Fire is reflected in the Summer season. Summer’s special gift – the energy of fire – allows us to give and receive warmth, supporting the functioning of our hearts. We enhance our health by understanding the correlations between the Fire Element and Summer.
Summer is a time of activity and interaction with the outside world; a time to re-charge our batteries during the high point of the year’s own peak.
Summer is the season of the Heart and its partner organ, the Small Intestine. Although the Heart’s main function is to pump oxygen-rich blood through the arteries into all parts of the body, it also determines the state and strength of our constitution. The Heart is also connected with the “Shen” or spirit while also being associated with the mind. In Chinese Medicine mental activity resides in the Heart, which affects our emotional health, memory, thinking and sleeping. A strong healthy Heart results in a mind that can balance our emotions is peaceful and happy, and is able to sleep undisturbed.
Summer is about becoming more expansive and connecting with others through hiking, trips to the ocean and mountains, gardening, and summer gatherings. Recharging our Fire Element during the active, summer season will carry us through out the year. Connection with the Fire Element can be a source of great joy that embews us with renewed energy and enthusiasm and lightens our tasks. When we have the strength of the Fire Element within us there is fun to be had in all that we do. When love and joy are alive in us we naturally reach out to others to share our warmth and friendship.
Here are some tips to stoke your Fire Element:
Plan to have fun regularly. Schedule your fun and PLAY!!! Adult playgrounds include retreat centers such as www.kripalu.org & www.omega-inst.org
Volunteer…give of yourself and the love will be returned three-fold. You’ll feel apperciated and yes….LOVED and that does your heart good. There is no shortage of non-profits that could use your particular talents.
I volunteer at www.youcanthrive.org and Acupuncturists without Borders: www.acuwithoutborders.org which are great organizations.
Live your passion. It can be as simple as whisteling or taking a walk through the woods. If you sing in the shower and always wanted to sing with others, join a choir. Take up painting, throwing pots (as in pottery), calligraphy, dancing, drumming….you get the idea.
Move, Move, Move…. There’s nothing like physical activity to get into your body and out of your head. Leave your computers and blackberries behind and walk, dance, swim, bicycle, hike, kayack….or make up an activity. Get your circulation going in any way that suits you.
Whataya know? Summer is here. June 20th to be exact. In the Chinese 5 Element tradition that means you need to receive treatment that brings the Fire element into balance.
Is your temperature fluctuating? Feeling tired, manic, moody, sleep deprived, unrested? Perhaps you need a summer solstice acupuncture treatment. With a balanced fire element you can transition joyously into the Summer season without that burnt out feeling. How exactly is this done you ask? Your energies can be aligned with the simple use of Horary acupuncture points near the time of the solstice. Summer horary’s help maintain balance because they are associated with the Fire energies of the heart, small intestine, pericardium and triple Heater channels or meridians.
The Fire Horary points are on the fire channels as outlined below.
Heart 8 – Lesser Mansion- Is the fire point of the heart channel. The heart’s job is to sort the spirit, command the blood and distribute nourishment throughout the body, mind and spirit.
Small Intestine 5 – Yang Valley – is the fire point on this channel responsible for sorting on a physical and emotional level.
Triple Heater 6 – Branch Ditch: Just as water ditches are used to irrigate fields, the triple heater channel helps to irrigate the body and helps to moisten the intestines.
Pericardium 8 – Palace of Toil: The pericardium’s task is to protect the heart and is used in treatment of fatigue.
So get yourself to a 5 Element Practitioner and have your Horary’s tweaked.
You’ll feel a lot better and you’ll be ready to take on the fullness of summer.
We’re now well into the Spring season and all I can say is Wow! Ever notice how much movement there is. Look around, and you can see signs of new life everywhere. The trees’ new blooms, crocus and daffodils sprouting their cheerful flowers and everywhere new buds and new possibilities.
Spring is the time to awake from your doledrums and push forth with new ideas and plans. Spring is where the Wood element is at its’ peak of power.
In Chinese medicine the Liver Official (the planner) and the Gal Bladder Official (the decision maker) are the yin/yang organs that work together to help your creative energies. The Soul or Hun is housed in the Liver and the eyes open to this Official.
To strengthen your ability to see on many levels (insight, hindsight and foresight) and thereby support your wood element get out there and move, better yet… drum and dance!!! Your Liver and Gal Bladder will thank-you.
Here are some additional tips to help your Liver/Gal Bladder Officials.
The sour flavor helps aid the Liver in digestion. Hot water and lemon juice after a rich meal helps us process fats.
Spring is the best time to do a Liver Cleanse. Just make sure it’s supervised.
Liver Supporting herbs include: Milk Thistle and Dandelion.
Mid-way through Winter we’re beginning to see the day light hours lengthen. But as we head toward spring, many feel sluggish and even fatigued. Nature’s re-set button is the gift of slumber. Getting more sleep allows your body and mind to rejuvenate and prepare for an active Spring.
Recharge this Winter with Acupuncture According to Oriental medicine, the cold months of winter are the perfect time to recharge your battery and generate vital energy – Qi – in order to live, look, and feel your best.
The ancient Chinese believed that human beings should live in harmony with the natural cycles of their environment. The cold and darkness of winter urges us to slow down. This is the time of year to reflect on health, replenish energy and conserve strength.
Winter is ruled by the Water element, which is associated with the Kidneys, Bladder and Adrenal Glands. The Kidneys are considered the source of all energy or “Qi” within the body. They store all of the reserve Qi in the body so that it can be used in times of stress and change, or to heal, prevent illness, and age gracefully.
During the winter months, it is important to nurture and nourish our Kidney Qi; it is the time where this energy can be most easily depleted. Our bodies are instinctively expressing the fundamental principles of winter – rest, reflection, conservation and storage.
The Nei Ching, an ancient Chinese classic, advises people to go to sleep early and rise late, after the sun’s rays have warmed the atmosphere a bit. This preserves your own Yang Qi for the task of warming in the face of cold.
Eating warm hearty soups, whole grains, and roasted nuts help to warm the body’s core and to keep us nourished. Sleep early, rest well, stay warm, and expend a minimum quantity of energy.
Seasonal acupuncture treatments in winter serve to nurture and nourish kidney Qi which can greatly enhance the body’s ability to thrive in times of stress, aid in healing, prevent illness and increase vitality.
Below are a few nutritional tips to help you renew and restore.
Water – The Kidneys are associated with the Water element. Drink ample water, at room temperature, throughout the day.
Kidney Shaped Foods – Black beans and kidney beans are excellent examples of kidney shaped foods that nourish and benefit Kidney Qi.
Blue and Black Foods - The colors blue and black correspond to the Water element of the Kidneys and are thought to strengthen the Water element. Include blueberries, blackberries, mulberry and black beans in your diet.
Seeds - Flax, pumpkin, sunflower and black sesame seeds relate to fertility and growth which is governed by Kidney Qi.
Nuts – Walnuts and chestnuts have been found to be especially effective for increasing Kidney Qi.
Vegetables – Dark, leafy green vegetables are the best choice for Kidney Qi. Other Kidney Qi boosting veggies include asparagus, cucumbers and celery.
September 21st the first day of Autumn is an important transitition in Five Element Philoposphy. The long days of sunshine slowly peaks and gives way to a time of decrease. The leaves turn color, fall from the trees and decay to replenish the earth. Daylight hours shorten, the weather turns cooler.
Our bodies naturally feel the effects of this transition and if we do not pay attention to subtle changes in nature during this time, we may feel out of sorts. Symptoms may include: shortness of breath, and a dislike of speaking. Catching colds easily. Coughing, a hoarse or weak voice, a dry mouth and throat. Difficulty dealing with loss, vulnerable to outside criticism. Tiredness, constipation or diarrhoea.
In Chinese medicine – the Metal element is associated with Autumn, a time of harvest, where we reap the fruits and vegetables of the season and prepare them for storage duirng Winter. The Organs Associated with Metal are the Lungs and Large Intestine.
Dr. Worsley, my teacher, spoke of the lungs as “the Official who receives the pure Ch’i from the heavens”. The first breath at birth sustains our life force throughout our lives until we take our final breath. The Chinese view the the Lungs as the receiver of energy and the Large Intestine as the “Dust Bin Collector, the Drainer of the Dregs” where its main functin is to store and eliminate waste. These two Officials when balanced work beatuifully together to allow us to “take in” air, chi, inspiration and “let go” of waste, and negativity.
Autumn is the perfect Season to support the Lungs and Large Intestine with habits that strengthen these Officials.
Here’s simple ways to smoothly transition through Autumn.
1. Awake during Lung’s peak time, between 3-5 am. Practice 30 minutes of Tai Chi, Qi Gong, or Yoga, meditate or just breathe deeply. Deep breathing stimulates the Large Intestine to eliminate (good for those with constipation) between 5-7 am, it’s peak hours.
2. Use a Neti pot with a saline solution to irrigate your sinuses. This simple habit can be incorporated into your morning routine and acts to prevent sinus infections and sore throats. I use a Neti Pot during Autumn to help alleviate seasonal allergies. It works, along with taking 500 mgs of Quercitin-C.
3. The gift of the Metal element is the ability to inspire. Hike or drive to the mountains and renew what inspires you. Grief is the emotion associated with Metal. Extreme grief can injure the lungs but can be processed through the awe-inspiring reach of the great outdoors. Nature herself is healing and transformative.
4. Eat mildly spicey foods to help support the Metal element. Tai, Indian, and other Asian foods try and balance the five flavors of bitter,sweet, spicey, sour and salt. Try combining all these tastes at EVERY meal instead of dieting. Our modern diet has too much sweet (in the form of refined sugars) and salt and too little of bitter, sour and spicey.
As is true in nature, Autumn is a time were we consolidate our energies and prepare for the austerity of Winter. When that breaks down, so too, does our ability to preserve what is nourishing to the body, mind and spirit.
