Featured Point: Small Intestine 4

✨ Small Intestine 4 ✨

Small Intestine 4 is the source point of this Fire element organ, the yang pair to the Heart.

Summer is the time of the Fire element, and you may be more likely to find yourself experiencing physical and emotional symptoms related to the Small Intestine during this season.

As the source point, SI-4 represents the essence of this organ and its purview.

The primary functions of the Small Intestine according to Lonny Jarrett’s book, The Clinical Practice of Chinese Medicine, are:
1. Sorts pure from impure by burning away mundanity and empowering transformation in all aspects of being
2. Abstracts essential yang from acquired qi
3. Communicates heart essence into the world
4. Empowers the virtues of listening and intuition

If your Small Intestine is feeling the heat of the season, you may experience:
→ digestive upset or malabsorption
→ difficulty making decisions
→ discomfort in extending yourself into the world
→ feeling disconnected from your heart or unable to connect with others’ spirits
→ anxiety, panic or overwhelm
→ difficulty trusting your intuition

During the summer, the Small Intestine may be feeling overwhelmed by its duties. If you are having trouble settling your spirit, determining the right choices for yourself, or getting your digestion on course, come in for acupuncture or health coaching, speak with a counselor, reach out to loved ones, dive into activities that put you in touch with your spirit, eat foods that are cooling and grounding for you, and spend time in nature.

Bonus tip: Qi Gong movements that rotate the medial wrist inward activate the functions of the small intestine.

Schedule your next acupuncture appointment today!