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Mental Health

Five Elements: Are you a Fiery one?

By Traditional Chinese Medicine

Summer is the season of the Fire Element. The energy is of outward radiation like the sun in full force, and is known as “Radiant Yang”. According to Gabriel Mojay, Fire is energy at its “most refined and sensitive, it is associated with both conscious awareness and self-identity”.

The organ of Fire is the Heart. The Yellow Emperor describes the Heart “like the minister of the monarch who excels through insight and understanding… it is the root of life and causes versatility of spiritual faculties”. The Heart governs and circulates the Blood and also houses the Mind, or Shen. The Shen encompasses all mental-emotional activity, thinking, feeling, imagination, memory and is the source of self-awareness.

It is no coincidence that we speak of the Heart as a place of emotion. When we feel anxious, we often feel palpitations, when we are in love a fluttering in our hearts. Our hearts feel full with love, broken hearted when we suffer loss. The Heart is the organ of love and affection – the giver and receiver of love. The root emotion of Fire is joy. The Fire element is one of open communication and enjoyment of social activities.

As the Heart houses the Shen, it will be involved in most psychological issues. When the Fire element is imbalanced, emotional and psychological problems can occur. Fire can blaze out of control or can burn out. Fire may not burn hot enough or be doused out.

Here is a checklist of typical Fire prsonality traits. The beginning of the list represents a healthy, balanced Fire element. You can see as the list progresses how Fire can become imbalanced or out of control. How fiery are you?

I am empathetic towards others
I am enthusiastic
I laugh loudly and often
I am talkative
I enjoy emotional intimacy
I am optimistic
I can get over-excited
I talk too much
I wear my emotions on my sleeve
I care what others think about me
I am easily hurt by others
I can be absentminded and scatter-brained
I need lots of support and praise
I lack excitement and enthusiasm
I can be self-centred and selfish
I tend to be apathetic and despondent
I have poor self-image and low self-esteem
I may lack compassion for myself and others
I am often anxious
I suffer with insomnia
I can become hysterical

 

Here are some physical signs and symptoms of a Fire imbalance:

Red, blotchy complexion / ashen complexion
Tendency to blush
Tongue problems – ulcers, swelling, etc
Cold hands and feet / poor circulation
Varicose veins
Dizziness and fainting spells
Skin eruptions
Rapid or irregular heartbeat
Palpitations especially when anxious
Sleep disturbances – insomnia, vivid / disturbing dreams
Speech problems – slurring, stuttering

 

If you suffer with any of the above symptoms or feel your Fire element tipping out of balance, an acupuncturist can help to bring you back into harmony. You can help yourself at home using the following essential oils: Jasmine, Lavender, Melissa, Neroli, Palmarosa, Rose, Rosemary, Spikenard, Ylang Ylang. Fire and the Heart respond well to floral fragrances in particular – the scents of love and joy.

 

 

 

 

Mental Health Awareness Week: Depression according to Chinese Medicine

By Acupuncture, Depression

A while ago I stumbled across a wonderful cartoon story that so perfectly describes the experience of depression.

While everyone will have a different experience, I think those of us who have suffered with depression can all claim to have felt apathetic, foggy and a distinct lack of joy. For many, the inability to feel anything at all really.

Acupuncture made a big difference for me, and now that I’m a qualified acupuncturist myself I am beginning to understand the hows and whys. Every case is different, the background to the illness, the experience of the illness vary with each individual. So diagnosis and treatment will be different for each individual. There is no “one pill cures all”.

Here is a brief and simplified overview of Depression and its relationship to the Five Elements in Chinese Medicine. Often patients fall clearly into one category, others are spread across several, but it is always interesting to recognise some of these characteristics within ourselves.

WoodWood

The root emotion of the Wood Element is anger. Anger is a positive and healthy emotion when felt and expressed appropriately and proportionately. The Wood Organ, the Liver, is profoundly affected by stress, frustration and unexpressed emotion. The function of the Liver in TCM is to maintain the free flow of Qi around the body, but when this function is damaged or interrupted Qi Stagnation occurs. Tension in body and mind, constriction of the chest, a lump in the throat, headaches, IBS, irritability are all symptoms of Qi Stagnation. An underactive Wood Element can result in someone lacking purpose and ambition, afraid to speak their feelings, burying everything deep inside. An overactive Wood Element creates rigidity, perfectionism and explosive emotions.

 

Fire

Fire

The root emotion of Fire is Joy. The Organ is the Heart, which in TCM houses the Shen (Spirit). When suffering from depression, there is usually at least a little Fire involvement. An imbalance of this Organ results in sadness, anxiety, low self-esteem, timidity, despondency and a general loss of joie de vivre. Insomnia is a common problem. When somebody looks dead behind the eyes, in TCM the Shen is said to have been extinguished. When over-active, Fire may cause over-excitement, excessive talking, self-centeredness, highly sensitive feelings and nervous exhaustion.

 

EarthEarth

Over-thinking is the root emotion of Earth. Its Organs are the Spleen and Stomach, which oversee both physical and mental digestion. When we start to obsess on something or find ourselves stuck in a cycle of negative thinking, Earth is often at the root. Earth is also the nurturing Element, and the disproportionate worry and anxiety felt by a parent results from this Element being out of balance. A weak Earth Element may manifest in difficulty concentrating, a fuzzy head, a lack of mental clarity, dependency and neediness. When it overacts, Earth may cause over-protectiveness, constant worry and mental churning.

MetalMetal

Metal is the Element of Grief. Its Organ, the Lung, takes in and lets go. Metal is imbalanced when we lose this ability to let go of something or someone, fail to accept reality and move on with our lives. It is no coincidence that following a great loss many people become ill themselves, feeling run down and often catch colds and other viruses very easily. When the Lungs are weak they are unable to provide Wei Qi, the body’s immunity and leave us vulnerable to infections. Metal is also the Element of connectedness. When it is imbalanced, we may find ourselves withdrawing from people and shutting ourselves off from friends and family.

WaterWater

Fear is the root emotion of Water. Again, this is a healthy emotion when felt at appropriate times – it keeps us safe after all. However, when Water is out of balance we can become too afraid to live our lives fully and lose our sense of Will. Loss of confidence and self-sufficiency, feelings of apathy and powerlessness are those of a weak Water Element. An over-active Water Element creates unsettled, workaholic personalities who demand far too much from themselves resulting in burn out. The Water Organ, the Kidney is the creator of our Yin and Yang and without this energy we become exhausted. We spend more energy than we create.