Holidays and "Frantic" Are Not Synonymous: Presents & Presence

Where I live, the traffic has already gotten worse.   


It starts so early.   Even before Thankgiving the roads became congested.  Now all day long they are full.  Every year I wonder: "where are they all going"?   What could possibly be so important that more and more people are rushing around, trying to get "it" all done...
Whatever "it" is.


Perhaps they are short ingredients for their baking, a few lights for their tree, a gift for their secretary, stamps for their cards...rushing, rushing and rushing.


Of course we don't want to leave anyone out.  After all, this is the season of "giving".   We want others to feel appreciated.   We leave a card for the mail carrier...with a little money....a bottle of wine perhaps for the UPS delivery person and cookies for the bank tellers who always serve with a smile.   Plus, we don't want our loved ones to feel "less than".   


But why the compulsion to gift so much?   


I suppose what I am really trying to say is: "why does it have to be so perfect -- and why do we put so much pressure on ourselves to make it that way?"


An earnest look, a strong hug, an good-old-fashioned pat on the back...an "I appreciate you", an "I love you" regularly...if we do not do this then does that mean that you have to "make up for it all" once a year?


I talked to someone recently who told me that all she really wants for christmas is for her husband to pick up his socks, help with dinner and dishes.   To listen.

To be "present".


Deep down, all any of us really wants is each other.  


What if we were "present" for each other, attentive to each others' needs.   What if we 'showed up' for the people in our lives -- would their expectations of "once a year gifting" be lower?    


Would we have to be so frantic?     The state of "being frantic", I am sure you know, is not good for your health.  When we are tense, we sleep less, we drink more, we eat more.   Come January 1st, we think "oh my, what have I done?" and we run to the gym to undo the damage, the sequelae of "being frantic".



To change this cycle is quite novel.  People -- as it turns out -- are more important than things.   You do not need to "rush around".  Step off the carousel.   Sit in one place.   Count your blessings.   Bless the people around you.  Show up for them.  


Be there for them.


Of course, others' expectations may still be high (thanks to our marketing industry) but if we can retrain ourselves to pay closer attention to the people in our lives...then perhaps we can all enjoy a warmer holiday.   


Perhaps our hearts will open a bit wider and perhaps, by honoring our health, by honoring each other, by being grateful --


We will finally understand that the very best present is presence.

Autumn Into Winter: Nourishing Yourself in the Cold

...And the first of the holidays has passed.  

Some of us have already had snow, most of us have had the cold descend.   The way we care for ourselves as the seasons change from Autumn to Winter...well, that determines how well we will fare in Winter...as well as in Spring.

In the Chinese classic texts my predecessors wrote that if you did not care for yourself properly in one season, then that would result in illness in the next.  For example, too much icy food in Summer can result in Autumn cold; too much raw food in Autumn can result in Winter fever, etc.

Seasonal health, adjusting our lifestyle with the change in our environment is essential to our daily health as well as our longevity.


In the Autumn, according to Traditional Chinese Medicine, it is the Lungs and Large Intestine which are the most stressed; in Winter we must focus on strengthening the Kidneys and Urinary Bladder.


Kidneys strongly dislike cold.  You might notice that when you are cold or have been outside in the cold, your body needs to urinate more to because of the cold's effect on the Kidneys.  You also may notice that you really do feel like resting a bit more, slowing down and conserving your energy.   That is what you are supposed to do...which nature needs us to do in the same way that a tree's sap moves into the center of the tree -- and as bees stay in their hives, nourishing themselves on the honey which they have collected since last Spring's nectar flow.


In Japan, people wear an extra garment around their torsos to keep their Kidneys warm.  It is similar to a "cami" or a "tube top".   When you protect your Kidneys you protect your Longevity.    Wearing socks -- that helps as well.


In terms of food, when the weather turns you need more deep and nourishing, longer-cooked stews, less raw food, no icy food, less liquid in fact.  


More spices such a cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and ginger should be used more generously.
These have the medicinal qualities of warming the body and increasing the circulation -- especially during cold weather.


Do go outside, but cover your neck from the cold to prevent what we refer to as "wind cold attack".   Enjoy the beauty of the season's change.


The truth is that our lifestyle plays more into our longevity than we realize. 


Health is not just a given. It is something that we earn every single day: every single meal, every single night that we sleep...or not sleep. Each choice that we make is a forward or backward step in longevity.

Health is the earned result of small, consistent behaviors which add up to years of vibrance.

Specifically, for Kidney strength, according to Traditional Chinese Medicine, these things count:

- Get enough rest at night. To bed before midnight, consistently.

- Avoid cold and icy foods. They deplete Kidney energy.

- Avoid dairy.  Milk products impede Kidney function over time.

- Eat fish and fish soups. They strengthen the Kidneys.

- Eat beans: kidney beans, azuki beans, pinto beans, lentils, great northern, navy beans,

cannelini beans, garbanzos/chickpeas, black turtle beans, black soybeans.

(black soybeans are especially valued for reproduction, azukis and kidney beans for

stamina and Kidney function)

- Include sea vegetables, such as nori, kombu, arame, hijiki and dulse.

(Use according to your condition. They are a well-kept secret which I am now sharing!)

- Do not avoid salt altogether, but use with care, according to your condition.  Sea salt is
    preferred.

-  Keep feet and Kidneys warm. Wear extra undershirts,  camisoles over the Kidney areas. 
     Wear socks.
        

- When under pressure & stress, have hot showers or baths before bed to relax.
        

- Too much coffee will drain the Kidney energy over time.


The best way to spend this transition from Autumn to Winter is to gaze out the window and to dream.   Put down the newspaper ads and let someone else support our economy.  


You are too busy nourishing your body and your soul, preparing for Winter...


...and a long and healthy life.

Oh My, Pumpkin Pie!

You may or may not love pumpkin pie...but your body is nuts about it!


Pumpkin pie is one of those seasonal foods -- you know, nature has grown just the thing at that time of year which your body needs -- at that time of year.


Pumpkin -- and all hard edible squashes (Kabocha, Butternut and Buttercup) are excellent for strengthening our blood and nourishing our pancreas and spleen (balancing blood sugar, stimulating erythropoiesis in the spleen -- growing new blood cells).  In fact, it is thought that eating the skin of these squashes nourishes the lining of the pancreas as well.


Below I have provided my favorite recipe for pumpkin pie -- and although all of the ingredients are not familiar to you, they should be.  The sweeteners used do not spike the blood sugar in the same way that sugar does -- therefore further lightening the burden on the pancreas.   The spices, ginger, nutmeg and cinnamon, warm the body and stimulate digestion.  


Walnuts nourish what we refer to as the "yang" of the kidneys.    Symptoms such as weak and low back and knees, fatigue, frequent urination or incontinence, involuntary seminal emission and other difficulties with urinary/seminal control as well as cold hands/feet are all symptoms of deficiency of the "kidney yang".   About two ounces per day of lightly pan-toasted walnuts are helpful as a food "medicine".


As you are feeding yourself, you are nourishing your body...be sure to read the Thanksgiving food post as well: Feeding Your Soul.


Enjoy the recipe below.  Feel free to comment below or email me with questions here.

Pumpkin Pie

Prepared Whole Wheat Pie Crust (from freezer section - prick bottom with a fork a few times) (or use favorite pie crust!)
2 Cups canned pumpkin (or steamed kabocha, butternut or buttercup squash)
1/3 cup barley malt
2 T corn oil
1/2 cup walnuts minced
Pinch Sea Salt
2/3 cup Brown Rice Syrup
1 t pumpkin pie spice (cinnamon, ginger, cloves, nutmeg)
1/2 t ground ginger
1 cup amasake or Eden Rice and Soy Blend
4 T kuzu or arrowroot dissolved in 1/4 cup cold water.
4 T kanten flakes/agar agar (1 T per cup of liquid)

Preheat over to 400 degrees for pie crust; then prebake the pie crust at 350 degrees for 10 minutes.
Combine barley malt and corn oil in a saucepan and cook until foamy.  Immediately stir in walnuts and spread evenly across pie shell; set aside to cool.
Combine rice syrup, spices, amasake/Edenblend and Kanten flakes with canned squash in a heavy pot.   Cook 15 minutes, stirring, until Kanten dissolves.  Stir in Kuzu/Arrowroot dissolved in cold water and cook 3-4 minutes.    Pour filling into pie shell.  Let cool.

Pan-toast a few extra walnuts and garnish!

Honoring Our Veterans: Battlefield Acupuncture and Post-Traumatic Stress

Having never served in the armed services myself, there is no way that I can begin to understand the overwhelming trauma and stress associated with having served -- especially in combat.


There is some pretty interesting stuff going on...some wonderful ways that veterans are being helped.


I wish to share them.


It turns out, not surprisingly, that acupuncture has emerged as an effective remedy for soldiers dealing with the immense stressors and psychological impact of war -- especially considering the impact on families upon the return of their fatigued and stressed, deployed loved ones, our own American troops.


Diana Fried, Exective Director of Acupuncturists Without Borders, reports "History has shown us that the long-term impact of war takes a tremendous toll for decades.  By providing...acupuncture treatments to soldiers returning from war and their families, we can play a part in preventing history from repeating itself, and by providing treatments to veterans from past wars and conflicts; we can take part in helping to mend the psychological wounds of the past."


Acupuncturists Without Borders is one group who are providing stress relief for soldiers in Iraq.  Troops receiving treatment report feeling calmer with decreased anxiety.  They report that they are able to sleep more restfully and longer, without nightmares or flashbacks.  They also report feeling less "edgy".


In fact, the National Commission for the Certification of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (NCCAOM) has teamed up with Acupuncturists Without Borders to promote the benefits of acupuncture for mental health issues faced by soldiers and veterans.


This is one of many critical issues facing our military personnel.


Another one is pain.


One man, Colonel Richard Niemtzow, works in the Air Force Acupuncture Clinic (the military's only!), training physicians from the Air Force, the Navy and the Army to take acupuncture to the front lines of Iraq and Afghanistan, to use as part of emergency care in combat and in front-line hospitals.   Back home, physicians at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington are recommending acupuncture treatment to help with pain.


Colonel Arnyce Pock, medical director for the Air Force Medical Corps, said that acupuncture comes without the side effects common after taking traditional painkillers.  It also quickly relieves pain.


The bottom line: if you are a veteran -- or know one....please pass this information on.    There is help on the way.   People can find an acupuncturist in their own area by using the "find a practitioner" tab on www.nccaom.org.   They can also email me at Lcoff@springhopehealth.com.   Make sure that you let me know that these are issues you are facing.


I offer a very heartfelt thank you to all our soldiers...and all our veterans...for the time that you have taken from your own lives...


...to give us ours.

The Great Pretender: True Cold False Heat

It happens to the best of us.  We push and push and push.  We think we are fine.  We think we are more than fine.   We think we are strong.  We look strong.  We act strong. We are "doing it all".   We have boundless energy...


Then, one day, the bottom falls out.   We collapse, we burn out, we break down, we get scary diagnoses.  Everything falls apart.


On the surface, we look solid, we feel solid.  But we are, in many ways, like an Easter Egg or one of those hollow chocolate bunnies:  bright and shiny and solid on the outside.  Inside, totally empty.


In truth, we don't see it coming.  We feel untouchable.  We get arrogant.  It's really not our fault.  We can't see the future.  And yet...


In Traditional Chinese Medicine there is an excellent description for this pattern...which describes perhaps yourself and many people you know.   


We call it "True Cold, False Heat".



When we say "true cold..." we mean that what is below the surface...that which is not readily apparent in our energy, is depletion, exhaustion.   It is how we feel very early in the morning, when we are lying in bed.  No one but us really know the truth about ourselves -- and we would never let on, because most of us have a great deal of ego invested in our ability to "get it done", "be productive", "appear seamless, perfect".   We don't rest...we stop at Starbucks for yet another Skinny Latte or Green Tea Frappuccino or Caramel Macchiato...whatever we can get to prop ourselves up.   


Sounds familiar, eh?


We seem to have some sort of vested interest in "appearing" fantastic...when we really belong in bed.  So...False Heat...."False Heat" refers to the image we project...the one we work very hard to project, in fact, that we are vivacious, a busy bee, productive, fantastic, "professional".   It is a fabulous facade.  It serves our purposes, helps us to "get our life done".


We are standing -- on quicksand.  We are running on empty.


One of my students once said that, like little children, we as adults don't realize how wound up we are -- until we finally let down.   This is absolutely true.   Also like little children, we get the most wound up when we are very tired.   Do you remember how little children get crazy-wound-up when they are overtired, just before they fall asleep?   Well, my friends, that is all of us.


The more fatigued we get...and we don't even realize it...the busier we get.   Our minds zoom and zoom like little engines...engaging us in more and more activities, projects.   But we are headed for brick walls.


We are Great Pretenders.  Of course acupuncture and Chinese herbs can rescue you.  We, in my field, have helped many Pretenders.  But is more than that.


I am sorry to say that if you keep on doing what you have always done...then you will always get what you have always gotten.    Start by turning down the cell phone.  Let it vibrate all it wants...and you can pick up the messages when you are good and ready.   Close your office door...close your eyes for fifteen minutes.    Close the laptop and give yourself a break.


 Walk outside and look at a tree for five minutes.   Then the next day, increase by another five minutes...and so on.  You should have 30 minutes per day with nature.   You don't need to be a marathon runner...you just need to connect.


Go to bed one hour earlier and get up thirty minutes later.   "Curb Your Enthusiasm" can certainly wait until the weekend.    Eat more nourishing foods...like cooked foods and stews, especially in winter..and fewer "light" foods like frozen yogurt/ice cream, icy drinks, raw salads.


You will find that as soon as you "take your life back" that your mind will begin to slow down.   Your stamina will begin to improve.  You will not need so much coffee, so many stimulants.  But most importantly, you will begin to fill up that vessel...that ridiculously empty vessel...that you have become.


All this is true.


Longevity, in Traditional Chinese Medicine, is what happens when you nourish yourself daily, when you live your life in measured amounts.    Energy is like money.   If you spend all you have and save nothing, then you will have nothing.  


Health is the result of small, consistent behaviors which build up over time.  Nourishing yourself with good food, balancing your life, resting, saying "no" to set limits on your energy.


In this economy...you should save -- your energy.


You should save yourself.

Feeding Your Soul

I am making my list and checking it twice...


...my grocery list, of course.  I have nineteen days until Thanksgiving and I am planning ahead.  This is one of the most important days of my year...and not just because of gratitude...


But also because of The Food.


Who among us doesn't love this holiday?  Who doesn't look forward to a moment alone in the kitchen to steal a morsel off a serving tray?  We have food rituals and we have family rituals.   We have our usual litany of complaints, quips and calls to cut the turkey.


Thanksgiving is a time of laughing and of eating.  It is a time to assemble with family and/or friends to toast good health to be able to sit at a table, good fortune to have food to eat, counting our blessings -- but not counting calories.  


Above all, Thanksgiving is a time to savor food.   So --what are you eating?


Thanksgiving foods are endemic to American Folk History.  Our predecessors ate these foods because these ingredients were what was available to them in the Late Autumn.  It is not at all coincidental that the foods we eat for Thanksgiving nourish our bodies to prepare for winter.


In fact, much of folk medicine history views food as medicine as well (dietary medicine, my passion!).   Foods have medicinal qualities -- just as watermelon is available in the heat of summer...it cools the body and can be eaten for high fever.   The very Thanksgiving dishes you eat for this ceremonial meal nourish your blood, warm your body, aid in digestion -- and basically prepared you for a season of cold -- and in years past, hardship.


Those in colder climates know that winter feels as though it ages us.  We can care for our bodies by feeding our bodies with the foods which can be medicine for what ails us.   Thanksgiving dinner is just the meal to strengthen our bodies and souls against winter's cold winds.


Most people know all about turkey...so I will focus on the side dishes.   Starting with the stuffing:   we mostly make our stuffings from bread -- wheat bread.   Wheat has the quality to nourish the heart, strengthen the blood and to calm us.


Yams, although truthfully they were never my favorite, do work to strengthen the lungs, the digestion and the blood.   It is also thought in Traditional Chinese Medicine that yams strengthen the semen.  (Hey, it's a long winter....)


Hard squashes (butternut, kambocha) are fantastic!!!  They nourish our pancreas, balancing our blood sugar.   It is not necessary to garnish with honey or brown sugar...they are already so sweet.   Sprinkle with cinnamon, which warms the muscles and strengthens us against pathogens -- or cumin, which activates blood circulation.


Cranberries have the unusual medicinal quality of helping your body to digest fats (think turkey and butter!)   Plus, when grated together with orange peel they provide a very strong digestant to protect against bloating. (Have you ever noticed that they serve orange slices after the meal in a Chinese restaurant?)


The pumpkin pie...my favorite, strengthens the blood, the lungs, the spleen and pancreas.   Eating pumpkin, in fact, helps to treat bronchial asthma.


Last but not least, hot spiced apple juice, made with cinnamon (mentioned above) and nutmeg (activates blood circulation, can relax you, especially when Aunt Gertrude starts on one of her tirades.  Apples in fact, can also relieve mental depression, aid the appetite, nourish the lungs and strengthen the blood.


For all you who cook...this is the ultimate way to nourish your family.   Cook with intent and with love.


I toast your good health.

Raking It In: Oh, My Back!

The trees in my yard are old friends of mine.


Through their grace, I can keep my perspective.  Their shade protects us from the summer heat and their vivid colors warm us when the chilly winds of Autumn begin to blow.  The ensuing blanket of leaves hide the remains of the tulip beds.


When it's time to pull the rake -- or leaf blower -- from the garage, I know my time spent in the yard will be futile.  I can already see the next wave of leaves ready to fall from their branches.


My back begins to hurt just by looking at the leaves.


Most people live with their mild lower, middle or upper-back tension, but in the fall when they begin to deal with the onslaught of leaves they develop more serious pain.  


I like to call this "Raking Back Pain".


Ah yes, the wonderful memories we have of bright blue skies, sugar maples in golden splendor, children jumping and laughing (and messing up!) in our leaf piles -- and Monday morning stiffness and pain following a Sunday afternoon Leaf Raking/Blowing Marathon.


Of course it's easy to choke down a few Advil, a breakfast on the run, off to work and hope for the best.  But sometimes this type of back pain can point to real injury and ignoring such can cause increased muscle spasms.  


Let's talk about avoiding this problem and different ways to solve it.


First: prevention.  A great way to keep yourself pain-free is to stretch before you even exert yourself.  If the weather is chilly, muscles can easily get cold and vulnerable muscle groups will spasm in cold environments.  Stretch well and slowly and with deep breaths.   As you stretch, focus on the tightness in the muscles and imagine them opening up.  Dress yourself warmly, especially in the neck and the lower back -- and feet.


For lower back pain, slowly and gently bend forward at the waist as you are able...lean over into the side wall of your house with your hands.   To stretch the middle back, stretch from the side (arm over your ear -- keep your torso in line without leaning forward or back).  Make sure you stretch after exertion as well.


If it is too late (!!!!!!!!!!) and you are already in pain, climb into a hot bath, replete with a box of Kosher Salt...which can be had at your local grocery store and is a stronger mineral than Epsom Salt.  It does relax muscle spasm, especially from working in the cold outdoors.   You may also apply pressure to tight muscles with gentle and circular motion -- and keep warm!


You may drink Cinnamon Tea which warms the muscles -- the channels and collaterals (as we say in Chinese Medicine).


If your pain persists, get yourself to see someone (an Acupuncturist can help!).


Most Raking Back Pain, however, can be prevented by handing the rake and/or leaf blower -- to your teenager.


While you sit on the porch drinking Hot Cider.

Autumn's Melancholy

This morning a patient mentioned that she has been feeling a bit melancholy the past few weeks. I asked her if her depression had returned...and she told me that it was not as serious as all that...but that she had been a bit withdrawn.

I told her that for Autumn, this is totally normal.

Whereas for Spring and for Summer, the energy all around us is that of expansion, growth, excitement (think of plants pushing enthusiastically upward through the darkness of soil, reaching toward the skies, flowers bursting into color) -- in Autumn, we turn inward, we contract and withdraw. When the weather chills, the trees don't die, their sap merely withdraws into the center of the trunk, to conserve energy through the winter, to regenerate in order to be prepared for Spring's enthusiastic rebirth.

Similarly, we withdraw, contract, slow a bit in Autumn. We internalize more, we prepare for winter. We guard our energy (or we should!). We need to rest a bit more, nourish ourselves a bit more.

No matter where we live, we need to wear socks, keep our necks and lower backs warm. (That is why scarves and turtlenecks were invented, people!) We need to eat fewer salads, cold, icy and raw foods and fruits and more longer-cooked stews, cooked fruits (fresh hot applesauce!), cooked vegetables and grains and warm drinks.

If we are a wee bit melancholy (appropriately so), more contracted and withdrawn, we can enjoy a healthy but still Winter (more to come on that!) -- so that we then have the energy for a brighter Spring.

There is a story about when God wanted to create the world, there was a little problem. You see, God filled up all the space in the universe and there was nowhere to put the new world. So...God had to make some room. Thus God contracted a bit, to make space so the world could come to be. There is a word for this contraction....it is called "tsimtsum".

In our lives, it is okay to withdraw ourselves, to contract a bit in time of transition, not only in Autumn, but always...to make room for the regeneration of Spring, for new creation, for change. To practice tsimtsum.

Not only is it okay, it is essential for our health, our well-being, our bursting, our flowering...

...and our vibrance.

Of Certain Age

Don't you just hate when you go to your health care professional with symptoms and they tell you "well, that's just what it feels like to be (fill in age here: "30", "40", "50", "60", "70", "80")? I have one patient, a woman in her eighties, who insists that she will be running in a marathon when she is 100. I would like to be there to see it. Now that I've said that....there are symptoms which women, "of a certain age", tend to develop....symptoms that are famous for the word which describes them: a word which begins with "M". Okay, I don't mean Moonlight, Mississippi, Merlot, Mascarpone or Mamba...but I will take any of those in any combination -- even together sounds good! I mean Menopause. Menopause...the time in a woman's life when she doesn't know up from down, doesn't recognize herself. She cannot regulate her own body temperature (hot hot hot!), cannot sleep well, cannot feel "even". A brief but torrent storm. Yet there is shelter. Traditional Chinese Medicine is WONDERFUL for helping women "of certain age" through a period such as this. Symptoms such as hot flashes, vaginal dryness, insomnia, mood swings...can all be helped with acupuncture and herbs. Many, many women have had relief...have felt like themselves again. Not just in my practice...but over 5000 years. Imagine a stormy sea settling into the peaceful cove pictured above. You can be peaceful. You can be the cove. You can look back on this time of your life as....not a big deal. It isn't as though you "shouldn't" feel this way "at your age". But let's run marathons when we're 100 -- too.

Linking to Heaven

I had a patient come into my office today in terrible shape.

His thirty-seven year old son died suddenly four days ago. I was amazed that he came for his appointment…but also knew that because he was there that I could help him.

Of course, there was no way that I could bring his son back…but I could help him to deal with the grief from his loss.

I was not surprised that he had just come down with a cold…because grief damages the Lungs.

Ah, the Lungs, the Lungs. Our link to heaven.

They are also the seat of our grief, of our loss and of letting go.

There is a story in Traditional Chinese Medicine about the Lungs. The Lungs are thought to be these very beautiful and sparkling, porous membranes, the uppermost of our organs and therefore those which communicate most closely with heaven. It is believed that when the Lungs are moist and healthy, then all the treasures of heaven can rain upon us.

What it feels like to have this experience is – magic. When it feels like we have our inspiration and our magic…as if everything we touch “turns to gold”…then we know that the link to heaven is clear.

When we feel worn out, uninspired, sad & disconnected -- it is time to treat the Lungs.

So, when this man had his acupuncture this morning….many of the points I used were to strengthen his Lungs, to release grief, to lighten the burden of the grief, to moisten the Lungs. I sent him home with an herb formula which included Lily Bulb, Astragalus and Ophiopogonis to strengthen the Qi and Yin of his Lungs….to aid in his difficult process.

I asked him to please share the formula with his wife, who surely needed it as well.

The Lungs, interestingly, are also considered to be the “Metal” element, and are the most impacted in the Autumn…which would be -- now. During September, October and November the air gets quite dry and many people develop symptoms of Lung dryness…which of course makes them more vulnerable to invasion of external pathogens.

(So please consider, in addition to hand-washing, that nourishing your Lungs might also be indicated as part of self-care.)

Moreover, the whole concept of “everything you touch turns to gold” links directly to the concept of the Lungs as the most precious Metal element. The Lungs also link us with our ancestors, with “ghosts”, with our fathers and with our whole spiritual side – namely prayer.

The Lungs are also expressed in the condition of the skin…so when the skin is dry, the Lung Yin is exhausted.

Foods which nourish the Lungs include Lily Bulb, Pears (especially Asian Pears) and Lotus Root.

Here’s my Lotus Root obsession: it is extremely cool stuff because it has the dual medicinal quality of nourishing/moistening the Lungs while concurrently gathering and expelling mucous.

It is prized and special. In asian art and culture, you often see the Lotus represented in an inspired way – because it so strongly affects the Lungs – it is therefore thought of as our link to heaven.

It is a devastating thing when we lose someone we love to death. It is so painful to lose someone due to a breakup, a divorce. But we should remember…in a very small way, that there is help for us. There is a way to find our way back, a way to lighten our grief.

We again can have a beautiful and sparkling connection to heaven; we can get our magic back, we can gain perspective.

By caring for our Lungs, we can keep on living.