.

Strength and flexibility are the two crucial characteristics of the bamboo plant and of the patient’s journey to optimal health.  The plant’s hollow stem endows bamboo with the qualities of durability and grace – it bends readily in response to external events, but does not break easily.  The nodes on the stem represent various milestones encountered along the way as the organism strives to grow and adapt to its surroundings.

At Bambú Clinic, our physicians understand that the journey to high level wellness is accompanied by a return to homeostasis (balance), all body systems working efficiently and in cooperation.  In addition, comprehensive health includes the experience of a deep sense of meaning and purpose while navigating the trials and tribulations of life.  We have chosen the beautiful imagery of the bamboo plant to inspire our patients’ paths to true health.  The body, mind and spirit’s ability to maintain movement and flexibility in the face of challenges, as we work together to keep you aligned with your path, will ultimately move you toward your goal of optimal health.

 “To emulate the virtue of bamboo would be to remain calm and unattached to momentary deviations from our course while maintaining a steady view of the big picture”—“rapid directional growth,” and an “unencumbered … journey toward heaven.”

Quotes taken from Nourishing Destiny by Lonny Jarrett, page 234