5 Element Theory

Makeup for Acupressure Theory (1 day)

[Blog article about how learning 5 elements, energy, meridians, acupressure has changed your viewpoints & how you plan to incorporate this info into your career]

Since being introduced to the 5 elements and all that it includes, I have been able to take a more open minded approach to wellness and life in general. I’ve learned that everything has a place, and everything is connected. A disharmony could be caused by something emotional and manifested as something physical, and vice versa. I have been able to move farther away from “black and white” thinking and now have a broader view of how everything interacts and intertwines with everything else.

When I used to be confronted with a physical ailment, I would focus on that one thing and try to pick it apart and fix it that way. Now I know that the pain is a sign that I need to pay attention and do some investigating. For instance, a headache. Pre-5 Elements-Me would conclude that I have a headache because that’s just how things are sometimes, take some ibuprofen, drink some water or have a snack and move on. Now I would notice where in my head I was feeling tension or pain, maybe it’s on a meridian I learned. I would notice if it radiated to or from somewhere else. I would check my posture. I would be curious about how much tension my neck would be holding, if there was an abnormal amount of tension anywhere else in my upper body. I would consider my surroundings, what I have or have not eaten that day, my emotional state. I have a plethora of different approaches to treating a headache now!

It has also opened my eyes when it comes to other people. After learning more about myself and how complex I am, I realized that means every person has to be just as complex, just as dynamic. Learning about specific behaviors and how they are tied into our overall health as far as TCM is concerned really helped me understand myself more, which in turn helps me understand other people more fully. I think to myself “Oh that totally makes sense now!” at least 10 times a day these days. When I’m around other people, I pay attention to their attitude about themselves and their beliefs through how they speak and act. This information is often more telling of a person that anything they can tell you about themselves in their own words.

As for my career, this information will be especially valuable when treating a client! When a client comes in with low back pain, I will be able to approach their treatment in more ways than simply relieving them of the pain. I will have more specific questions to ask, and thus be able to gain even more clues as to the true cause of their pain and the best way to help their body treat it.

It’s like playing a game without reading the rules. I’ve been playing blind! Now that I finally read the rulebook everything makes so much more sense.