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After years of practicing Chinese Medicine, there are certain truths I see confirmed again and again in people’s bodies. Not theories, not trends, but distinct and unmistakeable patterns.
These are some of the things I wish more people understood, because if they did, so much unnecessary depletion, illness, and burnout could be prevented.

1. Your belly and feet should almost always be warm

Cold in the abdomen weakens digestion, hormone balance, and immunity. Cold feet drain kidney energy. If your core is cold, your body has to work harder just to keep you alive, leaving less energy for healing, creativity, libido, and joy. Sleep with warm socks on and try heat packs on your belly in bed for an ancient insomnia cure. Get in the habit of keeping cozy socks on around the house. This can actually improve menstrual pain over time, reduce low back pain, boost energy, and improve stress tolerance and mood.

Warmth is medicine.

2. Wind is not neutral! Protect your neck and ears

In Chinese Medicine, wind is considered a primary cause of illness, especially when it enters the body through the back of the neck and ears. This is why you’ll hear acupuncturists harp on scarves, hats, and collars. Covering this area isn’t old-fashioned, it’s preventative care. Ever notice how being out in the wind triggers sneezing and a runny nose? Sometimes a wicked headache or even a migraine? Irritated eyes? Chinese Medicine considering wind a pathogen isn’t just an old wives tail, it’s an accurate observation of the fact that win stirs up environmental toxins that tax our immune system and irritate our mucus membranes.

3. Cold smoothies in winter are a terrible idea (and ice water always is)

Cold extinguishes digestive fire. Repeatedly pouring ice-cold substances into your body—especially in colder months—impairs digestion, nutrient absorption, and energy production.
Room temperature or warm beverages are far kinder to your system year-round.

4. Your emotions are not “just psychological”

Every emotion is tied to an organ system and element:

• Anger → Liver
• Grief → Lungs
• Fear → Kidneys
• Overthinking → Spleen
• Joy (and excess stimulation) → Heart

When emotions stagnate or overwhelm, the organs feel it. When organs are weak, emotions become harder to regulate. This is why acupuncture can be so emotionally profound; it treats both at once.

5. Digestion is central to everything

In Chinese Medicine, digestion is the foundation of vitality. If your gut is weak, nothing else can be fully nourished—not hormones, not immunity, not mental clarity, not mood.
This is why we’re so obsessed with how you eat, not just what you eat.

6. We can see the health of your spirit through your eyes

We call it Shen— your spirit, vitality, and presence. Clear, bright, connected eyes suggest robust Shen. Dull, restless, or scattered eyes often tell us someone is exhausted at a soul level, even if their labs look “fine.”

This is something no blood test can measure.

7. Your hair and teeth tell us about longevity

Hair and teeth are considered expressions of Kidney essence, your deepest constitutional energy reserve. Premature thinning, brittleness, or dental issues can point to depletion, not just cosmetic problems.

Longevity isn’t just about how you feel now; it’s about how well you’re preserving this reserve.

8. You really do need to be asleep by 10:30pm

The 11pm–1am window corresponds to gallbladder and liver restoration. Missing this window repeatedly disrupts detoxification, hormone balance, decision-making clarity, and emotional resilience.

It’s not about moralizing bedtime. It’s about working with your biology.

9. More supplements ≠ better health

Your body cannot assimilate massive doses of isolated nutrients the way wellness culture suggests. Green powders, multivitamins, and nutritional IVs often overwhelm digestion and bypass the intelligence of your system.

Chinese Medicine favors whole foods, personalized herbs, and targeted support, because nourishment must be integrated. More is not always more.

10. Your heart has a finite amount of beats

In classical medicine, the heart is not meant to be pushed endlessly. Excessive intensity like chronic cardio, overtraining, relentless striving and hot/cold therapies that are all the rage, can actually shorten vitality rather than build it.

Gentle movement, rhythm, breath, pleasure, and rest preserve the heart. Constant intensity depletes it.

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The Thread That Ties This All Together

Chinese Medicine is not about hacks or optimization.
It’s about listening, pacing, and living in a way that your body recognizes as safe and sustainable.

Most people don’t need more discipline.
They need more alignment with the seasons, climate, and sun cycles. More respect for their nervous system and their essence.

And that’s what we’re always listening for in the treatment room.