Soul Support News

What do dragons do? They blow fire. Where in your life is it awaiting to be lit aflame with life and breath and beauty?

Happy Chinese New Year! Water Dragon 2012

I am so excited to move into this energy with the rest of the planet, this magical creature’s energy comes to us. I feel so grateful. I imagine a blue water dragon coming into my life like a child’s toy. It can’t help but share it’s joy with me, to tell me how special I am and that we are all so special individually and as breathing beings together on this planet Earth.

The Pituitary Gland & Your Blue Water Dragon meet this first month of 2012

Like a royal bishop leading a court the pituitary sits at the top of our energy system watching, protecting and keeping an eye on the rest of the land. We are more about ‘being’ way atop the spinal column whose journey goes towards the sky of infinite possibility, instead of making and doing.

As we start this new year our third eye center can lead the way for us. How do we want to live this year? I imagine the pituitary then taking the information and spreading it to the rest of its queenswomen and men, those being our trusted adrenals, ovaries, testes, pancreas, thymus, and thyroid. As we harness on the energy of the dragon, the third eye center and pituitary can be our own ringleaders so the other cascading layers of the inner dragon will follow suit. The endocrine system is such a divine family within each of us connecting to The Grand Creator of light. If we let ourselves go for a ride in our mind and body taking hold of the dragons tail, then we can coast and surf the waves of what comes in and out of our own tides this year.

Pituitary’s Main Duties: The pituitary sits at the base of the hypothalamus inside the brain. This energy center that houses the pituitary is the captain’s tent. This is where all decisions are made in the body and then carried out by the troops. 9 hormones are sent out from this gland that do important things like regulate growth, blood pressure, sex organ function, converting food into energy and alters our mood by secreting endorphins to name some of them.

Healing Sound: Mmmmmmmmmmmm releasing and dispersing- By making this sound the body can let go of what is no longer needed emotionally, physically, spiritually and mentally. Try making this sound for a couple of long exhales. It is very calming.

Element of water: In the feng shui bagua we are in a time of metal and water and winter.  When the branches on a tree retract, like us walking around town trying to stay warm while out in the cold we turn inward literally and figuratively.

Essential Oil: Black pepper seems like a great companion for the dragon. Breathing in this oil can let go of anger and worry. This company http://www.earthsolutions.com makes wonderful inhalers a few which blend black pepper with other scents.

Mudra (Hand Position): Crocodile yoga pose for the hands is fitting for the dragon as well, a quieter cousin yet also deathly fierce in its capability. Join the tip of the ring finger with the thumb tip of the left hand. Then lay the thumb of the right hand in between the ring and pinky finger of the left. The other four fingers and palm of the right hand support the backside of the left. The forefinger and middle finger of the left hand extend apart like the peace sign though it is facing you and resembles a crocodile jaw open. Affirm while holding this pose, “Cosmic divine energy is completely available to me at all times” from G Hirschi’s Yoga in Your Hands.  You can play with changing hands depending on which hand or side of your body is needing this energy.

A great third eye/pituitary mudra is simply bringing the prayer gesture up at the center of your face. The thumbs point gently to the third eye area on the face.

This year as you continue to make choices allow the wizardry of the third eye and the dragon energy come to your aid. May we all ride on the waves of this new time with grace and ease as our pituitary steers our ship.

Your Neighborhood Reflexologist,

M Burke

ARCB Certified

Happy Thanksgiving from Soul Support!

November 15th 2011

Inspiration to Allow

I have missed all of you out there in cyber world. I am back to blog land and am excited to talk about Allowing.
As we go into this dark season of late fall/winter solstice the pineal gland comes to mind.
It wants to go inside to restore and rejuvenate during these dark hours of less sunshine. Let’s allow ourselves to go into the dark and rest like a bear in its cave.
A good time to get comfy in your cave and bring into it the supplies you need- like warmth and nurturance. What does that look like for you? Feel like?
For me it’s roasted vegetables and cozy blankets with some good company tossed in!

Mugwort: Gathering a few sprigs of this herb will enhance dreaming and other trance work like creative visualization..
Or place a bit in your shoe since it is known as a traveler’s herb especially for the upcoming holiday travel that we may be doing.
I recommend visiting an herb site like, http://www.mountainroseherbs.com/ to place an order.
A few drops of the flower essence may be mixed with a massage/carrier oil (almond for example) and rubbed on the lower belly to relieve menstrual cramping and ease childbirth.

Mudra Asthma: This resembles the joining of the lungs and looks so beautiful! Hold your palms in front of each other about two inches apart. Bend the middle fingers down and in so the backs of the first joint are touching. This is the only part of the hands that are joined. Hold other fingers upward.

Color: Purple in association with the pineal gland, and dream sleep. Why not get yourself a purple scarf or other fashion accessory to bring this majestic color to your aura! In the Feng Shui bagua map purple represents fortunate blessings. Yes, this is a time on the calendar where we think of our many blessings..Allowing ourselves to open and give them and also being open to receive blessings that come to us.

Essential Oil: Citronella is an anti-depressant and induces a fresh happy feeling of hope. This sounds good for this time of year. Try a few drops of it in a spray while you clean the corners of your house.

Pineal gland: The tippy top of our endocrine system lies this beauty buried deep in between the two hemispheres of the center of our brain. It produces a hormone that affects our awake/sleep pattern modulation. This hormone is called melatonin. This is a reflux on the foot that deserves a bit of a linger. I think of it so deep inside of us it takes a bit to get to its front door, so to speak. By the time it takes it to answer its door the touch may have gone that’s why it is worthy of an extra touch.

Crown Chakra Reflux: When we dust off this area of the toes we are making space for new ideas, inspirations and divinations to come into our crown. I think of this as the top of our flower where the sun hits it the strongest. When the light comes into our crown we cannot help but heed to the warmth and nurturance of the light.

I invite you to be in the world more with your palms open, open to receive and allow good to come into your space.  When we walk in the dark and trust that its light of the stars and the moon will guide us we realize we are always going the right way.

Gratefully in love and light,

M Burke

ARCB Reflexologist

P.S. Need a Christmas present for your Mom, special someone or co-worker? Why not a gift certificate from Soul Support Reflexology!

Wow! what is that? Its role on this cosmic ‘bodyteam’ is called the ambassador. Firstly, I see it as our core, like a divine family within us. Mama, Papa, Sister (a line from the old sitcom Happy Days when Richie Cunningham was asked who he lived with just came to my head..)

It includes the Upper Burner (the Heart, and Lung), Middle Burner (the Spleen and Stomach) and Lower Burner (the Liver, Intestines, Bladder and Kidneys).

As stated in the classical medical textbook, Yellow Emperors Classic of Medicine, the Upper Burner opens outwards, spreads the five tastes of the food essences, moistens and pervades the skin, fills the body, and is like mist. It runs from the base of the tongue to the entrance of the stomach.

The Middle Burner receives vital energy, expels the wastes, steams the body fluids, transforms the refined essence of food, and connects upwards with the Lungs. The Middle Burner runs from the entrance to the stomach down to its exit at the pyloric valve.

The Lower Burner directs the separation of the clean fluids from the dirty fluids, and facilitates the excretion of urine.” The Lower Burner runs from the pyloric valve down to the anus and urinary tract.

Notice that the Triple Burner is described in terms of what it does. It is called a “concept” because it really exists as a function, rather than as a physical organ.  Ancient Chinese medical text states: ‘The Upper Burner controls intake, the Middle Burner controls transformation, the Lower Burner controls elimination.’  On a spiritual level this seems akin to how we receive things in our life. Things, people, experiences come into our sphere and we then choose how to take them in, transform them and eliminate them. Some stay around for just a moment and others for years or a lifetime each one serving a valuable purpose in our growth on this planet.

When I think of the number three I am reminded of me and my two siblings. It’s a huge change from two. Suddenly, it becomes a party with three. And boy, it was so essential for us to get along since we had to deal with each other all the time. So, with these three pairs of organs they too need to get along. They are all coming together here to see how they get along. That’s what I love about Chinese medicine, it is all about looking at the whole picture.

Since this is the last organ network out of the whole series, (large intestine-lung, kidney-bladder, liver-gallbladder, small intestine-heart, stomach-spleen) paired with the pericardium, I like how it incorporates such a vast terrain in the body. It rises up allowing us to survey the big picture. It gives us three elements, three areas of the body and brings them together.

Meridian Channel (energy pathway): Starting at the tip of the ring finger this channel travels up the arm to the collarbone. It then descends to the chest, abdomen and lower burner like a Sheep dog rounding up the pack! Ascending back up to alongside of the neck around the ear it splits into two channels one ending on the cheek, the other on the outside of the eyebrow.

Emotion: Paired with the Pericardium and the Heart, Joy

Color: Orange Red. The drawing is green, yellow and orange to represent the three chakra colors of the heart, solar plexus and sacral area

Element: Fire though it brings together air, fire and water.

Yin or Yang: Yang

Essential Oil: Since we are combining three areas of the body, a blended oil sounds appropriate. Try a bit of ginger, bergamot and geranium (for men pine or cedarwood). This combination can be rubbed on the whole torso with a carrier oil to meet the needs of warming, soothing and flowing the three areas.

Mudra (hand position): The three part sequence where you bring the hands together in prayer gesture to start. Separate the index, middle and ring fingers leaving the pinkie and thumbs touching. This creates a bowl where the base of the palms and the pinkie and thumbs gather the energy yet the open top of the other fingers allow newness to come into the bowl. Hold this at your chest area until you feel you have gathered enough energy from Source. Bring all the fingers in like a Venus flytrap plant where the middle knuckles come together on the four fingers and the thumbs are side by side. Hold this at your core where you transform this energy you have received. When you feel it has worked its way through you allow it to be released by pushing the knuckles down to the third section of the fingers so the backs of the fingers are touching then progressing to the backs of the palms. It resembles an inverted prayer position. Holding this at your sacral area one can imagine the spent energy being excreted back to the earth where it can be recycled. (from G Hirschi’s Yoga in Your Hands)

Happy Spring Equinox as we come together celebrating our oneness!

M Burke
ARCB Reflexologist

The Pericardium-  Our Heart’s bodyguard

El Pericardio

Happy New Year! I very much enjoyed this last year of covering the five organ networks and sharing them with you. What is next? Well, there are two functioning networks that aren’t organs yet do have their own acupuncture channels. These are the Pericardium and the Triple Burner. The pericardium is our heart protector. This is the cute little box that inside houses our jewel of the heart. And we know when we receive such a beautiful gift, the box is also important. It contains the gem. Besides serving as a protective sac around the heart, it also helps regulate circulation in the major blood vessels that run in and out of the heart. Like troops storming a castle, they (meaning pathogens I suppose) must first pass the drawbridge that leads to our heart. How is it different than the heart you may wonder. I see it as the pericardium gets any information first then decides how it wants to present it to the heart. Since the heart houses our spirit it needs to be treated with care, thus the pericardium provides that buffer from the cold harsh winds that whip through our inner and outer world.

Paired Organ: The Triple Burner which is our whole torso representing the upper body, middle abdomen and lower abdomen.

Meridian (energy channel inside the body): The tip of the middle finger is the final point on this channel. It travels up the arm and leads to the heart with just 9 points. One of its points is in the center of the palm, how fitting that this is the connection we have when we hold hands with a lover. This seems like a direct connection to the heart center or gateway to the heart.

Yin or Yang: considered the 6th yin organ. As a reminder, yin organs store qi or essence.

Peak Hours: 7-9pm During this time the pericardium channel reaches its peak of energy according to the Chinese organ clock. We want to do activities that nourish the heart rather than cause it any stress.  Perhaps you are just finishing a fresh cooked healthy dinner and then retreat to the living room to recite a story to your roomie or partner or child.

Color: Red, if you feel this color doesn’t suit your wardrobe it can also be celebrated in different areas of the home, the living room for example.

Element: Fire- eye exercises to raise our shen (spirit) can help this element inside us. Or you may try lighting candles or other warming things in your house, dare I say fireplace…

Season:  Summer- like the small intestine and the heart. This is time of joy and reaching outward corresponding to the season.

Essential Oils: Sandalwood, Myrrh, Frankincense and Juniper are all associated with protection. An idea on how to apply them could be to put a few drops into a personal size spray bottle with water. This can be sprayed around your aura to protect all of your subtle bodies as well as the physical body.

Mudra (Hand posture): Abhaya- which is a gesture for promising protection. I chose this one since it is held at the heart area. Hold your right hand up, palm facing out at a level between your neck and shoulders. It is in front of your body a bit as if it’s giving someone a signal to halt. The left hand rests on your left thigh. The affirmation to repeat is “I believe in the good in this _______ (thing, person) and the good will be revealed to me.” (from G Hirschi’s Yoga in Your Hands)

Asana (yoga pose): Forward bends that go inward and provide a buffer for the heart space are good the pericardium. I particularly enjoy baddha konansana (bound ankle pose) for its opening effects in the pelvis but also bowing inward. Like the delicate balance of us keeping our hearts open and receptive yet, also protected.

May we start this new year with a sense of protection around our heart so we may reach to new levels of openness and growth.

In Light and Joy,
M Burke

P.s. I am doing a special of two for one if you and your friend make an appointment. Offer valid till March 15th.

El Estomago

Happy Fall Equinox from Soul Support Reflexology! Partnering with our other Earth Element organ, the spleen, is the emotionally charged stomach. In Chinese medicine this is considered our strongest organ. Our Hercules/Athena workhorse traversing on and through with our heavy load we give it. I feel such love and gratitude for this area of the body, our emotional center. Where we receive gut instincts, a valued, prized area of real estate on our wonderfully diverse terrain of the human energy system.
What comes to mind when you think of the word stomach, when we ‘stomach’ things..?
Stoma in Greek means mouth, like in cartoons when the mouth devours something. Our stomach is a type of mouth, a giant Moby Dick that opens and closes letting random things enter it like the man who fell into the whales mouth. How conscious are we of what we put in our mouth? Then to be dealt with by the stomach, the first stop on the digestive track. The stomach meridian passes through more organs than any other meridian, a cascading freeway through the body starting up under the eyes extending way down to the depths of the tips of the second toes.
The stomach takes a look to see what we have given it, then starts to separate the useful nourishing food (stewed carrots with a fresh herb like tarragon for instance) from the unusable waste (like donuts for example). I imagine it as the accounts receivable in the office, its desk is piled full of many papers. It separates the checks from the bills. And yes, when we eat things that weaken our energy we are paying the bill for it later, yes? All the more reason to be more compassionate to ourselves when we ingest things, physically, emotionally and spiritually. We can discern what we’d like to separate as we organize and prioritize our lives whether it be creative project, health or personal relationships.

Yang: Receiving, transforming, eliminating

Chakra (Energy Center): Our navel area where we formulate our self definition and dance with issues of shame, ego and will. In Italian how ironic that cuore (is there where the word courage comes from?) means heart. How much heart/courage do we put into things from giving to ourselves to diving into the unknown with something or someone?

Mudra: (Hand Position): Rest your left hand into your right at the seat of your belly between the pubic bone and the belly button. Connect the tips of the thumbs so that they appear as an arc above the palm of the left hand resembling a bowl being cradled by the right hand. Taking expansive belly breaths with this mudra is a beautiful ride on the waves of abundance.

Essential Oil: Lemongrass- in a little spray bottle with water in the kitchen. This can be used to spray the counter tops after cooking. You’ll enjoy the refreshing smell as it cleanses the energy of whatever was prepared.

Yoga Pose (Asana): Baby Cradle allows the belly of the foot to be cradled by the crook of the elbow. This is good for digestion and stimulates the stomach reflex on the feet.

Element: Humidity is a weather pattern that the stomach likes, it is considered nourishing. I think my stomach is craving (or is it my brain?) the humidity of some tropical paradise like The Phillippines.

Taste: When we are craving something sweet that is our earth element wanting sweetness like millet, potatoes, and beef broth.

That this season we allow our stomachs to speak to us and let us know what it’s really wanting so that we may thrive and flourish as we move into these harvests of opportunity.

With Gratitude & feelings of safety as we expand to our highest selves,

M Burke
ARCB Reflexologist

drawn by M Komatsu, my acupuncturist and friend

The Spleen – El Bazo

Late Summer Greetings from Soul Support Reflexology! The spleen is our featured organ during this time of abundance and the golden color yellow.

Reading up on the many duties of this organ gave me such a new respect for it, Wow! Who would’ve known it was so vital to our system..? Known as ‘Governor of transformation’ or for us ladies, ‘Governess’. As a community we look to our Governor to promote change and bring us a better way of life, someone who will take us down our best path. Yet, it is essential we are open to receive this transformation thus aptly named ‘Inspiration to Receive’.

Spiritually or energetically when we think of receiving something we can feel vulnerable because we are letting our drawbridge down to take in this new thing, person or idea. Which is why I feel, for many of us, we decline offers, even simple things like a glass of water or tea when we come to someone’s house. So, perhaps by starting to say yes to these little things (even if we aren’t thirsty) then when bigger invitations come to us saying yes will come easier.

Much like a mother keeping a well maintained household, the spleen is inadvertently responsible for the health of all the other organs. How fitting that its element is the earth, the source of all life. It supplies blood and energy to them so they can fulfill their functions. Besides this important function it also is responsible for controlling the appetite, nourishing the muscles and controlling the blood within the vessels. It is the most important organ involved in the production of blood. Its partner organ, the stomach, breaks down and digests the food. The spleen then transforms it to usable nutrition giving it its title.

Emotion: Worry. Overthinking damages our constitution. How can we let go of this more?

Element: Earth. The earth is the center of the cosmos for us humans just as the spleen is the central place in the body. Keeping our bodies free of dampness and coldness relates to the earth element. When we are outside in nature and see an area that is too damp and wet we know it can be dangerous, same with our interior.

Healing Mantra Sound: Gently exhale with ‘whoooo’ to relieve excess worry and brooding. Think of an owl sound.

Meridian: This channel starts at the medial side of the big toe and travels the interior of our leg, the lateral side of the torso ending near the armpit. This area is where we house many lymph nodes a harbor of where dampness could reside. Moving the energy in this area will help lymph flow, I recommend a qi gong class!

Yin Organ: Responsible for storing, serves as a blood reservoir.

Essential Oil: Stimulating scents that dry out dampness in your olfactory system like basil, fennel or tumeric. You may try putting a just 1-3 drops in your hand mixed with a carrier oil. Rub this along the side of your big toe and in between and a few inches between the armpits and sternum.

Mudra: (hand gesture) To tranquilize the mind and diminish worries bring the hands up to the navel area. Bend the index, ring and pinky fingers toward the palm and press them together along the second joint. Extend the middle fingers so that their finger pads are touching, pointing away from your body. The tips of the thumbs are touching pointing toward you. Elbows and joined hands at the level of the navel. Not only will this relax you but also open the diaphragm to take in more breath strengthening your fire center and shining the bottom of your heart upward toward the sky.

Asana: (yoga posture) Tree Pose with the foot either on the inside of the calf or the thigh stimulates the spleen meridian.solarplexusimage copy

As the last hot days begin to mix with cooler ones we can begin to let go of worry trusting that all of our efforts this summer are coming to harvest.

In Gratitude and Love,
M Burke
ARCB Reflexologist

The Small Intestine – El Intestino Delgado

Happy Summer! As we enjoy the heat of summer our next chapter in the body’s organs is the small intestine, the partner to the heart. In the digestive arena this organ holds the title of ‘the minister of information’. It makes the big decisions in our mid section delegating what goes where.”Small” may make us think, ‘Oh, how important is it? It’s small..’ Well, it’s actually much larger than the large intestine about 10 feet larger. The small description comes from its width.
It reminds me of sorting through our wardrobes, which part of us decides which items stay in the drawer and which are removed for some new owner to enjoy.. Ironically, if we ingest only healthy food,  liquids and ways of thinking we make it all the easier for the minister to work more effectively. Yes, how true. If we only buy clothes we love and make us look fabulous, if we only allow loving people into our lives, if we only take jobs we believe in… etc

Function:
This organ sends the pure nutrients to the spleen and the unpure to the large intestine. The kidneys receive the fluids.
Essentially, our life force is being protected from negative imput by this action.

There are three parts, the duodenum, the ileum and the jejunum. The stomach and small intestine connect creating this first part, the duodenum. This is where most of the digestion takes place using enzymes. Then moving to the jejunum, it absorbs nutrients rather than breaking down. And finally the ileum which connects to the large intestine. It also absorbs nutrients like vitamin b12. Its walls are made of many folds increasing the area of absorption. At the end of the ileum there is a pouch called the cecum connecting the small and large intestines.
Incan Times comes to mind for some reason.. they would run hundreds of miles carrying a message to be delivered to the neighboring king. When they handed off this message to the next runner how precious to hand it over with good intention and focus.

Chakra (Energy Center): Manipurna- Solar plexus area issues- How do you handle power, desire and inner strength?

Color: Yellow (although since it is the fire element red is also applicable in Chinese Medicine)- Look around your home and in your wardrobe. Could bringing in this color augment your life? Or perhaps do you need to scale down on this color?

Healing Sound: Heeeeeeee…. Sitting in a meditative posture utter this sound to calm the nervous system and bring the body into balance.

Element: Fire

Essential Oil: Try rubbing a drop of ginger, peppermint, cinnamon or fennel essential oil with a carrier like almond oil on the abdomen to aide in digestion.

Mudra (Hand Gesture): Open the hands palms up and join the sides of the hands together. The pinkie’s and sides of the palms are touching. Then touch the tips of the middle finger yet leaving the ring fingers free from touching. Imagine you are pouring out all the unpure through this small opening dripping down off the pinkie fingers. Affirmation: “I thankfully accept everything that is good for me, let it have its effect within me and release everything that is spent.’ from G Hirschi’s Yoga for your Hands and S Mesko Healing Mudras)

(Asana) Yoga Pose: Forearm stand or dolphin dives. These stimulate the small intestine meridian along the lateral side of the hands and forearms. The meridian then travels up the arm and finishes at the face.

That the heat of the summer burns away any obstacles allowing us to choose with clarity and coming from abundance…

In Gratitude,

M Burke
Neighborhood Reflexologist
ARCB Certified

El Corazon, Summer Solstice 2010

The Heart, the Queen of our system. She receives messages from her gatekeepers whom she keeps near knowing they will aid her greatly in the care of her army, her followers.
Yes, this organ is next in the queue on the Chinese medicine calendar. Like a correspondent keeping me abreast on the latest news, my sister K Burke the acupuncturist, aids me in following the Chinese clock.

How fitting that such an intensely powerful organ be featured around Summer Solstice – they make such a lovely couple. As we come into this hotter, and at times, muggier weather we are reminded of the importance of heating things up.
Our heart thrives on pumping and being alive. Summer allows us to climb out of the stream, lake, or pool to stretch out on a big rock like a gorgeous amphibian.

Functions of the heart:

It is an exchange. It facilitates an exchange with the right and left sides of itself. By pumping in new life, qi, oxygen, prana and blood to balance both halves of the body, the heart can seem like a referee of sorts. Old stale air that makes its way back up the heart can gladly be recycled offering itself up for new life.

On an emotional level the heart functions as a type of drawbridge to our own castle that lies within us. We open the bridge allowing new to come in, close it when we are full or vulnerable or have been damaged. Yet, eventually the heart needs to open again to maintain healthy functioning. This is where reflexology comes in!

By working on the feet we maintain the flow to function smoothly.

Yoga Pose: Setu Bandha, bridge pose, with the heels up stimulates the heart reflex on the foot. Those who have a wheel practice, Urdhva Dhanurasana, can enhance the opening of this reflux by lifting the heels.

Element: The Heart and Small Intestine, its partnered organ, correspond to the fire element. Getting a good fire going is an essential part of the plan whatever it may be, a campfire, finishing a homework assignment or starting a new relationship in your life. After we started the fire how can we tend to it without letting it go out or burn too strongly?

Emotion: Joy

Yin: Yes, the Heart wears the yin role in this story. As a reminder, yin organs produce, transform, regulate and store fundamental substances.

Meridian (energy channel): The hands take the prize on which limbs the heart meridian stems out to. How fitting that this is where we give and receive hugs. We of course can still work on the heart via the feet, do not despair! Your heart will be tended regardless in reflexology!

Color: The Heart Chakra is associated with the colors light green and light pink. Could you bring some of these colors into your sphere more either in your wardrobe, your diet or your home?

Essential Oil: Well,… Rose. The healing power of rose. I recommend combining a drop our two of Rose Otto (or Rose Absolute if you can treat yourself) into the palm. Add a dab of almond oil and massage into your chest. Imagine you are imbuing this area of your body with love.

Mudra (hand gesture): Universal Life force Energy (from S Mesko’s Healing Mudras). Extend both arms out, palms face up yet slightly facing each other. Bend the elbows about 4 inches out from the sides of the body. This resembles a bit like someone about to receive a hug or perhaps hold a baby.
An affirmation with this can be “I am open to give and receive love.”

May your summer start with an open heart to receive all the good that awaits you,

In Gratitude & Joy,

M Burke
Certified Reflexologist

The Gallbladder-   Vesicula Biliar

Ah, spring has now officially arrived. The crazy winds are calming down as we make our way from the liver into the time of the gallbladder. What do we think of when this organ comes to mind? Maybe things like someone having a lot of ‘gall’ to do something. Yes, it is a yang organ and has to do with decision making. It’s meridian line has 44 points starting at the top of the head near the eyes. How ironic it has to do with being clear and clarity- it sits itself right there with the Ajna chakra (clear seeing and discernment).

In Chinese medicine the gallbladder holds the title of being a prudent judge, wisely moderating impulsive or reckless behavior. Perhaps as a referee it takes an overview of the game calling the shots, thus it’s meridian aptly situating itself near our third eye.  It is responsible for what is just and exact.

The gallbladder in unlike other yang organs because it stores bile. Other yang organs transform and transmit fluids. When I think of how it and its partner the liver work the Looney Tunes cartoon comes to mind of the big dog and the little dog.  The liver is like the little dog, running around doing the grunt work. The gallbladder is the big dog sitting back saying when to do what. According to my sister K M Burke, an acupuncturist in Seattle, the
gallbladder is the most dispersed of the channels always excessive rather than deficient. Yes, we can all benefit from more clarity- in thoughts, words and actions.

Asana: (yoga pose) Since the gallbladder channel runs along the sides of the body up the calf, leg, and torso side stretches are great for this. Utthita Parsvakonasana (extended side angle pose) and Janu Sirsasana could be two options.

Mudra: (hand gesture) The mudra of the inner self.  Hands come together, let the thumbs move in between them resembling a door. This makes the palms separate and making a diamond shape. Above the pinky fingers will be a small opening, this is a gateway to the inner self. Hold the hands at the third eye so you are able to look into this opening. An affirmation can be “I see my vision with clarity and purpose” from G Hirschi’s Yoga in Your Hands.

Essential Oil: Clary Sage. A drop can be mixed with a carrier oil like almond, annoint your third eye with this.

In the morning you can start the day with some ankle rotations, this will stimulate points of the gallbladder channel at the feet where energy can get stuck.
Blessings that your liver and gallbladder channels flow in harmony!

In Gratitude,
M Burke
Neighborhood Reflexologist

The Liver – El Higado

I decided to title this blog inspiration to feel free because when we let go that’s when we can be free. And the liver is a controller! In Chinese medicine this organ is aptly called ‘The Commander’. I imagine it in the body telling everyone else (the queen even, and her soldiers) what to do. All other organs look to it for guidance, like the mother hen of all the other hens in the hen house. If Mama ain’t happy, no one is happy. Yes, this seems to apply, doesn’t it?
How can an army go out and fight if there is no commander? Well, there is chaos. Thus, there’s a reason why the commander has their own special tent with the extra plush ammenities. The same goes for this amazing organ, we pull out the red carpet and our best china.

What are the duties of this commanding organ? For starters, it:

-commands the blood exercising authority in collecting it and directing it. Energy comes into the body and the liver distributes it to a hungry flock like little birds in the nest with their mouths open.

-plays a major role in metabolism, it breaks things down and builds things up, a kind of construction worker inside of us

-it pulls out harmful substances in the blood, like alcohol

-produces bile to help with digestion

-coverts glucose (sugar) to glycogen (energy) and then stores it

-decomposes red blood cells – here the liver works as a recycler for us taking the old worn out cells to make new ones, that is beautiful!

Without the liver in the body for even a few days the body will stop functioning.
We can pamper this meridian line so easily every morning by just rubbing our feet! It travels down the inside of the leg on the medial side of the foot and makes its way up the dorsal side in between the big toe and second toe. Applying lotion to your hands and cupping the big toe will stimulate this meridian sending fresh chi up this vital pathway which ends at the liver itself (which is on the right side of the body under the diaphragm).

Season/Element: Spring is the season associated with the Liver (and the Gallbladder, it’s paired organ). The element is wood. This element is most vulnerable to stress because the liver is burdened with eliminating stress from the body, mind and spirit. Just in these last few days the wind is a good example of the wood element out of control! Wind, rain, cold.. Then sunshine, calm and chirping birds… When we think about the liver being balanced we can imagine nature. If the roots in the ground are suffocating the earth and sucking up all the water it has become dominant. Or if the roots aren’t strong enough they will get limp from too much water and earth and not be able to grow.

Emotion: Anger. Balancing the wood energy is the same in the body as in nature. We can express ourselves assertively without being explosive. All emotions are healthy, it’s ok to be angry but how we express it is important. Do you think you may have excess wood energy? Do you have a tendency to push ahead without planning or thought? Or perhaps you have deficient wood energy and let others push you around without standing up for yourself?

Healing Sound: To keep the liver energy balanced sit in a meditative posture and repeat ‘Shhhhhh’. This soothes the wood element.

Essential Oil: Peppermint. Wyndmere Naturals http://wyndmerenaturals.com sells diffusers that mist water and essential oil into your home. A few drops of peppermint will bring a nice vibration to your living space!

Asana (Yoga Pose): The liver reflux is on the right foot only. In acupuncture the meridian is on the dorsal side of both feet ending at the space between the big toe. Poses like bow pose where we grab the tops of the feet can be good for the liver reflux.

Mudra (Hand Gesture): Rudra Mudra-Take the thumb, index and ring fingers together. Extend the middle and pinky fingers. Imagine energy emanating from these two extended fingers. An affirmation/mantra to use for this is “I rest at my center. I draw strength and power from my center.” (from G Hirschi’s Yoga in Your Hands)

This mudra I find very good. Yes, coming from our center. When we are ‘centered’ that’s when we come from a good place able to deal with whatever comes our way. As we move away from the cold/wind of early spring and into the budding flowers and trees we can make this transition feeling centered.

In this blog I’ve decided to include a lovely recipe for the liver! Courtesy of my good friend Leigh Evans http://healthyarts.com

Quinoa Sweet Potato Salad
Dressing:
2 tbsp lemon juice (the liver loves lemon!)
1 tbsp sesame oil
1 tsp honey
1 tsp tamari
1/2 tsp grated ginger
1/2 juice of orange
mix dressing ingredients, set aside

1 cup diced, steamed sweet potato
1 cup cooked Quinoa
1/2 cup chopped chives
2 tbsp slivered almonds
Toss these items together, set aside

1 bunch braised kale

Place greens on bottom, on top add a healthy portion of quinoa mixture, drizzle dressing on top.

Happy Spring!
Gratefully yours,
M Burke
Neighborhood Reflexologist