Body Basics Part 9: Stagnation -- Where are You Stuck?
Movement is life. Day turns into night, season into season, youth into age. Internally, there is the movement of breath, blood, lymph, food, waste, hormones, nervous impulses, cellular activity, the rhythm of our lungs, the beating of our hearts. All of these need to stay in motion to maintain a healthy, well-functioning organism.
And so in Chinese medicine we have the concept of Stagnation: a lack of appropriate movement, or appropriate expression, that plays a fundamental a role in many disease processes.
In the clinic the most common stagnation we see is what we call Liver qi stagnation. Why? Two primary reasons:
because it’s endemic to the 21st century American lifestyle, and
because the smooth flow of Liver qi is what governs a smooth, symptom-free menstrual cycle.
Translation? Your stress is messing with your hormones. Literally.
The nature of the menstrual cycle is to be in constant hormonal motion. That movement must happen in a smooth, easy, unimpeded way if we’re to have a regular cycle, a pain-free period, and balanced moods.
If your Liver qi is stagnant, ie if the smooth flow of this aspect of your physiology is compromised, it usually looks a little something like this:
you’re easily frustrated or generally pissed off about something
you want to scream over little things — like misplacing your glasses, dropping your car keys or forgetting something at the store
you sigh a lot and furrow your brow, probably without even realizing it
your bowels are irregular in form or frequency
if you have female reproductive organs and are menstruating, you have PMS more months than not
This type of stagnation runs rampant in the modern western world; most of us can probably identify with this list. The good new is that it also responds BEAUTIFULLY to acupuncture: a simple set of 4-5 (teeny tiny!) needles on a biweekly or monthly basis can balance everything right out and return you to a state of relative calm. I see it all the time.
Stagnation can be a player in almost any health issue:
any chronic reproductive health issue — endometriosis, fibroids, cysts, painful periods, painful intercourse, yeast infections, unexplained infertility
acute or chronic bladder infections
acute or chronic gallbladder attacks
migraine
chronic upper back, neck, or shoulder tension; TMJ; bruxism
acute, chronic, or recurring lung disease like asthma, pneumonia, or bronchitis
bowel issues like inflammatory bowel disease, Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis
even mood disorders like depression
just to name a few
All of these disease processes usually start as small stagnations. If left unaddressed they can coalesce into larger, more material, “measurable” problems.
A huge part of my job is to connect the dots for you between your mental, emotional, or spiritual “stuck-ness” and the physical symptoms you may be experiencing. This means we look at diet and lifestyle, we look at your relationships, your family, your job, your aspirations, the things in your life that drive you crazy and the parts of yourself you wish you could express but feel like you can’t.
We can “un-stick” or “de-stagnate” you with acupuncture and herbs, but unless we address the underlying issues that got you stuck in the first place, your stagnation symptoms will almost always return.
Questions for reflection:
Can you identify places that feel stuck in your body? Can you identify places where you feel stuck in your life? Is there a person, place, or thing in you life that generates on-going frustration in you?
If you have one, how do you feel about your vagina? How do you feel about your womb? How do you feel about sex? How do you feel about your sexual history? How does it even feel to bring your attention to those places?
Need help moving some stagnation? We’re here for you!
Your initial consultation is always free — come meet us in person and learn more.