In the Chinese calendar, December 8, 2023, is the first day of Yang Wood Rat Month. The Chinese calendar assigns one of the twelve animals, five elements, and the polarity of yin or yang to each year, month, day, and hour. The Yang Wood Rat month extends till January 5, 2024.
The Yang Wood Rat refers to the 40th hexagram described in the I Ching and used in Feng Shui. Its image is Thunder over Water. The Yang Wood Rat represents "Liberation". Its image is that of weakness and stagnation, symbolizing a hazardous period in the Chinese calendar, with four lines denoting a weakness and stagnation of various body regions and organ systems.
The Yang Wood Rat hexagram:
From the body and health perspective, the Yang Wood Rat hexagram continues a shift to an ever-decreasing energetic nature. The environmental influences, currently, are in late Fall to early Winter mode. The Yang Wood Rat continues the stagnant nature begun in earlier months. It represents a hypoactivity of systemic energies throughout the body. This occurs as a result of the sudden transition to damp-cold environmental influences. The Yang Wood Rat continues the accumulation of dampness in the body which encourages toxic buildup.
Chinese medicine recognizes two types of inflammation. One is Yang type the other is Yin type. The Yang Wood Rat is an example of Yin-type inflammation due to a toxicity buildup in the spleen, pancreas, stomach, heart, and kidneys. The two main causes are incorrect diet for a person’s constitution and external environmental pathogens. When damp toxicity accumulates in the tissues and organs, toxic inflammation will overwhelm our body's natural immunity. During the Yang Wood Rat month, damp toxic patterns have their root in external climatic pathogenic factors coupled with the accumulation of turbid fluids in the internal organs. This culminates in an extreme weakness of Yang Qi, which is the motive force necessary to maintain vibrant health.
The Thunder trigram is one of two trigrams originating in the Wood element. When Thunder is located in the upper trigram it indicates a damp sticky condition, like phlegm, affecting the upper body. This pathology affects the Wei Qi or Defensive Qi and is related to the immune system. It also stagnates the lymphatic systems causing a buildup of turbid toxins, neck and upper back pain, tightness in the chest, and labored or difficult breathing.
The Water trigram originates in the Water element and is related to damp conditions. During the Yang Wood Rat month, the Water trigram affects the yin aspects, primarily the lower body, weakening the gastrointestinal tract, stagnating the lymphatic system, destabilizing the endocrine system, and weakening the heart and kidneys.
Each season consists of various energetic states, often in conflict. These conditions will be reflected in nature and, more importantly, our bodies. As mentioned earlier, the Yang Wood Rat represents a generalized pattern of stagnant damp accumulation that affects various organs, tissues, and body regions. The buildup of toxicity requires a focused effort to flush toxins from the body. Flushing the body of toxins will be inhibited with certain foods, diets, and wrong or inadequate exercise.
Common problems during the Yang Wood Rat Month are:
Upper Jiao (above the diaphragm)
Headache, tremors, blurred vision, shoulder pain, elbow pain, arm pain, upper back pain, facial swelling or paralysis, coughing up blood, nosebleed, asthma, sore throat, febrile diseases without sweating, cardiac pain, palpitation, voice loss, acute mastitis
Middle Jiao (between the diaphragm and umbilicus)
Acute gastric pain, borborygmus, pancreatic dysfunction
Lower Jiao (below the umbilicus)
Pain and weakness of the lumbar and leg (sciatica), pain in the hypochondrium, epigastric pain, diarrhea, irregular menstruation, urogenital system problems: urinary retention, hematuria, incontinence, constipation, lower thoracic and lumbar pain,
Internal organ damp toxicity patterns are aggravated by:
Seafood: especially shellfish, like crabs, oysters, scallops, clams, lobster, and shrimp
Fermented foods: cheese or fermented tofu.
Dairy: milk, cream, yogurt, cheese, and ice cream.
Sugar: all foods containing sugar, such as cake and dessert.
Meat: lamb, beef, goose, and duck.
Deep-fried or greasy food.
Certain fruits: mango and durian.
Stimulants: coffee, alcohol, and energy drinks.
Carbohydrates: white rice or bread as they may damage the Spleen and in turn produce more dampness.
Spicy, pungent, aromatic vegetables: pepper, garlic, onions, basil, rosemary, cumin, fennel, anise, leeks, chives, scallions, thyme, saffron, wormwood, mustard, chili pepper, and wasabi.
Many of the signs and symptoms of toxic dampness will fatigue the body. Fortunately, acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine have great treatment options for all the above conditions.
This time of year we're seeing a lot of patients with a variety of respiratory conditions. No one is immune from contracting, influenza, Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV), the current strain of COVID-19, the common cold, bronchitis, sinus infections, and ear infections Once you develop a fever it is advisable to avoid most all foods you normally consume. The reason is once you're sick your body needs to sluff off the accumulated turbid fluids that are aggravating your symptoms. A simple congee of water, rice, chopped celery, and a small bit of salt is the best meal to eat until the body temperature is back in the normal range for two to three days. Yes, this is bland but your body will love you for it. Once the fever is down to normal levels consider adding in a small amount of roasted chicken without too much fat.
Once your health returns and you want to embark on a maintenance dietary program, I recommend patients schedule a personal consultation to determine the correct foods for them as most diet programs miss the mark. Michelle offers a free 20-minute Ayurvedic Health Consultation to help with identifying those foods that will prevent dampness, mucous, and phlegm from accumulating, specifically for you.
If you need remedies from our herbal compounding pharmacy please reach out to us. In most cases, we can schedule a telemedicine visit for you. If you're unsure of a particular condition will respond to pharmaceutical-grade herbs, send us a text or give us a call. We'll be happy to answer any questions you have.
Our special this month: 10% discount on BSABV-ES, our herbal anti-viral, anti-bacterial formula. This formula is compounded in-house to address the many signs and symptoms associated with infections. This formula is available in a 200-capsule bottle or a 100gm powder for making an herbal tea.
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Meridian Harmonics Acupuncture and Herbal Compounding Pharmacy
