“Without the light of spirit to guide us out of the morass of the material world, we wander in a haze of endless desire and hunger that can never be satisfied. In order to transcend this condition, we must open not only to the Transpersonal energies of the self but to the Shen light that courses through the material world and through our own flesh.” Lorie Eve Dechar ( Five Spirits, Lantern Books, pg.61)
One of the most popular questions for modern acupuncturists, is does “acupuncture help with weight loss?”. Not my favorite question because, 1- there is no simple answer and 2- it is ultimately an answer that few people want to hear.
There is no magic fix for any symptom. Weight loss is complicated it has a branch in all the aspects of health, physical, emotional/mental, and spirit. For effective work to be accomplished all these areas have to be addressed, In addition, to quite a few lifestyle adjustments. The Five- element acupuncturists method to support weight loss is to encourage a healthy Earth element.
Control issues abound in the food arena. We will ourselves, we deprive ourselves, we indulge ourselves, as we prostrate ourselves in the name of consumption. Eating is a necessary biological function and the most popular social activity. There is food just about everywhere. The Earth element in Chinese medicine encompasses all reference to food and the holy act of eating. However, the Earth element concerns itself mostly with the broader concept of nourishment.
Nourishment? What does it look like to nourish not only the physical cells of the body through digestion and assimilation of nutrients, but to feed the mental/emotional level and the spirit? To nurture the emotional centers of the body with the ingredients that they desire to establish stability and security. An in-balance Earth element, requires the integration of energy in the form of food, to fuel the transportation and transformational functions in the body. This creates a fertile and supportive ground from which to grow and thrive. A container with solid banks that can hold the opposing tensions of energy, as they mature and push forth. The vessel is not too thin, not too brittle, and there are no leaks.The energy in the vessel does not churn in it’s tracks, is not stagnant or malnourished. The Earth energy is balanced.
Late Summer, early Fall is Earth time, a season of bounty. Orange, red, green and indigo- colors that brightly paint the horizon. We nourish our bodies with the rich bounty of the soil. Soak up the last bright rays of sunlight and fill up our reserves as we start to descend into the darkest time of the year.
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