Category Archives: Neck pain

WIND

Agitation, Arm pain, Ear problems, Eye problems, Headache, Jaw, Neck pain, Shoulder pain, Throat, Wind invasion, , , ,

The other morning, I was woken at 5 am by a strong gusting wind swirling round the corners of the house, probing and rattling the eaves. I had gone to bed thinking about writing this blog about wind, so it felt as if I’d summoned it up, like some ghost or jinn. Indeed, wind is a curious creature, mysterious and intangible. We see the effects of the wind, rather than the wind itself. Yet we also feel its effects in the body as a disturbance in our field. Some people find this exciting, others troubling, while some are so distressed by it that they cannot leave the house.

These effects of wind are more common in the spring when the Wood Element, of which wind is a resonance, is in its ascendency. Any imbalance in this Element is more likely to be revealed in springtime when the Wood ‘tide’ is at its highest. Last month in South Australia we had 4 or 5 consecutive days of very strong, gusty winds, and I had numerous clients who felt very disturbed in themselves, couldn’t settle, and felt unusually agitated and irritable.

The Chinese character for wind is Feng (sounds like tongue).  The outer part of the character represents breath while inside is an insect. Ancient China was an agrarian economy, and damaging insects were abundant in spring when gusty winds were prevalent.

Feng suggests movement or motion, and wind conditions include those that produce shaking or jerking movements. According to the Ling Shu, its adverse influence is so great that “the sages avoided the winds like avoiding arrows and stones.” The Chinese practice of Fengshui (literally wind and water), recommends not living in a place where winds are strong as they are considered a malevolent force.

Pathogenic wind conditions are among the most numerous of diagnoses in Chinese medicine. This is largely because wind can act as a spearhead for other external climatic factors to penetrate the body. Thus, there are wind-cold, wind-heat, wind-damp and wind-dryness patterns. Of these, wind with cold is the most common. A person can be thus afflicted by being exposed to cold winds and rain, sleeping in a draught, or sitting in the flow of air conditioning.

Symptoms of wind-cold invasion include pain and stiffness in the neck and shoulders, headache, running nose, cough, sneezing and fever, and an aversion to cold. The upper part of the Gall Bladder channel is particularly affected, as well as Bladder and Small Intestine channels where they pass through the neck and shoulders.

To complicate matters, there is also internal wind which is not caused by the external climatic factors. It is produced by blood or yin deficiency or internal heat, and primarily affects the Liver. Shaking or jerking conditions such as epilepsy, Parkinson’s and restless leg syndrome are examples of internal wind. Conversely, paralysis and strokes are also thought to be the effects of internal wind. The 14th century physician Zhu Danxi coined the term windstroke, and in modern Chinese medicine, zhongfeng still means stroke.

If someone expresses an aversion to wind, or an unusual craving for it, this is considered to flag an imbalance in the Wood Element. While one would not diagnose a Wood imbalance solely on a person’s attitude to wind, if there are other Wood resonances present, this would be corroborating evidence. These might include issues with the organs of liver or gall bladder, the eyes, the tendons and ligaments, or signs and symptoms along the pathways of the Gall Bladder and Liver meridians. And certainly, a tendency to headaches and neck stiffness when in contact with wind, or a psychological disturbance when seeing the effects of wind outdoors, would lead one to a diagnosis of Wood imbalance.

Point names that include feng

Point names are very instructive as to their clinical uses, so anything with feng in the name is of interest here. There are six such points. All dispel wind from the body.

Gall Bladder 20FengchiWind Pool
Gall Bladder 31FengshiWind Market
Bladder 12FengmenWind Gate
Small Intestine 12BingfengGrasping the Wind
Triple Heater 17YifengWind Screen
Governor Vessel  16FengmenWind Palace

All these points are on yang channels, appropriate as wind is a yang pathogen. Most of them are in the neck and shoulder, in the yang half of the body, with only GB 31 in the leg as the exception. These points dispel wind, in particular from the part of the body where the pain or stiffness lodge: GB 20 and GV 16 at the occiput, TH 17 behind the ear, BL 12 and SI 12 in the shoulders.

GB 20 Wind Pool is located at the occiput, two fingers width lateral to the hollow at the base of the skull. Treats headaches and neck stiffness.

GB 31 Wind Market is located on the side of the leg where the tip of the middle finger lands when the arm is by the side. Treats pain the leg, sciatica, itching.

BL 12 Wind Gate is located in the upper back, two fingers width lateral to the midline at the level of the junction of the 2nd & 3rd thoracic vertebrae. Treats symptoms of common cold and fevers, neck and shoulder rigidity.

SI 12 Grasping the Wind is on the middle of the top of the scapula, in a depression found when the arm is raised. Benefits when there is difficulty raising the arm or turning the head. Treats pain and stiffness in the neck and shoulders.

TH 17 Wind Screen is in the hollow behind the earlobe. Treats ear disorders, lockjaw, pain and swelling in the cheeks, toothache of the lower jaw.

GV 16 Wind Palace is in the middle of the occipital hollow at the base of the skull. Treats pain the head and neck, visual disturbances, shivering, sweating, loss of voice, high blood pressure. This is a powerful spirit point, calms the mind and spirit, regulates the nervous system, activates the vagus nerve.

Other points known to dispel wind include LU 10, LU 11, LI 11, LI 15, ST 6, ST 36, SP 6, BL 40, KI 2, HP 8, GB 30, GB 34, GB 38, LV 1, LV 2, LV 7, GV 20, GV 22, GV 26. Most of these points clear wind anywhere in the body, and in particular treat symptoms of wind in the local area of the point.

One final tip: sweating helps to eliminate wind. As the pores of the skin are considered to be the portals via which the wind enters the body, so too they can be the point of exit of the wind. Thererfore sweating can aid in the expulsion of wind. Just be careful not to sweat profusely while being exposed to wind.

Take care during the remainder of the spring. I’ll be back in the summer with a look at Heat.

COLD

Cold, Fear, GV 4, Immune system, Neck pain, Temperature regulation, Water Element, , ,

Readers may have noticed that here has been a slight hiatus in blog posts. This has been due to a combination of the muse taking a holiday, and my writing energies being directed to another project. But a gentle prod from a reader (thanks Evelyn) and the unusually cold winter in southern Australia have inspired me to begin another series of posts.

One of the resonances through which the Five Elements manifest is that of climate which is closely correlated with the resonance of season. Here’s how they line up:

WATERWOODFIREEARTHMETAL
WinterSpringSummerLate SummerAutumn
ColdWindHeatHumidityDryness

The resonances are realms of life through which the vibrations of the Elements are expressed. The vibration of the Water Element expresses as the season of winter, the climatic condition of cold, the emotion of fear, the organs of bladder and kidney, and so on. When there is an imbalance in an Element within a person, it is likely to express itself through a number of these resonances. In this post we will focus on the way that the climate of cold can influence other resonances of the Water Element. We’ll explore the other climates in their respective seasons over the next year.

The Chinese character for cold is hán and depicts a man trying to protect himself from the cold by staying in his shelter and covering himself with straw.

Fortunately, we have better ways of keeping warm these days, but for many, the cost of heating is unaffordable, and ongoing exposure to the cold can become debilitating to the health. A recent UK government report stated that living constantly in an environment below 18 degrees Celsius (64 F) begins to affect one’s health, and that negative health effects may occur, such as increases in blood pressure and the risk of blood clots which can lead to strokes and heart attacks. It is well documented that the more severe the winter, the greater the number of deaths, especially in those over 60 years.

From the Chinese medicine perspective, these effects of cold are known as cold invasion. In fact, all of the climatic factors are considered to be ‘external pathogenic factors’. In other words, they are pathogens that invade the body in the way we might consider bacterial and viral infections as invaders.

The risk of cold invading the body is clearly greatest in wintertime, though it can occur in other seasons. Being yin in nature, cold injures yang, causing contraction in the body. This includes contraction of the skin, the muscles, the tendons and ligaments, all of which can produce stiffness and biting pain. When cold combines with wind, this allows for the penetration of viral respiratory conditions such as the common cold. In this case wind is the spearhead of the cold invasion. Other symptoms of cold pathogen can be watery, clear or white discharges, period pain, fertility issues, epigastric or abdominal pain and diarrhoea.

These latter conditions arise when there is penetration of cold into the stomach, intestines or uterus. But the deepest effect is upon the yin organ of the Water Element, the Kidneys which house the jing or Essence. This is especially true for those of a certain age whose Kidney Qi is already in short supply, and who may complain of feeling the cold in their bones.

How can we protect ourselves from cold invasion, or treat ourselves when cold has taken a foothold?

The first thing is to bring warmth. Wear extra layers of clothing to trap the body heat, including a hat or beanie, a neck scarf, and an extra layer around the abdomen to warm the kidneys. Use heating pads and heat the room. A hot water bottle on the belly is a lovely way to bring warmth into the body. Drink warm liquids and eat warming foods and herbs like ginger, garlic, cinnamon, cayenne and turmeric.

 Movement and exercise will help to heat the muscles, tendons and ligaments. A more powerful way of warming the body is through Qigong which cultivates as well as circulates Qi. Try any of the ten thousand forms! An ancient, basic, but reliable form is the Ba Duan Jin or Eight Strands of Brocade. These movements are designed to strengthen all the organs and channels. The sixth of these exercises specifically strengthens the Kidneys.

Qigong is not just movement, but also incorporates breathing to gather the Heavenly Qi. Conscious breathing into the belly centre (lower dantian, or hara) warms the body remarkably and strengthens the Kidney Qi. Tibetan monks have a practice known as tummo, the practice of inner heat. This is a series of breathing and visualisation practices that raise body temperature and metabolism. There are notable cases of competitions to see who can melt the most snow around them or dry the most layers of wet cloth on their bodies. (Don’t try this at home.)

More recently, Wim Hof, known as the Iceman for his ability to withstand low temperatures, has popularised a system breathing practices. This involves forceful breathing followed by breath holding which can strengthen the immune system and resist the cold.

There are acupoints that are known to expel cold once it has penetrated the body. The following are some which we have met over the years in this blog, and I have linked to those posts.

• My favourite point to treat cold is Governor Vessel 4 Mingmen Gate of Life. This point strengthens Kidney Qi and addresses the balance between the Fire and Water Elements.

• Stomach 36 Susanli Leg Three Miles, was my very first blogpost in 2014. This highly versatile point can in this case, expel cold if it has penetrated the Stomach.

• Stomach 25 Tianshu Heavenly Pivot for cold invading the intestines.

• Triple Heater 5 Waiguan Outer Frontier Gate. This point strengthens the exterior and rebalances the body thermostat.

• When cold with wind has affected the head and neck, use Gall Bladder 20 Fengchi Wind Pond and Governor Vessel 16 Fengfu Wind Palace.

As we navigate the second half of the southern winter, I encourage you to find ways to protect and defend against the cold. I’ll be back in the Spring with a look at the climate of Wind.