Observe Your Body Signals
Observe Your Imbalances
We cannot see our internal organs. However, we can observe the tell-tale signs from the outside.
WOOD ELEMENT (LIVER)
Do you experience these?
- Chest pain, headaches, dry or sore eyes, night blindness
- Mood swings, agitation, frequent sighing, tendency to feel frustrated
- Insomnia with dreams, weak or brittle nails, stiff joints, shaking limbs
- Fatigue, bitter taste in the mouth
- Irregular menstruation, menstrual pain, importence, ejaculation issues
Simple self-care
- Eat more green leafy vegetables.
- Manage anger and frustrations.
- Sleep early (before 11pm).
- Massage Tai Chong acupoint.
FIRE ELEMENT (HEART)
Do you experience these?
- Chest discomfort, palpitations, dizziness, weakness, fatigue
- Slow response times, inability to focus, forgetfulness
- Insomnia, tendency to dream a lot
- Pale or red face, tongue ulcers, excessive perspiration
Simple self-care
- Practice calming activities (meditation etc)
- Eat bitter food like bittergourd.
- Massage Shen Men acupoint.
EARTH ELEMENT (SPLEEN)
Do you experience these?
- Constipation, loose stools, indigestion, bloating
- Short,weak breaths, water retention, fatigue
- Feeling of heaviness, weak limbs, pale lips
- Sweet or sticky feeling in the mouth, excessive salivation, dry mouth
- Forgetfulness
Simple self-care
- Eat warming cooked food
- Manage overthinking
- Massage Zu San Li acupoint
METAL ELEMENT (LUNG)
Do you experience these?
- Blocked nose, runny nose, cough, asthma
- Chest tightness, difficulty breathing
- Frail skin, tendency to catch colds easily
- Short breaths, low or weak voice, reluctance to talk due to low energy
Simple self-care
- Eat food like garlic, onion, white radish
- Tapping or guasha on lung meridian
WATER ELEMENT (KIDNEY)
Do you experience these?
- Slow growth in children, hearing loss, loosening teeth
- White hair, hair loss, back pain
- Forgetfulness, cognitive decline, slow response times
- Cold limbs, weak pulse, cold womb
- Impotence, incontinence, hot flushes
Simple self-care
- Eat foods like seaweed, black beans, walnuts
- Manage fear and trauma gently
- Massage Yong Quan acupoint.
Check Your Symptoms
Select the symptoms you’re experiencing to get insights about which element might be out of balance.
Click on “Analyze your symptoms” and you get suggestions on
- Self-care tips
- Acupoints therapy
Note: These are general observations for simple self-care, for eductional purpose. Do not self-diagnose. Consult a qualified Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioner to have a better understanding of your condition and advise appropriately.
What is the relationship between the elements and our health?
An ancient philosophical thought that studies the conceptual characteristics of the five elements of wood, fire, earth, metal, and water, and uses them to explain the development, changes, and interrelationships of all things in the universe.
In TCM 5 elements, we focus on 5 organs – liver, heart, spleen, lung, kidney.
The organs do not refer to just the organs itself. It refers to the systems surrounding the organs.
Liver – circulation
Heart – cardiovascular
Spleen – digestion
Lung – respiratory
Kidney – reproductive
Traits of the 5 elements (五行)
Classification was done through observations of the elements and organs traits.
WOOD grows; LIVER ensures smooth circulation
木的升发，条达特性 – 肝气的疏泄条达
FIRE is warm; HEART has warming effect
火的温热，升腾作用 – 心阳的温煦作用
EARTH holds and transport the nutrients; SPLEEN holds and transports nutrients
土的承载，生化受纳 – 脾的运化作用
METAL is heavy, ‘kills’; LUNG ‘cleans’ the qi before transporting out
金的沉降，萧杀特性 – 肺主肃降功能
WATER is moisturizing, downward flowing ; KIDNEY works on the body fluid
水的滋润，下行特性 – 肾主水液的功能
5 elements table: relationship between element, yin organ, yang organ, sense organ (Sense), tissue, emotion, taste, and season.
Observe for imbalances and self-care accordingly for better health management.
When you experience issues with your EYES (SIGHT), TENDONS, NAILS, balance your LIVER.
When you experience issues with your TONGUE (SPEECH), FACE, BLOOD VESSELS, balance your HEART.
When you experience issues with your MOUTH (TASTE), MUSCLE, LIPS, balance your SPLEEN.
When you experience issues with your NOSE (SMELL), SKIN (SKIN HAIR), balance your LUNG.
When you experience issues with your EARS (HEARING), BONES, HAIR (HEAD), balance your KIDNEY.
With reference to the 5 elements chart, we can strengthen the respective organ with:
– respective food colour
– respective food taste
– managing respective emotion
– massaging the respective meridians
Application: when you experience dry eyes, you can focus to take care of your WOOD element. You can consume more green leafy vegetables. You can manage your anger and massage acupoints on the liver meridian (e.g. Tai Chong).
Note: These are general observations for simple self-care, for eductional purpose. Do not self-diagnose. Consult a qualified Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioner to have a better understanding of your condition and advise appropriately.
More in the eCourse: Healthy Ageing with TCM
Course objectives:
Understand that TCM is all about balance, particularly the dynamic between Yin & Yang.
Discover the basics of the 5 Elements and 12 Meridians, and how they relate to your body and mind.
Practise practical self-care techniques using acupressure massage, tapping, and guasha to relieve common pains like headaches, eye strain, stiff neck and shoulders, and backaches.
Apply element-based self-care routines to support your organ systems and emotional wellbeing.
This course empowers you with foundational TCM knowledge to support graceful and pain-free ageing. Learn how to restore and maintain balance in your body using time-tested principles from Traditional Chinese Medicine.
Next: Understand Your Body Constitution
Your imbalances are influenced by your TCM Body Constitution. Knowing your constitution allows you to adopt personalised self-care practices that bring your body back into balance.
🔍 Next Step: Take the Body Constitution Questionnaire → Discover Your TCM Type
Next: Care
Incorporate suitable TCM practices for your body constitution into your daily life. Find out the suitable TCM self-care practices for you from the eCourses.