A Chinese Medicine Love Story.

We can journey to faraway countries. We can meditate for days.

We can also choose to make our pilgrimage to good health really simple.

We can touch back down into our bodies right now and explore the basics.

Many high-functioning people can’t eat, sleep or poop with ease or contentment. Weird. These are basic biological functions. How have we drifted so far from balance to miss out on these simple joys? Why do we think it’s normal to have difficulty in these essential areas of life? We actually need to do all of these things, regularly, to live. We do. I swear.

How is your sleep? How is your appetite? How is your poop?

As a practitioner of Chinese Medicine, these are the core questions I ask every person I treat. A patient may want me to only fix their bum knee. I still want to know about their poop. Your poop is telling you something. Listen up.

A friend of mine told me her usually healthy appetite is really low lately. She thinks this is good. No, I said. This is not good.

When one of your basic  systems is off, it is a signal from your really smart body. Our elegantly intelligent flesh is trying to tell our overworked, obstinate mind that something is wrong. The warning signs, like no appetite, might even look good at first. But your body is giving you a head’s up that if you continue down the current stream, rough waters are ahead.

Most times, the answers are easy. Slow down. Now, slow down a wee bit more. Eat real food. Avoid stimulants before sleep, including foods, arguments and dare I say it, the internet. Sometimes the answers may be more complex. Find a practitioner that believes in the stories your body is telling, and is also on your wavelength, be they acupuncturist, massage therapist, nutritionist or belly dance teacher. You choose. You know best.

Let’s get back to the most basic functions of your most valuable possession.

Tune in to the story being told.

What is your body telling you?

~

Prepared by Karl Saliter/ Editor: Kate Bartolotta.

Nicole Maniez is an acupuncturist, herbalist, yoga teacher and childbirth educator in the Boston area.  She is lucky to get to combine multiple loves into one sweet career, doing what she loves and helping people move closer to health and wholeness.  She is also a momma, an art maker, and an out-of-tune music maker.  Hoping that she will never lose the ability to laugh at her follies (and yours), she cultivates her curiosity in an attempt to keep life entertaining.  She loves mail.  Send her something inspiring.