Attuning to the Spring Season: Perspectives from Traditional Chinese Medicine, Western Herbalism & Shiatsu!
The season of spring is a time of renewal, growth and new beginnings. With the days gradually getting longer, nature responds with bright green shoots and tree buds starting to crack open and just like the natural world, our bodies mirrors this experience with the urge for expansion and upward movement. However, the transition from the dark, dormant, heavy energy of the Winter season, this transition might not be the smoothest for everyone and it’s not uncommon to feel internally stagnant, irritable, impatient or even angry while we try to shake off the winter woolies.
According to Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and the Five Elements, spring corresponds to the “Wood” element, which is associated with the Liver and Gallbladder energies. The Liver system is responsible for the smooth flowing of Qi (energy, life force) throughout the body. When the Liver Qi flows smoothly, physical and emotional functions happen with greater ease. If the Liver energy is out of balance it can manifest as anger, frustration and resistance to change.
And to clarify, this doesn’t necessarily mean there is anything wrong with your liver organ, more that the transition from Winter to Spring may need to be supported due to the dynamic shifts in energy flow within the Liver system.
Here are a few signs that the Liver’s energy isn’t flowing smoothly:
- Irritability, mood swings, overwhelm or short temper
- Sighing frequently (a way your body internally tries to move Qi)
- Tightness in the neck, shoulders, or jaw
- Digestive issues like bloating or nausea
- Menstrual issues such as worsening PMS, heavy flow, increased cramps & irregular cycles
- Waking between 1:00 – 3:00 AM (the Liver’s prime time in the 24-hr TCM organ clock)
If you’re noticing some of these symptoms, your body is telling you that your Liver Qi needs some gentle movement and release. We hope to provide some accessible practical traditional strategies to manage spring transition as well as introducing some clinical supports from members of the H&H practitioner team!
Eating fresh, green & a touch of pungent
In sync with the season, spring is the time to start incorporating more fresh and green foods into your diet *if* your digestion is up for the task. Green, leafy veggies like kale, chard, spinach, broccoli, asparagus and sprouts fit the bill. Lightly cooked or steamed makes your veg easier to digest and assimilate.
Also to help support smooth flow of Liver Qi, mildly pungent foods such as arugula, mint, cilantro, mustard greens, radish, green onions and garlic. The expansive properties of pungent flavors help to break up stagnation and promote smooth flow, which will support Liver Qi.
Slightly bitter and sour foods also help support digestion, gut motility and detoxification as you transition away the heavier, starchier winter diet. Think vinegars, lemon, lime, green or black teas and dandelion greens.
Avoid heavy, greasy or rich foods as well as overeating, which can overload your already stagnant, irritable Liver.
This is the ideal time to “spring clean” your system and lighten the load in preparation for the high energy of summer.
Protecting yourself from the wind
In Chinese Medicine each organ-system has a corresponding ‘climate’ by which it is most injured. The Liver system is most vulnerable to wind, which we tend to see a lot more of in the Spring here on our little peninsula.
When an organ-system is injured its functions are disrupted and those disruptions follow particular patterns, like stagnating the smooth flow of Qi, anger and irritation, and menstrual irregularities in the case of Liver. To illustrate the impact of Wind on Wood in Chinese medicine one can observe the aftermath of a windstorm and its effect on the trees.
Those of us who get irritable and overwhelmed in extreme winds know one example of these issues well: tensing shoulders up to the ears, bracing against the sensory onslaught of a windy day, a common Wind-injury posture. Our neck is the most vulnerable, but wrists, hands, ankles, and low backs can all be a little more exposed than the rest of us, especially as the temperature warms, and therefore need extra care to ensure they are protected during the Spring season.
Guarding your sensitive spots from the wind with jackets, scarves, long socks, hoods, coat collars, or even long hair can help minimize your exposure to the wind and therefore your wind-related pathologies. Coverage can go a long way to preventing the creeping tension, pains, and illness we associate with wind invasion, and you know what they say about an ounce of prevention!
Don’t forget Acupuncture to help smooth out emotions
Acupuncture is a powerful Qi-level modality, and can be just what you need to smooth out the flow of Qi, and therefore your emotional being. The Liver system is responsible for the smooth flow of Qi throughout the body, and while each organ-system is associated with a specific emotion, the Liver addtionally coordinates how our system processes and expresses our emotions overall, via regulating Qi flow in the body.
In the Spring we can feel a profound stuckness, and in result frustration and anger flourish. Anxiety, insomnia, and stress are also symptoms which we associate (in some expressions) with the Liver system. When Classical acupuncturists hear a few key symptoms in a pattern together, we usually think toward one of a few Liver channel-containing protocols to address stress, insomnia, anxiety, or neck and shoulder tension that primarily travels along the side of the neck and the apex of the shoulder. We tend to see many more patients needing Liver channel balancing of some fashion as we flow into Spring, and throughout the season. Some people constitutionally need that balancing the whole year, and others find that these patterns show up or get more acute in Wood season.
Coming in for a community acupuncture treatment when things are starting to feel a little too stuck and overwhelming is a good first step toward smoothing out your emotions and feeling like yourself again!
Jade and Christina are ready to provide you gentle pokes to shake off your winter woolies. They have timeslots available Monday – Saturday, morning and evening/afternoon!
Shiatsu for Liver Qi Stagnation
Spring is a beautiful season, making trees flower and expand the energy after the contraction from the winter season. The first blooms are popping everywhere because the sap is expanding, and a similar process happen in our bodies. Traditional Chinese Medicine takes its principles from natural observations of the world around us. Wood is the Spring element; Wood has to be flexible to be healthy but after the winter we may not be completely ready to receive this surge of energy.
Are you feeling a rise of energy but you’re feeling stuck, irritable, experiencing mood swings, headache or even joint pain? All those are potential signs of Liver Qi Stagnation.
In spring Wood energy rises, Liver is the most active organ in the Spring, and this is why its a good time for detoxification. But if you have blockages in Liver meridian you will feel out of balance, stuck, physically and/or emotionally.
Shiatsu works moving energy with assisted stretches and by applying pressure along the Liver meridian, and in targeted tsubos-points. Receiving a shiatsu around neck, head and feet can help mobilize down your body this stacked energy that is troubling you.
Interested in how Shiatsu can support your spring transition?
You can find Violan in our schedule THURSDAYS 11:00am – 7:00pm
Herbal Bitters for Spring
What is a bitter?
The word bitter describes both a taste and a herbal action, which is how we categorize herbs
and describe how they impact our bodies. The herbal action of bitter herbs is to signal and
stimulate secretions from our digestive organs, encourage the liver to produce bile and
detoxify blood, and help bring our nervous system into rest and digest.
Why do we need bitters in spring?
Just like our plant kin, our bodies and systems change throughout the year as we experience different weather patterns, temperatures, and energy levels. In the Northern Hemisphere, winter tends to be cold and damp, and a time when we move at a slower pace, eat heavier meals, and lean into rest. During these cold months our digestive system also slows down, and by the time spring comes around, and the sap starts to flow, we often need some support to get our own sap moving – enter bitters! The first bitter green shoots (nettle, chickweed, dandelion and yarrow leaves etc.) that push through the soil are full of vitality and nutrients, and snacking on them can be a great way to connect our body and mind to the seasonal shifts, as we help our digestion ease back into gear.
If you want to support your digestion and seasonal transition beyond bitter greens, you can
try a herbal bitters formula! Because most bitter herbs have a cooling and drying effect on
our bodies, carminatives and/or aromatic bitters are added to formulas to help bring warmth,
blood flow and relaxation to our digestive organs. How can you tell if your body could use
some bitters? Herbal bitters are probably something most of us could benefit from, but are
especially helpful for people who experience indigestion, gas, bloating, low appetite, sluggish
digestion and acid reflux.
Examples of herbs you may find in a herbal bitters formula:
- Bitters: dandelion, gentian, artichoke leaf, vervain, motherwort, hops, chamomile, lavender, orange peel, yarrow, mugwort
- Carminatives: ginger, cinnamon, cardamom, fennel, mint, catnip, lemon balm
- Aromatic Bitters (warming, not cooling): calamus, angelica, turmeric etc.
How to take herbal bitters
Put 5-10 drops of an alcohol or vinegar bitters formula on your tongue, 10-15 minutes before you eat. If you forget to take it before, you can take them mid-meal or afterwards too! If you’re wanting to get your bitters through food, you need a good handful to have same impact. Wild green pesto made of dandelion greens, bittercress, nettles is delicious!
*Herbal bitters are not to be taken during pregnancy or if you’re experiencing acute digestive inflammation or have been diagnosed with ulcers, gallbladder disease or kidney stones.
Want to dive deeper into how to support your body through this transition into spring? Or need support for a different health issue?
Em is available for consultations FRIDAYS 11:00am – 3:00pm.
