The Eight Week Meridian Challenge: How to Stop a Panic Attack in Its Tracks

Dear Yin Weaver,

Panic Attacks happen suddenly. They fill a person with a sense of imminent doom, death or destruction. They usually strike when the person feels they are in a life-threatening situation from which escape is necessary. They may think they are experiencing a heart attack, or that an earthquake is about to occur, or something violent is about to happen. Situational Panic Attacks are triggered by situational stressors. These and are indicative of social and specific phobias, such as fear of heights or public speaking. Panic Attacks that appear without any specific cues are more likely to be indicative of Panic Disorder. You have Panic Disorder if you have recurrent panic attacks, and are persistently worried about future attacks, to the point you change your behavior in order to avoid having them. This can lead to Agoraphobia, the unwillingness to leave your home for fear you will have a panic attack. 

Last week I explained the Fire Element is comprised of four meridians. We dealt with the Small Intestine and Heart meridians, and how keeping them in balance can help us create a life full of heart and meaning. This week we're going to talk about the other two Fire Element meridians, Triple Warmer (yang) and Circulation/Sex (yin). Keeping them in balance can play a big role in helping you overcome panic attacks and generalized anxiety.

Circulation/Sex meridian (7pm to 9pm) sends energy to all the sexual organs. It assists many hormone-related functions, such as menstrual cycles, ovarian and uterine functions and prostate and testicular functions. It supports the ability to experience sex as pleasurable. Also known as the Pericardium meridian, it also supports the membrane sac which surrounds and protects the heart. Think of it as the meridian which helps us energetically connect sexuality with love. Finally, it is the meridian which helps keep the beat of the heart steady and appropriate, depending on the external and internal environments. The emotional polarity of this meridian is panic versus joy. When this meridian is balanced, our hearts are able to "leap with joy" appropriately. But when it is out of balance, our hearts may be racing with panic instead.

To trace this meridian, place the fingers of one hand a the outside of the opposite nipple, come up over the shoulder, go down inside the arm and off the middle finger. Do both sides while repeating the affirmation, "My heart leaps with joy."

Triple Warmer (9pm to 11pm) is so named because it is the overseer of the "three burners." The upper burner refers to the upper part of the body and includes the heart, lung and pericardium. The middle burner refers to the midsection of the body and includes the Spleen, Stomach, Gall Bladder and Liver organs. The lower burner refers to the lower section of the body and includes the Small and Large Intestines, the Kidneys and the Urinary Bladder. In essence, Triple Warmer is concerned with threats to the homeostasis of the system. It's primary goal is to maintain balance and create an environment wherein you are safe. It doesn't matter if the stress is external or internal, real or imagined. If Triple Warmer perceives a threat it goes into action. Whenever you experience the famous "fight or flight response," Triple Warmer is the meridian that goes into action, conscripting energy from other meridians to give you the edge you need to either stand and fight, or turn and run.

To trace this meridian, turn your hand over and starting at the ring finger, trace straight up the arm to beneath your ear, follow your ear around and behind, ending at your temple. Do both sides while repeating the affirmation, "I honor the warrior within. I am safe."

Tracing these meridians on a daily basis will restore energetic balance to them, which can help reduce the intensity, frequency and duration of a panic attack.  However, when you are in the middle of a panic attack, I can gaurantee you both of these energies will have too much energy.  Tracing them during an attack won't harm you, but it won't help you either.  You need to find a way to open the tap so the excess energy can drain away.  What do you do?  Simple!  Trace them backwards, a technique otherwise known as "flushing." 

There are other techniques to help quench the fires of Triple Warmer and Circulation Sex.  Stay tuned this week for additional methods for releasing excess energy from this Dynamic Duo.

Blessings,
Rose

How Do You Make a Good Decision?

Dear Yin Weaver,

Since we're on the topic of decision making this week, I thought I'd drop in a quick article here (see below) on the subject.  Of course, I know you can surf the web as easily as I can, but let me tell you...the hardest decision I had to make was choosing which article to cut and paste!  If you know of a better one, or have your own techniques for making a good decision, let me know! 

I found another website on decision making I decided was too complicated to reproduce here.  But it's worth checking out.  Here's a bit of wisdom from Decision Making Confidence:  We all have freedom of choice, but you will never have freedom of consequences.  Choose wisely.


Blessings,
Rose

Simple Laws for Making Good Decisions

from Good Decision Makers

Charles Foster, PhD

I have spent 10 years studying decision makers -- identifying 35 people who generally make good decisions and 35 people who frequently make bad decisions... then watching over time as they make big decisions.

My research has led me to two conclusions...

Good decisions come from disciplined thinking. If you follow the basic laws of decision making, most of your plans will work out. Think haphazardly when you make a decision and little of what you plan will pan out.

They are habit-forming. Each time you make the right decision, you gain the necessary self-confidence to keep making good decisions. That’s why following the laws of decision making is crucial.

Here are seven rules for making great decisions...

Focus on the most important thing. This seems obvious, but it is the decision-making principle that is most often violated. People overload the decision-making process with so many variables that what’s really important gets lost.

Example: Most decisions only require you to answer one yes or no question, such as, Do we launch this product? But then someone says, What about this? and someone else says, What about that?

What should have been a straight-forward decision gets confused by minor considerations. You lose the focus for making the right decision.

In every decision, one factor usually is the most important. Close your eyes, and concentrate on that element, forgetting all other considerations. Once you’re focused only on what’s most important, the odds are you’ll make the right decision. Everything else is a detail.

Turn big decisions into a series of little decisions. Some decisions appear overwhelming. You want to focus on what’s most important, but there are so many unknowns that your focus gets blurred.

Example: Taking a new job means learning new skills, moving to a new city, etc. With so many variables to juggle, you wind up making a bad decision -- or no decision at all.

Break that big decision into several smaller, more manageable decisions.

Take time to study the new employer in depth. Decide if it is a company you really want to work for. Spend a few days in the new city. Decide if you want to live there.

After you make all the little decisions, the big decision will essentially be made.

Base your decision on self-acceptance. Self-acceptance covers a lot of ground…

What you like.

What you’re interested in.

What you’re good at.

Any decision based on who you really are... how you really work... what you really like... probably will work out.

Problem: People think a decision will transform them from who they are to who they would like to be. Job offers aren’t measured by suitability -- as they should be -- but by whether they will make them better people. Their future becomes hostage to that lack of self-acceptance. A decision made under such circumstances is a disaster waiting to happen.

Ask yourself what you really like and what makes you comfortable. If the decision won’t add to your feeling of comfort, it probably would prove to be a bad decision.

Consider all the good things your decision can bring. Decision making is, for many people, an exercise in disaster avoidance.

Instead of making the decision that might cause something wonderful to happen, we often make the decision we hope will hurt us the least.

Reality check: There’s nothing wrong with running through possible negative outcomes when making a decision. It would be foolish to make decisions on the assumption that nothing could go wrong. But decisions turn sour when you fail to examine positive scenarios as well.

The decision-making process must be fueled by the possibility that your decision will lead to something wonderful -- a new career, a stronger marriage, etc.

Keep reworking the decision until you see it leading to something wonderful. If you rework the decision and nothing wonderful emerges, you risk making the wrong decision.

Get what you need to make your decision a success. Especially in business, this rule gets broken again and again. A meeting ends with the decision to do such-and-such, but no plans are made to implement the decision.

Example: Many dot-coms recently went under because they had no plans for obtaining all the capital they would need to feed the beast.

If there is no passion to implement the decision -- or if you know in advance that the resources you need won’t be available -- you haven’t decided anything. It is window dressing meant to satisfy someone’s ego or to be included in a report to show your department is on the ball.

Start with how you’re going to implement your decision and work backward.

Keep things as simple as possible. Even smart people break this law. Because they see the big picture, they want the decision to cover every issue that might arise. They draft plans so that no possibility is overlooked.

Reality: The more things that can go wrong, the more things that probably will go wrong. Keep the number of things that must go right for the decision to succeed to an absolute minimum.

Venture capitalists are justifiably wary of overly complicated plans for a new business. Business plans that are easy to grasp are the ones that are most likely to get funding.

Consider all your options. I have never met a decision maker -- good or bad -- who had checked out all possible options. Invariably, I come up with options never considered.

Example: Think back to when you mislaid your keys or your wallet. You convinced yourself that you had looked everywhere. But when you found them, chances are they were someplace you hadn’t looked.

Don’t assume you know everything there is to know to make a good decision. Talk to people who are more experienced about the subject than you are. Ask what they would consider when making the same decision. Not only will they present you with new options, their insights could completely change the way you think about the decision.

________________________________________

Bottom Line/Personal interviewed Charles Foster, PhD, MBA, director of The Chestnut Hill Institute in Boston, a research and consulting firm focusing on the psychology of business success. He is author of What Do I Do Now: Dr. Foster’s 30 Laws of Great Decision Making (Simon & Schuster).

The Eight Week Meridian Challenge: Do You Have Trouble Making Decisions?

Dear  Yin Weaver,

What are you doing today? 

I had a woman come to see me recently because she was couldn’t make up her mind about what to do today, or any day.  Every morning she would wake up, her mind ablaze with ideas.  Should she garden?  Should she paint?  Should she study history?  Should she read her book club novel?  Should she organize the pantry?  Should she practice yoga?  The list of possibilities seemed almost endless to her, and each one was so compelling, she felt pulled in a million directions.  What to do?  What to do? 

To start, I explained to her the belief we can multitask is a myth.  It is true the brain is able to switch its focus of attention at lightning speed.  But when it gets right down to it, we can only attend to one thing at a time.

Secondly, I told her not being able to choose suggested an imbalance in two of her four Fire Element meridians.  These two are the yang Small Intestine meridian and its yin counterpart, the Heart meridian.    

Small Intestine meridian governs the snake-y, 23 foot long part of your digestive system responsible for absorbing nutrition from your food and separating the waste material to be sent along to the large intestine.  This same discernment process happens on the Soul level as well.  Small Intestine meridian, when balanced, helps you to assimilate and make use of influences, subtle and not so, which you experience from within (dreams, fantasies, imagination, creative ideas) and without (the laundry list of daily experiences which demand moment by moment attention and response).  It also helps you to let go of distractions from what your Soul recognizes as nurturing and important.  The result can be a clear sense of purpose and creative output of energy towards accomplishing that purpose.  Unbalanced, these influences feel like energetic assaults on your awareness, leaving you with a bad case of situational-onset Attention Deficit Disorder.  What’s that saying?  The faster I run, the behinder I get.  Tracing Small Intestine meridian can help you pace yourself, and run your particular race with greater effectiveness.

Small Intestine Meridian (1pm to 3pm):  Starting at the little finger, go straight up the outside of the arm to your shoulder, drop back on your scapula, go over to your cheekbone, and back to the opening of your ear.  Do both sides while repeating the affirmation, “I know what I want and I am decisive!” 

We usually associate the heart with love, along with its sundry pitfalls and dangers.  So it’s no surprise that the Heart Meridian not only supports energy to the physical heart, but also reflects the energies of heartache and heartbreak, as well as love for ourselves and others.  However, when your heart is settled in regard to self and others, it can also turn its attention to considering what has “heart and meaning.”  The heart is your other brain, in fact, absorbed with important, value-centered questions.   Who matters to me?  What matters to me?  What do I care about?  How do I show that concern?  What am I passionate about?  For what do I have enthusiasm?  Where do I want to put my energy?  Strengthening our heart energy by tracing this meridian can help illuminate these questions for us. 

Heart Meridian (1am to 1pm):  Place your open hand underneath the opposite armpit in alignment with your little finger and trace straight down inside the arm and off the little finger.  Do both sides while repeating the affirmation “I love myself deeply and completely.”

Together, the Small Intestine and Heart meridians work in concert to help you discern, decide and focus  on what has heart and meaning while letting go of what feels empty and meaningless.  I had my client trace these two meridians several times a day every day for a week.  She was amazed by what a difference it made.   She felt calm, focused and able to make choices on a daily basis that felt supportive and purposeful.  I hope this simple exercise will do the same for you. 

Blessings,
Rose 

St. Ephraem said, "Prayer suppresses anger." Good idea? Bad idea? You Tell Me

Dear Yin Weaver,

I asked this question on my Fan Page (OK, Like Page. Still feels like a downgrade).  Apparently anger is one tough emotion to handle, because my question got a lot of attention.  The reflections are all listed below, but I'd like to hear more.  So I thought I'd make it an official blog, and see who else wants to weigh in on the question.

I'll throw in the definition of the word "supress" here to get you thinking, as that seemed to be the "hot button" word in St. Ephraem's comment. 

1.to put an end to the activities of (a person, body of persons, etc.): to suppress the Communist party.

2.to do away with by or as by authority; abolish; stop (a practice, custom, etc.).

3.to keep in or repress (a feeling, smile, groan, etc.).

4.to withhold from disclosure or publication (truth, evidence, a book, names, etc.). ... See More

5.to stop or arrest (a flow, hemorrhage, cough, etc.).

6.to vanquish or subdue (a revolt, rebellion, etc.); quell; crush.

Clearly, St. Ephraem lived before the invention of psychotherapy. But perhaps by "supress" he didn't mean a simple denial of anger, which is bound to backfire. I like to think he meant to stop or arrest your anger before it erupts like a lava flow, or a hemmorhage (see definition five). After all, anger at injustice well-expressed can change the world. Look at Ghandi.

Here's what all my fans (ok, my likers) had to say:

Susan Hargreaves Parker said:

Seems like a good thing to me, changes your outlook on life. Isn't that one reason we pray?

Karin Evans said:

I'd prefer to think that prayer offers us a possibility to release anger, gently.

Mary Lou Carta said:

Suppressing anger is not a good thing. The anger is still there. I think a better prayer would be to be able to understand the source of our anger and how to handle it in a Christian manner. Don't forget that there is such a thing as righteous anger. Consider Jesus and the money changers in the temple. I would say that he was past upset.

Rand Gholson said:

I feel if the prayer is directed towards suppressing anger, that is the likely outcome, then what do you do with the suppressed(compressed) anger? However if the prayer is directed towards manifesting freedom from anger and its relatives, wouldn't it be more likely that it is released and a more benevolent energy can be chosen to take it's place?

Clara de Luna (dontcha love that name?) said:

When prayer is an activity of expressing gratitude {either aloud with others, or in solitude} it most certainly does release us of some negative energy.

Susan Hargreaves Parker said:

I vote for No. 5, to stop or arrest, as in if the flow of angry feelings are likened to a hemorrhage or as destructive as a cough might be.

Lisa Davis said: 

Prayer is a conversation with God.....if that takes away your anger, then I say, PRAY ON!

And what about you?  What do you say?

Blessings,
Rose

Did Pele Need Anger Management Therapy?

Dear Yin Weaver,

Are you on Facebook?  If so, do you ever feel like me?  Do you ever get the feeling that maybe Facebook is just a giant figment of your imagination, and that maybe none of these friends you've made-but-never-met actually exist?

Well, last Saturday night I had the distinct pleasure of meeting one of my "Facebook Friends" Jason Poole, AKA "The Accidental Hawaiian Crooner" when he performed with June Tanoue, a hula teacher friend of mine here in Chicago.  What a delight! Read his blog here on his experience, and you'll see a picture of him with my friend June.

BTW, it's completely relevant to my topic this week on ANGER MANAGEMENT, because the chant and dance they shared was about how the goddess Pele destroyed her poor dear friend when she lost her temper and erupted volcanically, burning her to a crisp!

If only she had balanced her Gall Bladder and Liver Meridians first!!!!

Blessings,
Rose

The Eight Week Meridian Challenge: What Meridians Help You Manage Your Anger?

Dear Yin Weaver,

The subject of acupuncture meridians is vast enough to justify years of study and practice.  I'd like you to learn a little something new each week so you at least have a greater appreciation for your own fascinating energy anatomy.  This week I'd like to answer a question that often gets asked when discussing meridians named for organs that sometimes, er, go missing. 

The gallbladder is a good example.  Raise your hand if you've had your gallbladder removed.  Well, you're in good company.   Did you know gallbladder removal is the most common operation in North America?  Between the USA and Canada, each year more than 550,000 gallbladders go the way of all flesh thanks to gallstones. 

I find this news chafing, irritating, vexing, exasperating.  In a word, I find it galling.  Why?  Because it is quite possible to resolve a large percentage of these problems using natural methods. 

However, I digress.  The answer to that unasked question is that yes, even if you lose a particular organ, the meridian remains.  Although bathing particular organs with vital energy is the primary function of each organ meridian, they also serve other purposes.  One of these purposes is to create greater emotional balance.  Each meridian has an emotional polarity, as I've pointed out before. 

Some emotions are more pleasant to experience than others.  For many people, anger is not one of them.   How about you?  Do you feel uncomfortable expressing your anger?  Do you keep it bottled up?  Why is that?  Are you afraid you'll lose control if you start to get angry, or are you concerned what others will think of you?  Perhaps you believe you don't deserve to express what's on your mind.  Perhaps you have the opposite problem.  You are easily moved to rage, or are verbally attacking, sarcastic, even physically violent. 

Whatever the challenges you face regarding your ability to manage anger effectively, learning to balance the Wood element Gallbladder and Liver meridians may be helpful. 

John Thie points out the Gallbladder meridian is associated with the organ that stores and concentrates the bile from the liver.  Bile helps us with digestion, particularly of fats.  But have you ever heard someone described as "full of bile?"  That person is thought to be angry and bitter.  In a sense, the Gallbladder meridian also stores and concentrates the emotions of anger, rage and judgement towards others.  If these aren't metabolized properly, our anger can escalate out of control.  However, when the energy of this meridian is flowing easily, it can help you look at the world with kindness and mercy.

Gallbladder's yin counterpart is the Liver meridian.  Boy, talk about a multitasker.  Your liver has more known functions than any other organ in your body.  It is involved in blood storage, the menstrual cycle, sexuality, digestion, metabolism, storage, distribution of nourishment, filtration, detoxification and immune function.  It also drives the neighborhood kid's carpool to school every Wednesday.  So you know how those overachievers get.  Hard on themselves.  Guilty.  You know what I'm talking about, right?  When Liver meridian is in its flow, not only does it help to detoxify the body, it also helps to remove those poisons of the mind which  keep us from being as kind and gentle with ourselves as we would be with a newborn baby. 

Eventually you will be rockin' around the clock, but today we're going to jump around the clock.  Last week we learned to trace Kidney and Bladder meridians, both at their busiest between 3pm and 7pm.  This week we're going to burn the midnight oil with Gall Bladder and Liver meridians, both associated with the Wood Element. 

Gallbladder Meridian (11pm to 1am):  Place the fingers of both hands on the outside of your eyebrows, drop to the opening of your ears, take your fingers straight up about two inches, circle forward with your fingers, and drop back behind the ears.  Go forward again over ot your forehead, back over the crown of yoru head, and around your shoulders.  Leave your shoulders, take your hands to the sides of the rib cage, go forward on the rib cage, back on the waist, forward on the hips, straight down the outsides of hte legs, and off the fourth toes.

As you trace this meridian (and I promise you, it will never get worse than this meridian!), repeat this supportive affirmation:  "I assert myself peacefully and let go of judgment easily." 

Liver Meridian (1am to 3am):  Place your fingers on the insides of your big toes and trace straight up the insides of the legs, flaring out at your hips, up the sides of your rib cage, and back to above your ribs, in line with your nipples. 

As you trace this meridian remind yourself, "I am kind to myself." 










Blessings,
Rose

The Eight Week Meridian Challenge: Two Tips for Greater Hope & Courage

Dear Yin Weaver,

There are two basic facts I want you to understand today about the 12 organ meridians.  One, each meridian has a two hour period during which they are most active.  Two, every meridian is associated with one of five Elements (Water, Wood, Fire, Earth and Metal), and each Element "houses" two to four meridians, half of which are Yin meridians and half of which are Yang meridians.

Here's a third point I think you'll find interesting.  The Yin (or feminine) meridians support organs or systems that are constantly at work in the body.  They are Kidney, Liver, Heart, Pericardium (or Circulation/Sex), Spleen and Lung.  The Yang (or masculine) meridians support organs that tend to work in bursts, then go back to the couch, pop a fresh beer and watch the rest of the football game.  They are Bladder, Gall Bladder, Small Intestine, Triple Warmer, Stomach and Large Intestine. 

I mean, really, is there no justice in the world? 

Today you're going to learn how to trace the Water Element meridians, Bladder and Kidney.  (By the way the directions below are straight from Donna Eden's award winning book, Energy Medicine.)  All the meridian pictures are taken from Acuxo.     

John Thie, founder of Touch for Health, points out in his book that the Bladder meridian is said to be the storehouse of emotions. When our physical bladders are full, their function is to empty excess waste. Bladder meridian, when balanced, also helps us to release excess emotion. When we aren't able to do that, sometimes the "backlog" of emotion can become so overwhelming it can lead to a state of despair. When balanced, it can flood our soul with hope.

Kidney energy, when balanced, helps us to manage effectively the "watery" aspects of life--emotions, mystery and spirit. If our Kidney energy is weak, we won't have the energy to move forward in life with the courage needed to master our emotions, live with mystery and grow our spirits' full potential. If you have trouble with depression or anxiety, strengthening these two meridians may be very helpful for you.

Bladder Meridian is most active between 3pm to 5pm.  To trace Bladder meridian, place both hands between your eyebrows, go up over the crown and down the back of your head and neck. Remove your hands from your neck, reach them back underneath your arms and as high as you can stretch onto your spine.  Trace your hands down either side of your spine to below the waist, jog in and up toward the waist, and then in and around your gluteus maximus.  Leave the meridian there and come up onto your shoulders, go straight down the back of your knees, in at the knees, down to the floor, and off your little toes. 

As you trace Bladder meridian, repeat this affirmation specifically designed to nurture Bladder energy:  "I am vital, hopeful and fully alive!" 

Kidney Meridian is most active between 5pm to 7pm.  To trace Kidney, place your fingers under the ball of each foot, middle finger in line with the space between your first and second toes.  Draw your fingers up to the inside of each foot, circle behind the inside of each ankle bone, and go up the inside of the legs and the front of the body to K27, the points beneath the clavicle at the top of the sternum.

As you trace this meridian, repeat this affirmation designed to nurture Kidney energy:  "I walk forward with courage." 


So now you have four meridians to trace this week!  Once you've learned all fourteen, I will tell you a particular order in which to trace them.  But for now, start by tracing Central and Governing meridian.  I don't think I gave you the affirmations for them last week.  Central's affirmation is "I am centered in spirit and truth."  Governing's affirmation is "I am grounded in gratitude and grace.  Then trace Bladder and Kidney meridians.

Happy tracing!

Blessings,
Rose