by Judy Pruzinsky

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In Chinese medicine, summer relates to the fire element, and to the heart. Full of light and heat, bringing excitement, joy and fun, fire ignites our passion to be with others. Summer is a time for reaching out and sharing love with friends and family. 

The heart is seen as the emperor or empress, responsible for maintaining order throughout the whole body, mind and spirit. It governs blood and blood vessels. Just as relationships bring communication between people, blood communicates — via nutrients, oxygen and hormones — on the cellular level.

When the heart is sick, there is no order. A person may experience tremendous fear, insomnia, palpitations, panic attacks, even hysteria. Cardiac arrest is the final shutdown. 

The heart’s biggest gift is unconditional love and warmth. If people are deficient in heart fire, they may feel unloved and uninspired, disheartened, even bitter. Excess fire may show up as the class clown, the life of the party, the ones who end up burning themselves out.

Because the heart must compassionately lead everyone, it has three fire assistants — the small intestine, heart protector, and triple heater — looking out for its welfare. 

The small intestine separates the pure from the impure. Food is transformed into pure chi (vital energy), discharging the impure to the colon. When this sorting doesn’t happen, thickness and coagulation occur. Circulation slows down, blood may clot, and digestion may be affected. Overactive fire may show up as inflammations: ulcers, red rashes, and acne.

On the mental level, the sheer volume of details becomes too much and people may appear easily confused. Pollution could also result in foul language and perverse behavior. 

The heart protector acts as a bodyguard, shielding the heart against physical traumas and emotional harm. When the heart protector is affected, there may be pain and angina. Sensitive to heartbreak, a person may be overly protective, unable to love or be loved. The opposite can occur when people have no boundaries. Wearing their hearts on their sleeves, they expose themselves to one battering after another.

The heart protector, acting as an ambassador, watches over the circulation of blood and sexual secretions.  Poor circulation may bring cold hands and feet, varicose veins and arteriosclerosis. If sexual secretions are imbalanced, people may be frigid or, conversely, overly excited.

In Chinese medicine, the trunk is divided into three burning spaces: upper, middle and lower. The triple heater is responsible for balancing heat among these three spaces and between one’s inner and outer environments. A good analogy is the heating engineer who regulates the temperature within a multi-floor building and between the building and its external environment. The goal is a consistent temperature throughout the building and protection from outdoor extremes. When out of balance, we may experience hot flashes, cold  extremities, blue nails, pale skin and lips, red face and neck, even alternating chills and fever.

On the emotional level, we might swing from overly enthusiastic and loving to cold or indifferent. We might erupt like a volcano and then act as if nothing had happened. Understandably, relationships might suffer. Constant swinging between extremes may result in anxiety, depression and exhaustion.

Meditative practice is essential. Balance activity with rest. Refrain from multi-tasking. Drink plenty of water.

Food choices can also balance excess heat. Serve cooling fresh foods: salads, fruit (especially melons, apples, pears and lemons), cucumbers, cabbage, celery, brown rice, tofu. Eat light: less meat, eggs, dairy and nuts. Drink leaf and flower teas — chrysanthemum, mint, chamomile — but avoid iced drinks which cause contraction resulting in depleted energy. 

Consider entertaining at home. This can both acknowledge our desire to be in relationship with others and support us in our need to relax. Choose outside dining, under patio umbrellas or trees. Summer’s exuberance can get out of hand and having personal space to call home can be the perfect remedy for activity gone wild.

Judy Pruzinsky, L.Ac., practices Classical Five Element Acupuncture and Herbology, teaches Wu-style   Chi Gung, and is on staff at Five Branches Institute. She has offices in Half Moon Bay and Santa Cruz and can be reached at 650-576-9749 or 831-426-5717.