Woo Woo Learning #1: What's a Meridian and Why Should I Care?

For those of you who have been following my blog, you know I'm starting to learn about Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and other healing modalities through Andrea Beaman's New Healers Master Coaching Course. It's a total blast and SO interesting!  If you're a Health Coach, or a Nutritionist, or just a major health nerd, it's worth checking out! 

https://andreabeaman.com/new-healers-master-coaching-program

Now, I'm not becoming a Doctor of Oriental Medicine (DOM) or an acupuncturist, or anything like that, I'm just learning the basics so that when I coach clients, I can help them recognize when their energy is stagnant and I can help them find foods, movement, or self-care activities that will help them get "unstuck".  

Anyway, I promised that I would share some of my learning with you, so here goes. 

 

Woo Woo Learning #1: 

What's a Meridian and Why Should I Care?  

Ever feel like you're out of balance?  

Like your body and mind all of a sudden decide to go haywire---too much energy, not enough energy, weird random aches or pains, rashes, sleeplessness, digestive issues, mind fog, inflammation, irritability, lack of motivation, fatigue, temperature regulation problems, sudden allergies, etc.?  

According to TCM, your body might be sending you signals that your energy is stuck somewhere or that your organ systems are out of balance.  

You see, energy flows through our whole body.  It is our life force. Have you ever heard someone use the words Qi (Chi) or Prana?  These are words that we use to describe the vital life force/energy that runs through our bodies.  

But this life force doesn't run around all willy nilly. Nope!  According to TCM it runs through the body in pathways called meridians.  And each meridian is associated with an organ system.  The meridians and organ systems work together, and if one is out of balance, it can impact all the others. 

How do we get out of balance?  Oh gosh!  A lot of things affect our energy and the way it flows through the meridians (and, in turn, how it balances the organ systems)--food, environment, stress, emotions, spirituality, sleep, exercise (or lack of exercise), injuries, hydration, temperature, trauma, the seasons...you name it!  

Our body works REALLY hard to remain in balance despite all the crazy things we throw at it.  So when it starts to get out of balance, it gives us signals in hopes that we'll pay attention and help it get back on track. Unfortunately, we're 21st century humans and we're really busy and we're not always listening.  Or even worse, sometimes we hear the messages but react in ways that would make our energy systems roll their eyes at us (if they had eyes). 

 

Example?  

You know that crazy fatigue you get?  It's probably your body telling you to slow down and rest, meditate, get extra sleep, eat more nutritious food, or cut down on your work load. 

But what do most humans do when feeling fatigued or stressed?  

We have a glass of wine (or two or three), down a pint of Cookie Dough Ice Cream, and veg out in front of the TV, most likely staying up later than we should and feeling bloated and even more tired the next day.  (And yes, your energy system is now rolling its eyes at you...'cuz it knows that if you keep doing what you're doing, your system will get so out of balance that you'll end up messing up your immune system, causing inflammation, and getting even more fatigued and sick.)

So what is a busy, 21st century human being to do?  

Well, the first step is to learn about your meridians and your organ systems so when your body is "yelling" at you to straighten up and fly right, you can actually listen to it and do something productive about it!  

As such, in the next few weeks, I'll give you a little 4-1-1 about your meridians and what they're all about.  If you're like me, you'll find it fascinating!

Stay Tuned!

Namaste,
Dorothy