In most holistic healing traditions, healing begins when we address all four levels of our being: physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual. What I offer in my medical intuitive readings and five element sessions is a way for you to get to know your body, its health, and disease on each of these four levels. When we do this, we create greater self-awareness which empowers us to make healthy choices in our lives. Here is information on what it means specifically to heal on each of these four levels:

Healing the physical level: the healing journey begins on the physical level. When chronic disease shows up in our lives, we first must address our physical body. In assessing our physical body we look at the strength and vitality of our Qi and blood, the health of organs, body systems, tissues, and the physiological functioning of our body. We support our physiological function by eating foods that nourish us and avoiding foods that tax us. It is important that we find prescription medication, over-the-counter medication, herbs, vitamins, minerals, and supplements to augment the physical functioning of our body. Sometimes surgical or other procedures are the right course of action to correct an imbalance. If disease is caused by infection or environmental toxin, we look at ways to eliminate those from our system and our environment. Exercising and movement which balances the organs, muscles, and tissues is imperative in balancing the physical body. It is important that our physical body is in a relatively stable place before we address the mental, emotional, and spiritual levels.

Healing the mental level: thoughts are what make up the mental level. Thoughts rule our world. We are at the mercy of our endless and constant thoughts. Most of our habitual, automatic, and subconscious thoughts are based in fear. Fear is the emotion of the Water element which governs the brain, nervous system, and our fight or flight response. Healing on the mental level means having awareness of the habitual, automatic, and subconscious thoughts that we believe, hook into, and invest our Qi in. Once we have awareness of these thoughts, we can evaluate these thoughts using logic, reason, and critical thinking. How much of your Qi do you want to invest in these stressful thoughts? When we learn to recognize our habitual stressful thoughts and not invest so heavily in them, we begin to achieve mental freedom.

Healing on the emotional level: the origin of all emotion is a thought. We can trace any emotional state back to a thought. In the Five Elements of Chinese medicine, each element or constitutional type has an emotion associated with it. The emotion of your constitutional type is what you tend to experience more intensely than others. Water types tend to experience fear more intensely than others. Fire types tend to experience anxiety more intensely than others. Wood types tend to experience anger, Metal types tend to experience grief, and Earth types tend to experience the need for sympathy more intensely than others. Knowing this about ourselves gives us empowerment and liberation from our habitual tendencies. Healing on the emotional level is tied to healing on the mental level. When we work with our habitual emotional states, we need to identify the thought which created the emotion. The exercise mentioned above in the ‘healing on the mental level’ section of evaluating our habitual automatic thoughts and asking ourselves how much Qi we want to invest in those thoughts not only creates mental freedom, but emotional freedom as well.

Healing on the spiritual level: This level of our being doesn’t need healing. We just need to remember it. The Taoist concept of original nature says that our awakened mind, or our ceaseless unending connection to the benevolent intelligent existence tissue unfolding in and through everything and everyone, called the Tao, is always there and ever-present. It is our habituated mental and emotional fluctuations which clouds our ability to remember original nature. When we create awareness of our habituated mind, we create an opening for original nature to emerge. As original nature emerges, we remember the peace, joy, and love inherent within. 

From its inception thousands of years ago, Chinese medicine has seen the intimate link between the mind and the body. Chinese medical theory states that disease can be caused by habitual thoughts, emotions and behaviors. The Five Elements of Chinese medicine (Water Fire Wood Metal Earth) give us a map and guidebook which connects our habitual thoughts, emotions, and behaviors to our body and its health.

Central to Chinese medical theory is the concept of Qi (pronounced chee). Qi is defined as both matter and energy in different situations. It is often translated as vital energy or life force. Qi is present in all living things. It never perishes, but continually transforms from one state to another. Qi is considered the infrastructure, source, and essence of the universe as well as the infrastructure, source, and essence of the human body as well as all living things.

Chinese medicine teaches that the basis of health comes from conserving, tending, and nurturing our Qi. Qi forms the foundation of all vital substances in the body such as blood, body fluids, and essence or Jing. Jing is the foundation of our vitality and strength. Jing is also finite. If we deplete our Jing, it is very difficult to replenish.

Habitual thoughts, emotions, and behaviors impact our Qi and the flow of Qi in our body. Thoughts create emotion. Emotion creates behavior. Habitual emotional states held in the body as well as habitual unhealthy behavior impacts the health and flow of Qi in the physical body. These habitual emotional states and unhealthy behavior can create Qi deficiency, Qi stagnation, and other imbalances in the flow of Qi which eventually leads to imbalances in our blood, tissues, body systems, and organs.

Here is a brief synopsis of how each element’s habitual mental and emotional tendencies impacts the physical body:

Water constitutional types tend to habitually hold an emotional state of fear in their body. Fear is the emotion associated with the Water type. The Water element governs the kidneys, urinary bladder, neurological system, brain, spinal column, low back, knees, and feet. This habitual experience of fear usually stems from thoughts like “the world is not safe”, “I am not safe”, “we are not safe”, and “it is not safe for me to _______”. For Water types this habitual state of fear, that is often in the background and not fully conscious, can lead to body sensations of feeling frozen or paralyzed by fear creating reduced movement and stagnation. This can lead to behavior like withdrawal, being overly cautious, and feeling powerless.

Fire constitutional types tend to habitually hold an emotional state of anxiety in their body. Anxiety is the emotion associated with the Fire type. The Fire element governs the heart, cardiovascular system, small intestine, and the blood. This habitual experience of anxiety usually stems from thoughts like “I am not enough”, “I have to try hard to win other’s approval”, “it’s up to me to make other people happy”, and “what if ______ happens”. For Fire types this habitual state of anxiety, that is often in the background and not fully conscious, can lead to body sensations of increased heart rate, palpitations, and a jittery frenetic sensation in the small intestine. This can lead to behavior like speeding up, putting a lot of effort into everything, and trying hard to make others happy.

Wood constitutional types tend to habitually hold an emotional state of pressure in their body. Anger is the emotion associated with the Wood type, but pressure is often the habitual state of being for Wood types. The Wood element governs the liver, gallbladder, eyes, temporal region of the head, and connective tissue. This habitual experience of pressure and/or anger usually stems from thoughts like “it’s all up to me”, “it’s all on my shoulders”, and “I am not allowed to express my anger”. For Wood types this habitual state of pressure/anger, that is often in the background and not fully conscious, can lead to body sensations of headache, dizziness, menstrual issues, and a stifling sensation in the diaphragm and torso. This can lead to behavior like taking on too much responsibility, feeling responsible for other people’s affairs, and not delegating or trusting others to do what needs to be done.

Metal constitutional types tend to habitually hold an emotional state of grief in their body. Grief is the emotion associated with the Metal type. The Metal element governs the lungs, large intestine, skin, and sinuses. This habitual experience of grief usually stems from thoughts like “it shouldn’t be this way”, “it should be better than this”, “if only ______ would happen”, and “if only _____ wouldn’t have happened”. For Metal types this habitual state of grief, that is often in the background and not fully conscious, can lead to body sensations of holding the breath, reduced appetite, and congestion in the lungs and sinuses. This can lead to behavior like holding yourself, others, and life to high standards and withdrawing participation until your high standards are met.

Earth constitutional types tend to habitually hold an emotional state of burden in their body. Sympathy is the emotion associated with the Earth type, but burden is often the habitual state of being for Earth types. The Earth element governs the organs of digestion, muscles, lymph system, and the four limbs. This habitual experience of burden usually stems from thoughts like “no one cares”, “life is harder for me than it is for others”, “I am not satisfied”, and “I have to take care of others before I can take care of myself”. For Earth types this habitual state of burden/sympathy, that is often in the background and not fully conscious, can lead to body sensations of craving sweets, overeating, fatigue, and heaviness in the arms and legs. This can lead to behavior like giving too much and/or taking too much.

It has become common knowledge in our culture that disease can be caused by mental and emotional imbalance. We live in a fascinating time where the predominance of infectious disease (smallpox, cholera, yellow fever, polio) is fading and chronic internally generated disease (diabetes mellitus, heart disease, cancer) is emerging. As chronic internally generated disease becomes more predominant, we need to look more closely at how our mind and emotions impact our physical body. The burgeoning fields of psychoneuroimmunology, psychoneuroendocrinology, and psychosocial genomics as well as the research being done in neuroplasticity show Western medicine’s acknowledgment of the mind body connection.

The real question is: how do we treat disease caused by mental and emotional imbalance? We know the treatment plan for a sprained ankle is rest, elevation, compression, herbal medicinals or over-the counter anti-inflammatory medication, and topical treatment such as ice or liniments which reduce swelling. But what is the treatment plan for disease caused by mental and emotional imbalance? For example, if we know our headaches are caused by our habitual patterns of pressuring ourselves and internalizing our anger, how do we change that? What is the course of action for working with our mind and emotions as they relate to the physical body?

In a Five Element Session, I offer a treatment plan for disease caused by mental and emotional imbalance. In Five Element Sessions, we view disease symbolically. We create awareness of how the habitual patterns of your thoughts and emotions create imbalance in your physical body. We use mindfulness tools, cognitive behavioral therapy, and the tenets of meditation to organize and manage your inner world. And we cultivate an awareness of original nature, the Taoist concept of our deep unbreakable connection to the Tao itself.

Ultimately, what we are doing in Five Element Sessions is making friends with our diseases. We are listening to the wisdom of our bodies. Doing this is a 180-degree shift from fighting our diseases and can feel foreign and scary at first. Many people initially have reservations about making friends with something that is causing so much pain, discomfort, and disruption in their lives. They feel that by befriending disease, they are encouraging it and it will get worse or stronger. I have found the opposite to be true. When we embrace and open up to our diseases, our diseases open up to us. When disease is caused by mental and emotional imbalance, it is a sacred messenger with wisdom for you.

I am a Fire constitutional type, and I have adrenal fatigue. I first showed signs of adrenal fatigue in 2007 when I was 34. The symptoms of exhaustion, fatigue, muscle weakness, and dizziness were severe and debilitating at first. After about nine months, I learned how to manage it by eating the right foods, taking herbal medicinals and supplements, getting the right amount of sleep, and curtailing most activities that weren’t absolutely necessary. However, understanding myself as a Fire constitutional type showed me how my habitual thoughts, emotions, and behaviors caused my adrenal fatigue.

I have now come to see that adrenal fatigue has given me so much. Because of adrenal fatigue, I am now aware of just how much energy and effort I put into seeking approval from others. I also see how hard I try to get people to see me the way I want to be seen.

Before adrenal fatigue, I had an intense and driven personality. I was someone who would go go go and do do do from sun up to beyond sundown. I rarely said no. I didn’t even have a sense of what a “no” was for me. I was trying to be all things to all people. I knew what everyone else liked and wanted in life, but had very little awareness of what I liked and wanted from life.

In the years since the initial onset of my adrenal fatigue, I have come a long way in understanding it and understanding myself. Adrenal fatigue is still a factor in my life and I listen to it. On the physical level, I know what foods to eat and what foods to avoid. I take herbal medicinals and supplements which support my Qi and adrenal function. For me personally, yoga and daily walks are staples in my routine.

On the mental and emotional levels, adrenal fatigue is a beacon of wisdom. When it shows up in my life, I look at my habitual patterns. I ask myself if I am investing in thoughts like “I am not enough” and “I have to work extra hard to get approval from others”. I check in with my anxiety levels. The physical symptoms of adrenal fatigue are a wake up call for me to pay more attention to my inner world.

On a spiritual level, letting go and trusting life are my life lessons. And these are so dang hard for me 🙂 I want to control and manipulate life to my own liking. Adrenal fatigue reminds me to let go and trust life. It also shows me how I have separated from original nature and the peace, joy, and love inherent in my own being.