Joy belongs to the heart and anxiety to lungs

/*

*/

Industrialized countries are facing a serious mental health challenge. It strikes all demographics regardless of age, race, gender or socioeconomic status. This threat is known as clinical depression. Almost everyone experiences it at some point in their life, triggered perhaps by the loss of a loved one, a financial collapse or simply too many rainy days. The symptoms may vary from persistent melancholy to attacks of fear, loneliness and insomnia. Many sufferers also experience somatic symptoms, including migraines, digestive irregularities, back pain, sexual disorders and even the loss of smell or taste. Depressed individuals tend to report a lack of Ki (energy), a heavy body with cold hands and feet, and a loss of interest in everything. Western medicine often treats these symptoms with antidepressants, which artificially neutralize the emotional state.

A defining aspect of human beings is our capacity for emotional development. An individual’s emotional health determines one’s enjoyment of life. Interestingly, emotional health mirrors somatic health. Oriental Medicine distinguishes seven different emotions, each of which corresponds to different organs. Joy belongs to the heart; anger to the liver; musing to the spleen; anxiety and sorrow to the lungs; fear and surprise to the kidneys. Consequently, an unbalanced organic condition can influence emotional health, and vice versa. For instance, people with exaggerated liver function are easily angered, and those doing too much musing often complain of digestive problems.

Most individuals with depression are Yin-dominant, lacking in Yang energy, which enables humans to feel joy and insulates against excessive sorrow and fear. Weak heart, lung and kidney functions are responsible for yang deficiency. From this perspective, the prevention and treatment of depression require a course which encourages the creation of Yang. Treatment is comprehensive, and includes proper diet, exercise, breathing techniques, acupuncture and herbal drugs.

The diet should favor fish and sesame oil, both of which are rich in omega-3 fatty acids, essential for the proper functioning of important brain neurotransmitters, including serotonin and dopamine. Spices should also be used as these generate Yang-energy. Fresh vegetables and fruits are also advised, to meet the individual’s vitamin and mineral requirements. Fatty dishes, which are high in calories but low in food value, should be avoided.

Another important factor is exercise. Cardiovascular exercises, such as jogging or fast walking, stimulate the release of endorphins, the “self-made painkiller.” When exercise is accompanied by proper dahnchon (abdominal) respiration ― an important technique of Oriental meditation ― the lungs receive optimal ventilation, thus increasing the oxygen available for the generation of cell energy.

The best course of action combines diet, exercise, and Qi-gong exercises with acupuncture treatment (to balance the energy flow in the meridian system) and herbal drugs (to raise the energy level of low functioning organs).
The aim is to bring the entire body back into balance, resulting in a renewed state of emotional and physical well-being.

by Dr.Raimund Royer
scrap from joongang daily news