Flowing River Acupuncture

In simple terms Eastern Medicine works with what we already have and tires to enhance it. If we combine the two approaches together in my opinion we have a more complete system.

So lets break down what Chinese Medicine would advice in 3 easy steps?

Take care of your lungs and digestion

This one seems pretty straight forward, we know those who smoke are more prone to infection and the lungs are often the organ effected first by colds and flu etc. However, how do we strengthen our lungs? Firstly we'd advice deep breathing on a daily basis. Think of this like going to the gym for your lungs but more gentle, which meanseverybody can do it. Most of us are shallow breathers and spend little if any time considering how we breath. Adding a regular deep breathing routine to your day has many benefits not only for your body but also for your mind. With a little effort you can see quick improvements in your ability to breath more deeply and more relaxed. Within the 5 element theory used in Chinese Medicine the mother of the lungs is the digestion, a healthy digestion often results in healthy lungs. Just think about how certain foods can cause nasal congestion, diary often being a culprit of this. This also fits with more modern research into probiotics and gut flora which has a huge impact upon our immunity. So if we want healthy lungs and a healthy immune system breath deep and eat well. My advice would be easily digestible food such as soup and staying away from greasy or fried food. Remember real food such as fruit, vegetables and meat is always better than processed. Its also worth watching how your body reacts to certain foods it will often give you a heads up such as bloating or nasal congestion.

Wind is considered an evil in Chinese Medicine which basically means it causes disease. However wind has a special place as its seen to carry other evils such as cold and heat. Going out on a blustery day without a scarf and warm clothing would be considered foolish, or sitting underneath air conditioning all day is also frowned upon. So the moral of this story is your mum was right...wear a scarf! but also where possible stay out of drafts and don't let that wind penetrate into the body. This may seem like a strange concept to us in the West but my own experience has convinced me this is true.

Personally I've not found any better remedy to stress than meditation, especially long term. We can even take this a stage further and consider Qi Gong. This is a form of gentle exercise that can provide the benefits of meditation, deep breathing and movement in one modality. Here is a quick video with some easy to learn moves to help the lungs. As a tip remember to try and stay relaxed, its important that you don't use muscular force or as little as possible. We are not stretching the muscles but instead the underlying soft tissue, so don't force a stretch relax and feel the stretch through the chest the arms and the wrist. And remember I'm always here if you need further advice.