- 04
- Oct
- 2021
Keep Your Metal Energy Strong This Fall
Autumn is a special season of the year. Nature becomes a balance between the heat and activity of summer and the coming cold and quiet of winter. The days become shorter, the mornings and evenings become cooler. The leaves of green begin to turn into those beautiful fall colors of yellows, oranges, reds and purples.
In late autumn, the trees shed their leaves which rot and decay on the ground, and eventually disintegrate and enrich the soil with their trace minerals. Shedding the old leaves in autumn makes way for new growth in the spring. There is a symbolic lesson for us in this natural death cycle of autumn: we must let go of the old to make way for the new.
In Chinese Medicine, there are five Elements in nature – Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal and Water. Metals in nature include all of the earth’s trace minerals such as aluminum and iron, as well as precious metals such as gold and silver. Metal is used to keep us connected to each other, like copper wires that carry electrical power to our cell phones and devices. Metal is also represented by rare gemstones like rubies, emeralds, and diamonds. Thus, Metal gives us things we find useful as well as things we value.
Each Element has a corresponding season of the year. For Metal, that’s autumn. Many qualities of Metal present in autumn and in nature are reflected in people as well.
In people, the Metal Element’s corresponding organs are the lungs and the colon (large intestine). The role of the Metal Element is vital in giving us the power to let go of negative feelings, and feeling gratitude for all the good in our life. In the same way that the leaves shed to allow for new growth, the Lungs and large Intestine work together to release what is no longer needed and replace it with pure new energy to revitalize our body, mind, and spirit.
When someone has intestinal or lung issues, it is their Metal Element showing the imbalance physically. For example, the skin is like our “third lung” because we breathe through our skin. Any skin issues can therefore indicate an imbalance of the lungs and thus our Metal Element.
The Lungs allow us to receive. To breathe, we must empty our lungs so we can receive the next breath. As we breath out, we let go of unneeded gasses such as carbon dioxide. Emptying the useless gasses from our lungs allows us to receive the vital oxygen that we take in with our next breath.
The large Intestine gives us the strength to let go so we can prepare for what comes next. Physically, we let go of our waste naturally through bowel movements. We also detoxify through the pores of our skin, which is another way that we let go physically.
Our lung energy gives us the power to recognize our good qualities and appreciate the goodness in our life. When our lung energy is depleted on an emotional level, we can’t take in the value that Metal represents. It can become like a kind of asthma of our emotions.
Emotionally, we let go by crying and grieving. Weeping is the sound and grief is the emotion that corresponds to our Metal Element. We naturally grieve over the loss of a loved one, or loss of anything that we value. When our Metal Element is in balance, we move through this grieving process gracefully. However, when the Metal Element within us is out of balance, we can become overwhelmed or stuck in grief, unable to let go. Just like when a person cannot move their bowels regularly, a constipation of emotions can happen. If our lung energy is depleted, we lose self-respect or don’t appreciate others. Depleted lung energy can lead to low self-worth, emptiness, and eventually to depression.
Mentally and spiritually, we must regularly let go of negative thoughts. Our lung energy gives us the ability to connect to our source, to the spirit within one another, and in all the natural world. Our large intestine energy gives us the power to dump negative thoughts and to forgive. If our large intestine energy is depleted, negative thoughts can constipate our mind, leading to the “glass half empty” feeling, and an inability to forgive ourselves or others.
Autumn is the season to increase our Metal energy. Five Element acupuncture treatment can restore the Metal within you to balance, and there is a natural “high tide” of Metal energy during its season. For people with a Metal imbalance, there is no better time of year to receive a Five Element acupuncture treatment than in autumn.
Call us today at the Acupuncture and Holistic Health Center to schedule your autumn acupuncture “tune-up” at (904) 296-9545. Your Metal Element will appreciate you for it!