Does it pay you to stay strong? ………….. If so, how?
Does it pay you to stay Strong? How does this help you?
Growing up we are told that ‘big girls/boys don’t cry. Keep that stiff upper lip, don’t be a sook or a sissy.’
It’s acceptable to a point to show our emotions as children, but once we become adults, it is often considered a sign of weakness if we ‘ wear our heart on our sleeve’.
But keeping our emotions, be it grief, trauma or sadness bottled up, only delays the inevitable. Some day you will need to face that fear or loss, or it may contribute to disease.
I lost my younger sister many years ago. Although I grieved at the time, I had a two year old son to care for so I kept going and pushed down all those traumatic emotions. I told myself that I would have time to grieve later. I stayed strong, or so I thought!
Consequently I started to overprotect those I loved and worried endlessly if someone was late home. I tended to catastrophise events out of all proportion. This only led to overwhelm. It was exhausting trying to control everything and everyone in my life. After many years and lots of support, I learnt to let go, trust and show how I felt and not bottle everything up. I never forgot, but I learnt to deal with the pain of loss.
Traditional Chinese Medicine has believed for several thousands of years, that emotions are powerful energies that strongly affect our Qi ( our life energy) and our overall health.
In the 1980’s Dr. Candace Pert demonstrated the link between emotions and health. Dr. Pert discovered that certain brain chemicals called neuropeptides, which she called “molecules of emotion,” act as messengers between the mind and the immune system. Her findings revealed that thoughts and emotions directly impact the physical body and our health.
In Chinese medicine our emotions are strongly linked to our organs and the process of disease.
For example, our Lungs and our Large Bowel show how easily we ‘breathe’ through life, whether we have to control everything and every body or we have the ability of letting go. Our lungs also hold grief and if we haven’t dealt with that grief, imbalances will result in that organ. If not treated, this strong emotion may lead to disease either in the lungs or elsewhere in the body.
Our Stomach and Spleen hold worry and stress and manage our immune system and digestion. If we are constantly worrying or not dealing with the stress in our lives, we may end up with a deficiency in our immune or digestive systems.
The Kidneys hold fear and constant thoughts of fear. If we are always fearful of life and what may unfold, this leads to an imbalance in our kidney energy. In Traditional Chinese Medicine, the kidneys are our ‘life force’ and a key organ in sustaining life.
The Liver and Gall Bladder are where we hold anger, frustration or resentment. As the liver is involved in so many functions in our body, including our metabolism and energy, it pays to have a healthy liver.
Facial Reflexology detects areas of our body that are out of balance and treats these accordingly. However it also looks at the emotion behind the affected organ as many diseases are influenced by strong, repressed emotions.
So what are the benefits of staying strong? Yes it means we don’t fall in a heap or cry hysterically when something happens but who does this actually help? The people who might be embarrassed by your behaviour or does it help you? Sometimes we need to carry on until a time is suitable to grieve or deal with a trauma. However deal with it we must. No matter how painful something may be, unless we deal with it and get help to do so if we need, we will never be able to grow or move through life.
I’m not saying that it’s easy because it’s not. I know! It may be the hardest thing you have to deal with in your life. But dealing with your emotions, not always staying strong and allowing yourself to be vulnerable may just keep you healthy and living longer.
Let me know what you think. I would love to know your thoughts and if you would like a Facial Reflexology session to deal with some of these emotions, please let me know.
Warmest wishes,
Judy xxx
References: https://www.tcmworld.org/emotion-commotion/Image: Pixabay.com
Disclaimer: Please note that all information in this article is the opinion of the author and obtained through her research and knowledge and the above references. It is not meant to replace medical advice and a medical opinion should always be obtained for any health condition.
