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Year of the Wood Horse!

Gong Hey Fat Choy!

It’s the year of the Wood Horse! The energy of this year will be full and busy.  Horses are aggressive and ambitious, capable of employing any means to achieve an objective.  They seem self-centered, but this is hard to judge, because they can be extremely generous as well, and active participants in whatever they get involved in. Constantly busy, with skillful hands and minds, they are often found practicing handicrafts or cooking exotic cuisines.  The Wood element represents springing forth, rejuvenation, and expansion.  This is a great year to pick up an old hobby or start a new project. Create a stable environment for yourself and give yourself plenty of tender loving care.  Try not to get caught up in drama. Stay focused on your goals. In sink with the energy of the Wood Horse year, we have lots of exciting upcoming events and workshops!

Kidney’s: Storing the Essence of Life

Taken from Qigong for Self-Refinement by Chris Shelton

The Water Element relates to the Kidneys and the Urinary Bladder.  It controls the skeletal system (bones), reproductive system including the testes and ovaries, and endocrine system including the adrenals, pancreas, hypothalamus, thyroid, pituitary gland, pineal gland, and thymus.  Thus, the Kidneys rule overall constitution, health, and longevity.  The health of the Kidneys is considered the foundation for the overall balance of all the other internal organs. The yin aspect of the kidneys is storing the Essence of Life (Jing) and water; the yang aspect is serving a life gate of fire, that is, as the motive force for transformation in the body.  Because of these fundamental functions, the Kidneys are affected by any chronic disease. The Kidneys rule the bones and produce bone marrow; the teeth are considered a surplus of the bones.  The Kidneys open into the ears and the hair on the head.  The ancient texts say that if the ears and Kidneys are harmonized, the ear can hear five tones.  The moistness and vitality of the hair on the head are related to the Kidney essence.   (The hair also depends on blood for nourishment which is why the hair on the head is also referred to as a surplus of blood.)The main functions of the Kidney are storing the Essence of Life, regulating water metabolism, and controlling and promoting inhalation.
– Storing the Essence of Life
There are two components of the Essence of Life. The first is known as the Prenatal Essence of Life.  It is given at birth.  It can be somewhat strengthened through food and nutrition, and is, or can be, transformed to the Qi of the Kidney. The Qi of the Kidney contributes to the growth, development, and replacement of the body, for example, the growth of teeth.  The body grows as the Qi increases.  When the body reaches puberty, the Qi of the Kidney is at its peak.  It then initiates the production of sperm in boys and eggs and menstruation in girls.  As the body ages, the Qi of the Kidney weakens, also diminishing reproductive capabilities.

The second component or type of Essence of Life is known as the acquired, or Postnatal, Essence.  It is derived from food.   The Spleen and the Stomach transform food into acquired essence, which is then transported to the five viscera and six bowels.  When there is not enough acquired essence of life for the five viscera and the six bowels, the kidney will supply it from its essence of life.   When there is surplus, the kidney stores it.  So, when any of the five viscera and the six bowels are not functioning correctly, the Kidney needs to be nourished because it will be relied upon to supply any deficiencies.

The Kidney’s Essence of Life can aid in making bone marrow, which nourishes the bones. When the Kidney is functioning well, bones and teeth are strong. Conversely, when the Kidney is weak, both bones and teeth are weak also. The Essence of Life also turns into blood, which nourishes the hair. When the kidney is functioning well, the hair is strong and shiny. Withered, balding, or gray hair can be a sign of a weak Kidney.  Finally, the Kidneys also influence brain function; when Kidney Qi is strong, thinking and memory will also be strong and clear.

– Regulating water metabolism

The Kidney maintains balance of the fluid in the body.  Fluid in the body is responsible for transporting nutrients to organs and tissues, and for carrying waste out of the tissues. The Kidney plays an important part in both functions. The Kidney either releases water or retains needed water. When the Kidney is functioning well, urination is normal. When it doesn’t function well, the Kidney could release too much, causing diseases like polyuria (excess urination) and frequent urination. When the Kidney does not release enough, it can lead to oliguria (scant urination) and edema (swelling, excess water collecting in body tissues).

Controlling and promoting respiration

According to Chinese medicine, the Kidney, along with the Lungs, can aid in inhaling air. When the Kidney is not functioning well, exhaling will occur more than inhaling, which can result in dyspnea (difficult or labored breathing) and severe panting.

Kidney dysfunctions

In Chinese medical theory, Kidney Essence is like the battery power that runs your life.  You  can never have too much, but you can use it up.  Thus, all Kidney disease patterns involve deficiency of some sort.    Sources of potential deficiencies—that is, ways your Kidney Essence can become exhausted– fall into six categories:  Hereditary, emotional, sexual, chronic illness, aging, and overwork.

– Hereditary weakness

Prenatal Qi or Life Essence is formed at conception; its quality is determined by the quality of the parents’ Essences, Heaven, and the environment into which you were born.   If the parents’ Essences are weak, which means they had weak constitutions, then the child will also be weak and may have such symptoms as poor bone development, poor teeth, enuresis (inability to hold his/her urine), thin or weak hair, and in extreme cases some mental retardation.  Since a person’s vital energy naturally declines with age, conceiving late in life can weaken the constitution of the child.  When Prenatal Essence is weak, the person must pay particular attention to the other factors in order not to put a stress, or drain, on this irreplaceable vital force.

– Emotions

Fear, fright, shock, and anxiety makes the Qi descend, especially in children.  It can happen to anybody; something that happens to you or something that you witness can cause shock, and deplete  your Kidney Qi.  In adults such depletion may be the root cause for insomnia and mental restlessness.

– Sexual activity

Excess of sexual orgasms weakens the Kidneys because orgasms are directly related to the Kidney Essence.   This also includes masturbation. Since the heart and kidneys are closely related, during an orgasm one can often experience palpitations.   Conversely, Heart deficiency caused by sadness and anxiety can weaken the Kidneys and cause impotence or lack of sex drive, as well as coldness in the limbs and enuresis (involuntary urination).

– Chronic illness

Any long-lasting, chronic condition will create a deficiency of Kidney Yang and/or Kidney Yin.

– Aging

Kidney Essence naturally declines with age.  In fact, in Chinese medicine the process of aging is defined as the manifestation of a decrease of the Kidney Essence.  Hence, as a person ages, they experience decline in all the functions controlled by Kidney Essence, namely, decreases in hearing, bone density, sexual function, memory, and hair.

– Overwork

This means mental and physical work for long periods of time or burning the candles at both ends.  In modern society, this is the most common cause of depleting Kidney Yin.  Long work hours, particularly mental work, in poor environments, emotional stress, lack of relaxation, lack of exercise, improper and irregular meals, poor sleep, lack of exercise, etc. are normally fueled by Yang energy.  But when Yang energy normally used for these functions is exhausted, then the body starts using the Yin essence.

2 Types of Common Colds in Chinese Medicine

The weather is turning cold, and the days are shorter.  Like spring, autumn is a transition season, which makes us particularly susceptible to colds and flu. Stay healthy this holiday season by learning some simple ways to treat the common cold.  In Chinese Medicine, the common cold comes in two flavors:  Wind-Cold type, and Wind-Heat type. Beware!  Each has its own characteristics, and those characteristics determine your treatment strategy.

Wind-Cold Type – The symptoms are: chills, fever, no sweating, headache, body aches, stiff neck, and clear nasal discharge.  In this type, the Chinese say that cold has “invaded” the body.  Indeed, you probably feel cold to your core, and you may feel weak, like all your energy has been drained.

Wind-Heat Type – The symptoms are:  high fever, some chills, sore throat, yellow nasal discharge, headache, cough, and body aches.  In this type, you probably feel “stuffed up”, like energy has been blocked and the resistance is creating heat and congestion.

Once you know which Type you have, pay attention to your diet because the foods you eat can either help or make the condition worse.

For the Wind-Cold Type, you want to eat foods that will warm you up and restore normal energy circulation from the center outward.  Such foods include:  ginger, all the onion clan (garlic, scallions, leeks, as well as onions); cinnamon.

For the Wind-Heat Type, drink more, eat less.  Digesting food tends to generate heat in the body, while drinking liquids tends to cool the body.  Drink hot tea, especially made with mint, chrysanthemum flower, or cilantro.  Apples and pears are good.

For both types of Colds—and whenever you don’t feel well, in fact—try to eat so that you don’t put stress on the digestive system.  This means eating only until you are about 60% full (don’t overeat!).  Avoid heavy proteins, especially shellfish; cold and raw foods; fats; processed foods, especially refined sugars and starches.  Also avoid vinegar, because it closes the pores when what you want is energy moving toxins from the center out of the body.

Instead, make soups and stews, or congee (soupy rice).  Sip water through the day.  Enjoy bland foods, warm and well cooked.  Get plenty of quality sleep, and stay out of cold drafty places.  In this way you will give your body a rest, , inside and out, and allow your natural healing abilities to do their job.

Protect yourself against Autumn sniffles- October Newsletter

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Here we are in mid-October–the heart of Autumn.  The leaves on the trees have started to change color, cool nights are killing tomato and squash vines.  The days get shorter- and in a few weeks (Sunday, 11/3) Daylight Savings will end.  Even more important to remember right now is that, in thistransitional season of the Metal Element, the lungs are particularly susceptible to disease. People are getting sick right now because of the change in the season. Temperatures are fluctuating, sometimes catching people off-guard. There are two things you can do to protect yourself against Autumn sniffles:

1.  Fortify your body with foods that are pungent such as steamed or braised garlic and onions, cinnamon, and ginger.  This will stimulate and strengthen the flow of energy in the Lung and Large Intestine meridians.

2.  Take extra precautions to keep your chest and neck warm.  The acupuncture points on the neck are most susceptible to wind and cold.  Therefore, wearing a scarf helps prevent wind and cold from entering the body.

Also, this is a good time to review and resume practice of the exercise for the Metal Element.  This is a good time to address-and resolve-issues of sadness and sorrow.

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Assessment with Face Reading with Chris Shelton

Sat, 10/26, 12:30 pm – 1:30 pm
Your face tells it all! Assessment with Face Reading will give you insight on a person the moment you meet. Not only is it fun to learn; it is valuable knowledge that will help you assess and understand your clients and give you insight into yourself.

Learn how to tell if someone is honest, kind, cruel, or mischievous. See where specific conditions like high blood pressure and diabetes are written on the face.

This is a great workshop for anyone who has to work with others.

This is a FREE class.  Space is limited so sign up today!

Nutrition according to your constitution- FREE class with Chris Shelton

Sat, 10/12, 12:30 pm – 1:30 pm

You want to “eat well.” However, there is lot of conflicting information about what makes up a healthy diet. This workshop will give you a glimpse of nutrition according to Chinese Medicine. Understand that China has the healthiest life expectancy in the world. In other words in China people’s health span equals their life span. Realize that diet plays a huge role in this. Come learn why!

“….the superior doctor should first adjust a patient’s diet and lifestyle. Only if that does not eliminate the patient’s disease should the doctor go on to administer acupuncture or herbs.” -Book of Jook by Bob Flaws. Everyone is as different as a snowflake, so what works for one person may not work for another. Learn how to adjust your diet to eliminate and prevent disease.

This is a free class.  Space is limited so sign up today!

Finding Your Fulfiling Tribe with Amber DeAnn and Nanci Tudish

Sun, 9/22, 1:00 pm – 4:00 pm
Are you connected with your tribe?
Do you feel emotionally secure?
Are you doing what makes you feel
happy?
GET READY FOR A HARMONIOUS, HAPPY RELATIONSHIP WITH YOURSELF!
Amber DeAnn, Relationship Coach/Art therapist and
Nanci Tudish, Yoga instructor, will help you shift
your connection with your tribe and find your creativity.
Cost: $39 in advance, $45 at the door