The Bad Boy of the Body--The Liver

If there was an organ that would ride a Harley, the Liver is it. The Liver is full of yang that can get riled up very easily. It can overact on the Spleen, causing diarrhea and bloating and poor food digestion taking advantage of the Spleen's inherent weaknesses. But the Liver also has a soft side too. It is a yin organ and can become deficient, allowing the fire of the Liver to flare upward and cause headaches and red eyes.

The spirit of the Liver is the Hun. The Hun is the Ethereal soul. The Chinese character for Hun is made up of 2 characters. The one on the left is "cloud" and the one on the right is "ghost". This is to represent that the spirit of the Liver is like a ghost, but is also free like a cloud that can float in and out of the body. The Hun is what gives us "sight" in the day and our dreams at night. It is responsible for our projects and plans and our dreams for the future. Because the Hun is in the Liver, and the Liver stores the blood, anything that can cause a loss of blood can make a deficiency in the Liver that can allow the Hun to get out of control.

The Hun is considered to be the minister to the Heart. The Hun proposes things and the Shen either accepts or rejects. The Shen is supposed to control the Hun, keeping the Liver spirit from wandering too far away into a world of dreams and no purpose. This presents a problem when the Shen isn't strong enough. The Hun can wander away, or be stolen away. The Hun can leave the body and go out into the world and not come back (mental illness) and it is then the Shen's job to get it and make it do it's job.

The Hun has 3 souls. These 3 souls resonate with the 3 Dan Tians. The first soul is connected to the Lower Dan Tian. When they are in harmony, physical health improves. The second soul is connected with the Middle Dan Tian. When they are in harmony, the emotions heal. The third soul is connected with the Upper Dan Tian (which is considered to be the superior Dan Tian), the spiritual being is developed. This is symbolic of the relationship with the (Yuan) Shen.

When we die, the Hun returns to the sky. This is why it is important to nourish your soul as well as your physical self.

The liver energy flows out and upward. It also stores the blood. It governs the tendons and when there is insufficient blood in the liver to nourish the tissues the body can have tremors, stiffness, or become weak. The eyes are the window to the Liver and depend on the good functioning of the Liver. When the liver energy is strong, the vision is clear both on a physical and mental level.

Wood is the element of the Liver and represents both firmness and flexibility. Anger is the emotion of the Liver and can cause the Liver energy to rush up. So, when there is too much anger and stress, causing that Liver energy to go upward, the Liver becomes exhausted and burns itself out (causing Liver yin deficiency, or Liver yang rising which is excess above and deficiency below (usually involving the Kidney too.....))

Why does the Liver want to flow up and out? Because spreading is the nature of wood. Wood qi is characterized by its upward momentum and its innate desire to be straight.

I think the Liver gets a bad rap. The Hun has a lot to do, and what if the Shen isn't such a good leader? What do you expect the Hun to do?

As always, I use resources for this, today thanks to Master Liu Dong and Master Liu He in their wisdom and Subhuti Dharmananda from ITM in his genius.

Explaining Differences

I was talking with my mother-in-law the other day and she was going to see her endocrinologist the following day. While she was visiting a month or so ago, she got a herbal formula and saw a local acupuncturist. She wanted a breakdown of the herbs she had been taking to make sure that they didn't interact with the few meds she was taking. She wanted to go to the Doctor's office armed with plenty of information so the MD didn't put the cobash on her herbs just because she "didn't know". Very understandable.

As I sat down to write out the herbs, I was reminded of 2 things. One that I want to address in this and subsequent posts and another that deserves its own topic. First, in becoming a practitioner of Chinese Medicine and prescribing herbs, (patents and formulas) becoming very aware of interactions and studies that are being done is just as much, if not more-so, our responsibility, not the MD's. This is our medicine, we need to take that on. The MD's are "to busy" or really, probably just not that interested. That statement is really not meant to bash the Western Medical community, it is just a realistic view at how things are right now. We are our biggest allies and need to remain abreast of research to solidify our credibility as practitioners. We are behind the eight ball in our society of science and a+b=c (and only c!)

Secondly, as I started to write out each herb, its nature, flavor, properties, which organs it went to and the "spirit" of the herb, I had to laugh at myself. I was writing about the organs in more than their physical sense and it was hard not to imagine seeing them in that way. But really, in my past life, as a nurse, that was NOT at all how you viewed organs. Each organ was a well oiled machine that performed its functions and somehow the dance of the body worked. The body is amazing, but to look at the energetics of it? Why? It didn't matter. But, I am here to say, after 3 years of immersion in Chinese Medicine, it DOES matter. Very much, actually. I am constantly amazed at conclusions that Chinese doctors made thousands of years ago, with little to no knowledge of the cellular level or how disease processes worked. They had it right and that is proven over and over again by studies that are done today. So every time that I hear that Chinese medicine is new, I have to laugh. WE are new to Chinese medicine.

Sorry about that tangent. That was not where that last paragraph was supposed to have ended up. What I was getting at, was that while writing out her herbs and descriptions I found myself wondering what her doctor would think of the energetics of the organs and the herbs that I was writing about; tonify the Spleen, regulates the middle Jiao, nourish the Kidney yin, tonifies the essence, calms the Shen.... I found myself leaving some of it out and simplifying things a bit, so her doctor would hopefully be able to understand what I was saying. So, just in case her endocrinologist ever reads this blog (haha!) I thought I would go through each organ and focus on it's energy and role in the body. I think that this will probably take more than one post, so I will just take it one at a time.

Before I get going, just a brief overview of the organs. They are called the Zang-Fu Organ. Zang means solid and Fu means hollow. So, logically enough, they are divided into Solid organs (Heart, Liver, Kidney, Spleen and Lung) and the Hollow organs (Large Intestines, Small Intestines, Pericardium, GallBladder, Bladder and Stomach). Then Zang organs are considered more Yin and the Fu organs are considered more Yang. There are also 6 extraordinary organs and those are: brain, bone marrow, blood vessels, uterus, bones and GallBladder (yup, it doubles!).

I love the Heart and it is the "Emperor", so I am starting with that organ. The Heart is home for the Shen. The Shen is the First Spirit in the body and has 2 parts to it. There is the Yuan Shen, or the original Shen, and then the Zhi Shen which is the spirit of the Heart's more worldly functions. The Zhi Shen is connected with mental activity and thinking and controls the physicological and emotional activity as well as our learning and long term memory. They both live in the Heart and the Yuan Shen is "in charge" of the Zhi Shen to keep it from overthinking adn over-analyzing.

It incorporates all five mental and spiritual aspects of the body (the Hun, Po, Yi and Zhi). The Heart is derived from prenatal essences as well as postnatal essences. It is outwardly manifested in the face (look at complexion color) and opens into the tongue. It dominates the blood and vessels. The Heart governs the blood in two ways. First, the transformation of food-qi into blood takes place in the Heart. Secondly, the pulse and blood flow, or circulation, is controlled by the Heart. The Heart is also the influence for the sweat. The hair is the odds and ends of the blood and the Heart controls the blood flow, so they are connected.

The Heart houses the mind (problems like insomina, confusion, illogical speech, forgetfullness are all related to the Heart) and the Shen (which is the spirit mind). The Shen is reflected in the eyes. The Shen, in one sense, indicates the whole of mental faculties which "reside" in the Heart. In a broader sense, the Shen indicates the whole sphere of mental and spiritual aspects of a human being, as I mentioned briefly above. The emotion that is most connected with the Heart is joy. It is difficult to explain why joy would be cause for disease, because a normal state of joy is not in itself the cause of disease, but when it becomes an excessive craving for excitement, this can injure the Heart. In Chinese Medicine, joy is considered the same as inordinate craving which stirs up the Minister fire. This flows upward and overstimulates the mind. Think about children and joy. When joy is too much and leads to overexcitement, it usually ends in tears.

Other Heart Relationships:

1. The Heart's smell is scortched
2. The Heart's color is red
3. The Heart's taste is bitter
4. The Heart's climate is heat
5. The Heart's sound is laughter

When using the Heart Channel for treatment of problems or disorders, it has the actions and indications for:

1. Treating pain of the chest and Heart and diorders of the Heart rhythm. All points of the Heart channel (except for QingLing Ht 2) threat either pain of the Heart and chest, or palpitations and other disorders of heart rhythms.
2. Regulating and calming the spirit.
3. Treats disorders of the tongue adn speech
4. Treats disorders of the throat like pain, swelling and congestion
5. Treats disorders of the eyes
6. Treats disorders of the skin and complexion, especially the face.

(Thanks to Peter Deadman and "A Manuel of Acupuncture" for that list)

According to my QiGong teacher, the Yuan shen (or the original shen) finds its home in the Heart after the first trimester (which is when the heart begins to beat) and distributes spirits to the five organs. The organs don't need their spirit to develop physically, but they don't truly come alive until they receive their spirit from the Yuan shen. These organ spirits are controlled by (or should be controlled by) the Yuan shen. The Yuan shen also animates the Heart. It is connected with the sky and the heavens.

So, that is what I have for tonight. I know that there are lots of gaps in there, so help me fill them in! Or correct any mistakes that I have made!

First week back....

Well, I am finishing up my first week back in spring quarter. 6 more quarters to go. It should be a good quarter. I have a few classes that I am pretty excited about. And then there are those few that I am just waiting to get through.

I have so many ideas for this blog that I am having a hard time getting started! I think what I am going to do, is focus on specific herbs and points or channels for each post and then "shake things up" a bit with various bits of theory or questions that come up. I am hopeful to get feedback and insights from other students and practitioners, it would be fun to be able to talk about all of this along the way.

Herb of the Day: San Qi
AKA: Tian Qi, Pseudoginsing Root (Latin: Notoginseng Radix)
Channels Entered: Liver, Stomach, Large Intestines
Nature/Flavors: Warm, Slightly Bitter and Sweet
Actions:

• This herb is used to stop bleeding. It does this without causing blood stasis, which is why it is so useful.
• It can transform blood stasis, reduces swelling and stops pain.
• It is one of the herbs in the "secret formula" for yunan biyao.
• It invigorates the blood.

Indications:

• Useful for internal and external bleeding including vomiting blood, nosebleeding and blood in the urine or stool.
• It is the herb of choice for traumatic injuries, swelling and pain from falls, sprains, fractures and concussions
• Also used for chest and abdominal pain and joint pain caused by blood stasis, sores and abscesses.

Cautions/Contraindications: Use with caution during pregnancy

Toxicity: There have been reports of toxicity even within the low dose range (1.5-3g) and the signs of toxicity include: nausea, repeated vomiting, hemorrhagic tendencies, nosebleeds, gum bleeding, heavy vaginal bleeding. Some other signs are GI related and are: pain with swallowing, poststernal pain and heartburn as well as swelling and erosion of the esophagus, nausea and diarrhea. In high doses (5g or more) this herb has caused second degree AV heart block.

But never fear! This is a great herb!! Just be careful and conscientious when prescribing it!! Here is some extra fun stuff about this herb that will help keep it in your mind.

• It has long been recognized as one of China's best tonic herbs for building the blood, improving the circulation and preventing anxiety.
• The root comes in the raw form (sliced) or cooked (steam-processed) each with different attributes
• Research findings indicate that raw Tian Qi positively affects the heart and tributaries. Some research in China shows that Tian Qi increases blood flow in the coronary artery, and increases the consumption of oxygen in the middle muscular layer of the heart. This results in the lowering of blood pressure and improving regularity of the heart beat.
• Tian Qi can relieve chest pain and/or the feeling of oppression in the chest due to angina pectoris induced by coronary insufficiency.
• Tian Qi has been found to significantly reduce the cholesterol levels in the blood and arteries.
• Steamed Tienchi is rich in iron, calcium, proteins, saponins and flavinoids. It becomes a very efficient blood tonic, strengthening the body and promoting growth.

Here is a picture: umm, okay, no picture, my technical skills are lacking. Hopefully I will figure out how to upload a photo!