-IBIS-1.5.0-
tx
cardiovascular system
edema
psychospiritual approaches

metaphors and correlations

• Who or what won't you let go of? What are you afraid of losing? (Hay, 1984, p. 162, 169)

Chinese psychophysiology:
Spleen ~ Pi governs digestion and manifests in the muscle tissues; resolves Dampness and Phlegm; governs the Xue (Blood); maintains upbearing, and relates to the ability to assimilate, stabilize, and feel balanced and centered.
» Healthy expressions are fairness, openness, deep thinking, and reminiscence.
» Spleen Xu (Deficiency) signs include slightness (deficient "form"); abundant elimination; morning fatigue; cold, wet feet (Seem, p. 28); abdomen taut and distended like a drum; craving for sweets; flatulence; nausea; mild edema; memory failure; heavy feeling in legs; easy bruising; pale lips; loose stools; muscular weakness; and, indirectly, obesity. Deficiency of Spleen Qi or Yang leads to accumulation of Dampness and ultimately an excess state.
» Spleen Shi (Excess) signs include heaviness (excess "form"); large abdomen; great sighing; sadness; obsessions and nightmares (Seem, p. 28); abdominal pain; irregular appetite; stickiness in the mouth and on lips; red lips; chest congestion; fatigue; and constipation.
» The excessive use of the mind in thinking, studying, concentrating, and memorizing over a long period of time tends to weaken the Spleen. This also includes excessive pensiveness and constant brooding. (Maciocia, p. 241) Likewise, inadequate physical exercise, overexposure to external Dampness, and excess consumption of sweet and/or Cold foods will also deplete the Spleen.

Lung ~ Fei is the home of the Po (Corporeal Soul); governs the Qi; regulates the rhythm of respiration, the pulse, and all bodily processes; relates to strength and sustainability; moves and adjusts fluid metabolism; and controls the pores.
» Healthy expressions are righteousness and courage.
»
Weakness, dysfunction, and illness associated with excessive grief, sadness, worry, and depression.

Kidney ~ Shen houses the Zhi (Will); expresses ambition and focus; governs Water to regulate body fluids; and displays the effects of aging, chronic degenerative processes, and extreme stress.
»
Healthy expressions are gentleness, groundedness, and endurance.
» Kidney Xu (Deficiency) signs include indecisiveness; confused speech; dreams of trees submerged under water; cold feet and legs; abundant sweating (Seem, p. 28); hearing loss; fearfulness; apathy; chronic fatigue; discouragement; scatteredness; lack of will; negativity; impatience; difficult inhalation; low sex drive; lumbago; sciatica; and musculoskeletal irritation and inflammation, especially when worse from touch.
» Intense or prolonged fear depletes the Kidney. Often chronic anxiety may induce Xu (Deficiency) and then Fire within the Kidney. (Maciocia, p. 250) Overwork, parenting, simple aging, and a sedentary or excessively indulgent lifestyle all contribute significantly to Kidney Xu (Deficiency).


therapies

imagery:
• vitality of life (Serinus, p. 203)

affirmation:
• I willingly release the past with joy. It is safe for me to let go. I am free now. (Hay, 1984, p. 162, 169)

theotherapy:
(heart disease) Atlas, Poseidon, Prometheus, Typhon (Lemesurier, p. 99)

psychotherapy:
• With heart disturbances and heart conditions, the following questions are possibly worth exploring:
» Are my head and heart, my intellect and feelings, in harmonious balance?
» Am I giving enough scope to my feelings and trusting myself to express them?
» Am I living and loving 'heartily', or only 'half-heartedly'?
» Is my life borne along by a living rhythm, or am I subjecting it to a rigid way?
» Does my life still contain enough combustible materials and explosives?
» Am I listening to, seeing, feeling, moving my heart? (Dethlefsen, p. 202)

process paradigm: (experientially oriented)
• What is the symptom preventing me from doing? What is the symptom making me do? (see process interview: cardiovascular system)

related materia medica listings:
the shadow and physical symptoms
converting a symptom to a signal
imagery for heart conditions
imagery: precautions
imagery: techniques
affirmations: guidelines and precautions
theotherapy
process paradigm


footnotes

Reprinted from The Foundations of Chinese Medicine, Maciocia, Giovanni, 1989, by permission of the publisher Churchill Livingstone, a division of Elsevier Limited.