A Year
Today we asked Indigo Acupuncturist Nancy Byrne, https://www.nancybyrne.com, to write about the anniversary of the COVID shutdown and how it relates to Chinese Medicine. Read her beautiful words below.
As we meet the milestone of a year since Covid shutdown, are you feeling a bit...off? While there is hopeful news with the vaccines, and we can see the light at the end of the tunnel, it’s been a looong tunnel, and the body tends to feel the effects of pronlonged stress.
A year of masks, constant change, uncertainty, separation, loss of life, emotional upset, racism surfacing and rising, protests, desire for equality, desire for peace, desire for hugs, longing for a return to some sort of normal. A year. The body knows. The body feels...The body senses traumatic anniversaries.
It helps to turn to the beauty and interconnectedness of Chinese Medicine to help to make sense of all the feels, and how to work with them.
The years 2020 and 2021 are related to the Metal Element. The organ systems under this element are Lung and Large Intestine. The Lung is related to the breath, the skin, and the emotions of grief and frustration. The Large Intesine is related to letting go, both physically and emotionally. The Metal element is further related to the season of Autumn, and with it, endurance, beginning to move inward, transformation, and the ability to see the bigger perspective, of what the hidden will later become. If you think about all of these themes, many were prevalent in the last year.
When stress is prolonged, it affects our spirit, or our “shen”.
Sudden change or trauma, as well as prolonged negative emotions, can get lodged in the body. They may show up as fatigue, chronic pain that is hard to relieve, digestive upset, skin issues, just feeling “off” or stuck, anxiety, memory issues...and can flare around the anniversary of a traumatic event. All of these symptoms are specifically related to the Metal element, when its related spirit has been knocked out of blance.
But.....our body is powerful! Like Metal, we have the ability to transform. We can transform feelings, and their affect on the body, by expanding our breath, letting go of what no longer serves us and broadening our perspective.
The Metal element is related to transformation because Metal can be transformed into many things...a fence, a piece of jewelry, a sword....it just needs a vision, skill, and fire. We can use this power of transformation by hearnesssing breath and the fire of the heart.
If you are feeling off around this time, or experiencing physical symptoms, take a moment to be still and come in to your body, and breathe.
Take a few intentional moments to pause, pay close attention to your body, acknowledge what emotion(s) you are feeling, and where you are feeling it. Then slow and deepen your breath, (Metal) and focus on the area over your heart (Fire). After a few moments of slow, expansive breathing, bring to mind a happy place, a favorite pet, or an activity that makes you feel blissful. Allow yourself to feel the positive emotions of gratitude and joy. Really feel it, and see the vision.
Take a few moments to do this every day, focusing on making your breath a little slower and deeper each time, further tapping into positive emotions, and broadening your perspective. Like Metal, you will transform.