Is Spring giving you a headache? Here’s why.
Have you been feeling irritable, frustrated, lethargic and tired lately? Or maybe you’re suffering from muscles aches and pains, headaches, migraines and high blood pressure?
Fear not, because in the world of Chinese Medicine this is all par for the course in springtime!
The Chinese say that the season of spring belongs to the Wood element and dominates Liver functioning.
The Liver channel (I’m referring here to a whole energetic body system rather than the organ itself) is responsible for the smooth movement of blood throughout the body – especially the menstrual blood.
It’s said to oversee the health of the muscles, ligaments, tendons, the eyes and the nails. It’s meant to bring balance to your breathing, digestion and temperature.
The emotion of the Liver is anger.
When the seasons change, it can knock our health off-balance. That’s why people can get moody, ‘liverish’ symptoms in the Spring that are as changeable as the weather!
Spring is also a time when new life is emerging and we’re likely to have plans and ideas that want to burst forth.
Here’s how to get into a happy, balanced state to bring those visions to life.
- Have your biggest meal at midday.
- Eat fresh greens and sprouts – the colour of Liver is green so it loves green foods! Other recommended foods include onions, leeks, wheat, dates, coriander, mushrooms, spinach and bamboo shoots.
- Go lightly with uncooked, frozen and fried foods because they make hard work for your digestive organs (spleen and stomach). Essentially, consuming lots of cold food and drinks puts out your ‘digestive fire’.
This is a biggie if you’re TTC because anything that impairs digestion means your kidney system will be affected and that’s the system in charge of reproduction.
- Avoid/minimise dairy because it’s very mucous forming and a major culprit if there are allergies and skin conditions.
- Because cold winter keeps us indoors and tends to make us eat too much, people sometimes develop a ‘heat imbalance’ in the spring. This is you if you’ve got a dry throat, bad breath, constipation, thick tongue coating and yellowish urine. Foods like bananas, pears, water chestnuts, celery and cucumber help to clear the excessive heat.
- Avoid indulging in too much alcohol and caffeine. Your lovely Liver wants to be able to filter what you eat and drink easily so don’t give it too much work to do!
- Have a balancing acupuncture treatment to smooth out that knotted energy and help you sail into the season of Spring.
