Insights on Wellness - Part 3

by Wendy Fritz, RN, R.Ac.,MSTOM, Dipl.O.M.

The season of fall in Chinese Medicine is connected with the lung. As we talk about wellness and prevention of viral invasions during fall and coming into winter, it is important to look at all aspects of the lungs energetics which includes the emotion associated with the lung - grief. This is important in any year, but maybe more so now than in any other we have known.

As I sit writing this, I am thinking of all the people I have talked to over the last several weeks.  The question, “How are you doing?”, is now always prefaced by, “All things considered.” This year has affected people in ways difficult to count. The reverberations from the pandemic continue in ways both expected and unexpected. For the vast majority of us, grief has played some part of our emotional experience of life in 2020, whether it be from loss of a loved one (due to COVID-19 or some other cause), loss of job or career, loss of feeling connected, loss of alone time, and/or loss of traditions and on and on.

My husband and I sat talking one evening as we often do.  He was expressing frustration because a family friend had died and another had just entered into hospice care. He questioned how difficult it was to say “good-bye” to someone, known for probably 50+ years by his parents, through a phone call or text message.  We lamented the lack of closure being denied because we are not often able to some together. A death of a loved one is often accompanied by some sort of service to celebrate that person’s life. For many of us, especially as we age, death becomes a common theme. There is a piece of the journey of closure derived from seeing others who share our grief, exchanging a knowing look, handshake, hug. Often stories are exchanged. From a Traditional Chinese Medicine perspective, all of this allows the chest to open and the tears to flow. Laughter from memories exchanged moves energy in the chest. The pain of loss is both experienced and allowed to move through us in sharing.

 What happens when we are not able to experience grief or when we get stuck in a grief state?  Grief causes contraction in the body. Metal moves from malleable to hard. Full air exchange decreases as the lungs tend not to fully expand. Sharing dissipates. The lungs and their partnered organ, the large intestine, become impaired in their function of holding and releasing.  As what we take in becomes old and stagnates, it becomes turbid.

There are several ways this can show up in the body.  The skin, which is nourished by the lung energy, becomes dry and lusterless.  The chest may become congested; there may be other symptoms like frequent sighing, a feeling of not being able to get enough air in, fatigue, bowel irregularity (especially constipation,) feeling either unbending in our thoughts, actions, and beliefs, or overly malleable to others, and dried or thickly coated mucus membranes. There are other possible causes for these symptoms too, but it is a good idea when experiencing any of these, to do a self check-in to evaluate if grief may be related. All of this, from the perspective of Chinese Medicine, can cause a decrease in the circulation of our immune system.

In this very difficult time we are living in, it is so important to allow ourselves to experience grief. It is important to find meaningful ways to safely and with regard for each other, express the losses endured. We may have to be creative. We may have to find new ways of reaching out, remembering always that we need each other; asking for help is not only normal, but at times necessary. Sharing often allows for dissipation. We need to practice breathing deep to expand the lungs and clear them of turbidity. Movement further helps to move energy through. Eating pungent foods helps to open and clear the lungs.

To either deny grief or to get stuck in a grief state is to allow metal to harden which can both hold our immune system fast and create gaps where unwanted things can get through, stifling our own abilities to creatively solve problems, fight infections, and makes us overall, ultimately more vulnerable.

I hope you are finding this series to be informative and helpful. Namaste