Day 144 of 365 - Pressing the Point
The impetus for this post came from my ongoing pursuit of sleeping solutions. Should I have some success with today's strategy over the next while, I will do another update in my Insomnia Diary posts.
Because of another link to understanding why I continue to wake from a fairly good sleep after 3 a.m. but before 5 a.m., I decided to look at the Chinese Medicine Organ clock to see which organ/system is related to that time. It turns out it is the lung meridian.
The book called Energy Medicine by Donna Eden is a very helpful resource for understanding all the subtle and not so subtle energies of our bodies. I turned to it for her explanation about meridians. She says, 'Meridians are energy pathways that connect the dots of acupuncture points along the surface of the skin'; and, 'the meridians the acupuncture points open into travel deep into the body and through each of the organs and muscle groups. Your meridians are your body's energy bloodstream.'
'There are twelve meridians named for the primary organ or system it serves. They link to one another. There is also a central and a governing meridian which open more directly to the environment, and energies can enter and exit through them. If a meridian's energy is obstructed or unregulated, the system it feeds is jeopardized. To balance your meridians is to get them running smoothly and efficiently.'
Each meridian has its own 24 hour cycle. Each has a two hour period when it is at its strongest and twelve hours later when it is more at rest. As an example, the lung meridian is at its strongest from 3 to 5 a.m., when I am typically waking up. It is at its weakest from 3 to 5 p.m., when I tend to get sleepy. So, it is possible that there is an imbalance in my energy flow through this meridian.
There ae different techniques for balancing meridians and several are described in Eden's book. One of the easiest is to use acupressure points on the meridian. For example, a couple of easy to find points for the lung meridian are on the palm of the hand at the base of the thumb, and also just above the crook of the elbow on the thumb side of the arm. If a point is very tender, it is a good indicator of imbalance. Pressing the pad of the opposite thumb or the pad of a finger onto the point, holding or massaging for a couple of minutes can improve the energy flow in the meridian. Since we have two lungs, I will do this on both arms before going to bed.
This is obviously an oversimplification of a complex treatment strategy. For more detailed intervention visit an acupuncturist or a practitioner of Traditional Chinese Medicine.
However, there are simple to follow self care practices also readily available to us. If you would like to learn a bit more about how to use acupressure on yourself there is a website called Acupressure.com which has some free information pages which include helpful diagrams for self-care for common ailments like stress or headache.
I also highly recommend Donna Eden's first book called Energy Medicine for a comprehensive study of a variety of energy systems in and around the body, and her follow up one called Energy Medicine for Women which is more targeted towards balancing hormones.
Wish me luck with this latest sleep support strategy.
Because of another link to understanding why I continue to wake from a fairly good sleep after 3 a.m. but before 5 a.m., I decided to look at the Chinese Medicine Organ clock to see which organ/system is related to that time. It turns out it is the lung meridian.
The book called Energy Medicine by Donna Eden is a very helpful resource for understanding all the subtle and not so subtle energies of our bodies. I turned to it for her explanation about meridians. She says, 'Meridians are energy pathways that connect the dots of acupuncture points along the surface of the skin'; and, 'the meridians the acupuncture points open into travel deep into the body and through each of the organs and muscle groups. Your meridians are your body's energy bloodstream.'
'There are twelve meridians named for the primary organ or system it serves. They link to one another. There is also a central and a governing meridian which open more directly to the environment, and energies can enter and exit through them. If a meridian's energy is obstructed or unregulated, the system it feeds is jeopardized. To balance your meridians is to get them running smoothly and efficiently.'
Each meridian has its own 24 hour cycle. Each has a two hour period when it is at its strongest and twelve hours later when it is more at rest. As an example, the lung meridian is at its strongest from 3 to 5 a.m., when I am typically waking up. It is at its weakest from 3 to 5 p.m., when I tend to get sleepy. So, it is possible that there is an imbalance in my energy flow through this meridian.
There ae different techniques for balancing meridians and several are described in Eden's book. One of the easiest is to use acupressure points on the meridian. For example, a couple of easy to find points for the lung meridian are on the palm of the hand at the base of the thumb, and also just above the crook of the elbow on the thumb side of the arm. If a point is very tender, it is a good indicator of imbalance. Pressing the pad of the opposite thumb or the pad of a finger onto the point, holding or massaging for a couple of minutes can improve the energy flow in the meridian. Since we have two lungs, I will do this on both arms before going to bed.
This is obviously an oversimplification of a complex treatment strategy. For more detailed intervention visit an acupuncturist or a practitioner of Traditional Chinese Medicine.
However, there are simple to follow self care practices also readily available to us. If you would like to learn a bit more about how to use acupressure on yourself there is a website called Acupressure.com which has some free information pages which include helpful diagrams for self-care for common ailments like stress or headache.
I also highly recommend Donna Eden's first book called Energy Medicine for a comprehensive study of a variety of energy systems in and around the body, and her follow up one called Energy Medicine for Women which is more targeted towards balancing hormones.
Wish me luck with this latest sleep support strategy.
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