Your heart is the most powerful organ. It breaks, heals and becomes stronger again.
— Anonymous
Summer in Traditional Medicine is all about the heart. The heart is literally the organ that governs every aspect of your being – the physical, mental and spiritual. In Traditional Medicine the heart is home for your spirit and therefore acts a sort of “mission control” for the harmony of your entire body.
Your body needs Qi to function properly. But it also needs to receive the correct inputs from all your different organs. The heart is your body’s superhighway – sending, receiving and interpreting the signals that keep everything in perfect harmony. As a result it is imperative to make sure your heart is peaceful. Without peace in the heart – there is no balance. No balance means illness.
In Traditional Medicine, your heart is responsible for proper blood flow. If your heart is out of balance, mental and emotional issues are bound to arise. This can affect everything from your mental acuity to your sleep-wake cycles.
Fortunately, keeping your heart happy and peaceful is simple. Don’t sweat the small stuff. Get plenty of exercise to help burn off excess heat from your heart. Eat cooling foods like watermelon and cucumbers. Do nice things for yourself and others. And treat yourself to regular acupuncture treatments which may help balance your Qi and return your heart to a peaceful rhythm.
How can you tell if you heart is not peaceful? A couple of interesting signs to look for are tongue colour – a happy heart will be reflected in a healthy red tongue. If your tongue is too pale or dark purple – you need some relaxation and pampering. Also, if your face is too pale you may have too little blood circulating through your heart. Conversely, if your face is red and blotchy it can signal excessive heat in your heart.
Now that you know how important your heart is in Traditional Medicine – you can make plans to take care of it all summer and beyond. Caring for your heart is caring for mind, body and spirit. All three will say thank you for a lifetime.
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