Five Elements, Five Emotions

 Hello and welcome to my podcast series, Menopause Balance. This is where I get to explore how classical East Asian medicine views and treats the human body. These episodes cover specific symptoms, theoretical frameworks, and foundational classical East Asian medicine concepts to help you better understand your health and your well being. Today I want to delve into a question that was raised in the SIGCHI Health Balance Community Forum. Now for those of you You may not know. I do have a membership that includes access to a private supportive community forum. Now in this space, members can post questions, share their experiences and participate in a live Q and a session with me once a month. Now back to this podcast. Okay. Now, initially. I thought the question might be too broad for a short answer, but after discussion within the group, I realized there was enough interest to explore it further in a podcast. The question that arose during the discussion was about how in menopause, the heart and the kidney or the fire and the water elements, they have to be in harmony to support restful sleep. This basically led us to explore further into the emotions connected with each of the organ systems within the classical East Asian medicine framework. Now, before I get any deeper in this, it is important to to clarify the classical East Asian medicine, what it means when we refer to an organ, because unlike Western medicine, which tends to view the organs as discrete physical structures studied from the microscopic level down to individual cells, Classical East Asian medicine takes a different approach. In classical East Asian medicine, we tend to focus on what I think of as more the macro rather than the micro. The macro level connections between organ systems, rather than their cellular structure. Each organ is seen as part of a larger system. It interacts dynamically with all the other organs. For example, the heart is not just an isolated organ. It is connected to the small intestine through the yin and yang relationship. Both, however, belong to the fire element. Which is associated with summer, heat, joy, and sadness. And the fire element also serves as the mother to the next one in the sequence, sequence, which is the earth element, or the spleen and stomach, creating a continuous cycle of independence. Sorry, a continuous cycle of interdependence. Now each organ system is associated with specific emotions. And imbalances, when they're not happy, when they're not healthy, when they're not happy. Now these imbalances can manifest as emotional or physical symptoms and understanding these relationships can offer insights into how emotions affect our overall well being. However, it is essential to note that this discussion is not a suit, not a substitute for psychological or emotional counselling. Instead, it provides a framework to observe how emotions and physical health. intertwine within Classical East Asian Medicine. Let's explore how the emotions correspond to the five elements, beginning with the first element in the traditional cycle of wood. The liver is responsible for regulating the smooth flow of qi and blood, and it is part of the wood element, along with the gallbladder, which is your yin and your yang connection. However, when you have an imbalance, this can lead to irritability, frustration, or perhaps a tendency to, say, fly off the handle. The liver's function is to regulate the flow of qi. is to move chi. It is what we call and what we would refer to as responsible for the free flow. flow of qi, and that means that it is, if it's unhappy, you get what we refer to as stagnation or lack of flow. Now, this can also contribute to emotional disturbances in other elements because if the cheese's not flowing, because the liver's not happy, then all the other organs may suffer. Not all at once, but they all have a potential. As an example, when the water element. isn't happy, or is in disharmony, or out of balance, that can lead to a sense of fear, , or uncertainty, or perhaps even a deep foreboding. Now a counterbalance to this can be introduced joy. So that emotion is associated with the fire element or the heart. And just as warmth prevents water from freezing, joy can help the living help lift that heavy, dark emotional link that is weakened water element. If the water element becomes excessively cold, for instance, then you're going to have movement. That is going to slow down or become sluggish. And that's both physical and emotional. Now this can manifest as a deep fatigue, low motivation, or even a depressive mood. And by introducing fires warmth through social interactions. Laughter, even just straight out laughing or engaging in uplifting activities. This is all what I refer to as just finding something to insert in your life and do simply for the unadulterated joy of it. Doesn't give you anything else, doesn't cost you anything, doesn't produce anything except joy. This is going to help restore that sense of movement and flow. Let's move on to another element. So let's look at the earth element, which is the spleen and stomach. Now, the emotions there would be worry and stability. The earth element is linked really closely to overthinking and worry. When it's out of balance, an individual may feel stuck, unable to move forward or make decisions. They may be oscillating and procrastinating. Now, in order to counter this, we might want to think of engaging the wood element, which can help you take action, even in small ways. Therefore that can break that cycle of worry and procrastination. Now let's just flip that same situation. So we're still talking about wood and earth. However, conversely, if a person is overly assertive or impulsive, which is Liver lacking control or unbalanced, then by bringing in the earth element, you can, while you're slowing things down, you are learning to contemplate, you are perhaps being a bit more careful in the consideration of your choices that can create stability and balance within the liver. Now, the only organ system element we haven't talked about so far is the metal element and the metal element is the lungs. And the large intestine, that's your yin and your yang connection. And the emotions usually associated with the mental element are grief and the ability to let go or not let go. Now, the mental element governs the ability to process grief and let go. When it's imbalanced, however, an individual may become stuck. They might become stuck in sadness. unable to move forward. This is where fire's joy can again act as a counterbalance to that. It's the force that's going to help bring things back to balance by bringing warmth and that light mood to counter the heaviness of that prolonged grief. Now, by recognizing the natural interplay between the elements, I believe we can develop a deeper understanding of how our emotions influence our physical health and conversely how your physical health can influence your emotional balance. If one of your elements is not balanced, you can look at its counterpart for a way to restore that harmony. Now, the final thing here, the final thoughts, is that the five elements, it gives us a framework, provides a valuable lens through which we can view the emotional and physical health of our body. By understanding how emotions are linked to the organ systems, perhaps we can take small steps. To bring balance back into our lives, whether through movement, mindfulness, or simple lifestyle adjustments. This brings me to the end of this short look into five elements, the emotions, and the organ systems. So thank you for joining me today. And if you found this discussion interesting, I do encourage you to share your thoughts through the Saguaro Health Balance Community page. And I will be returning soon with more insights from classical East Asian medicine. So until then, take care and stay balanced.