Chinese medicine has a wonderful way of diagnosing why many of us feel so down in the autumn. Season change, and how it affects our health underpins acupuncture treatments, particularly if you select a practitioner who specialises in Five Element Acupuncture.
For some people the move into autumn, or the Metal phase, has a quite devastating effect; we can feel depressed, exhausted, fatigued or we may just feel that we are catching every cold virus going around.
Well, the good news is that acupuncture can really help. At your first acupuncture appointment, a Five Element practitioner will spend time looking at how the seasons affect you . Some people are destroyed by the dark nights (this is now a recognised condition: Seasonal Affective Disorder), whilst others truly come alive on crisp autumnal days. This information will help us diagnose the state of the Metal element in each individual.
How Chinese Medicine Views Autumn
After a summer of expansive yang energy, we are starting to retract and retreat into a more dormant yin stage. In nature many animals hibernate, conserving their energy for a long winter, when food becomes less abundant. Metal is about extracting what is precious and vital for our survival, when resources become scarce. The reality for many, however, it that autumn is a time when we are at our busiest and our most yang and preparing for the biggest, most exciting, and exhausting festival of the year: Christmas!
Acupuncture Point Lung 8
The Lung is the organ in the body associated with the Metal element and therefore the most vulnerable in the autumn. Lung 8 is the Metal point on the Lung meridian. It is called the horary, or the seasonal point for the autumn. It is a point that your acupuncturist may use to support you through the season. Lung 8 is called Meridian Gutter. It is likened to an actual gutter, that is getting clogged up with leaves and other autumnal debris, some of which may be starting to decay and polluting our system. Needling it (or even using acupressure), can have a profound effect on someone who is struggling along through this season.
Diet and Season Change
Chinese Medicine prescribes a diet of seasonal, locally produced food in order to maintain good health. Autumn is a wonderful time, therefore, for lovers of food. However, we live in a world where we can get strawberries in December, so we do have to keep reminding ourselves of what actually is seasonal. If you are lucky enough to live within easy reach of a green grocer, this shouldn't be a problem, but if you are a busy supermarket shopper, you may need to remind yourself.
Autumn food should look like this
You should have waved goodbye to this at the end of summer
For more formation about seasonal treatments please contact me on 0751 5128248
