The Wood Element relates to vitality, growth, compassion, and the spring season. It is an upward yang energy. Observing nature with all the sprouts that are the result of the Earth resting and restoring during the winter season, or listening to the young chirps of birds in nests above us can really help understand the Wood Element. This growth is not only literal in what we see around us, but it is also metaphorical in our actions and emotions. Just like plants, flowers and trees are growing outwards, we also start to feel more energy, more interest in getting outdoors, and have a rejuvenated motivation with new ideas and projects and the stamina to get things done.

The sense organ of this Element is the eyes. This outwardly growing nature all around stimulates our sense of vision. We can transpose this also to our vision of life and what hopes and dreams we have. How are we going to fulfil those dreams? What are we going to do? Thankfully, the Wood’s organs are Gallbladder (Yang) and Liver (Yin). Gallbladder energy is one that helps make decisions that are in line with our soul’s desires, and Liver energy is one that gives us the ability to plan, prioritise, organise, strategize. They give us the hope and determination needed to keep on going and growing. They give us the voice to be more affirmative and convincing when things don’t go the way we’d like them to.

The emotion of Wood is anger, but anger is not always a bad emotion. It can be used usefully if it is not out of control. It also is un upward kind of emotion. We say that anger rises. It is often an explosive form of energy. Excess anger is an expression of a Liver Qi stagnation and can lead to physical ailments such as headaches. Not enough anger also can be an imbalance. However, when Liver Qi is balanced, the emotion of anger can be used skilfully to set appropriate boundaries and stand for injustices.

Anger is a complex emotion as it is most often seen as eruptive and too passionate fury, but it can have more subtle forms of expression, such as frustration, annoyance, or bitterness. It may also have a more Yin form of expression when it is directed inwards with feelings of shame or guilt. In these instances, we need to give ourselves a bit of self-love and compassion.

In Traditional Chinese Medicine, the Wood Element and the Liver are associated to the Hun spirit. The Hun is the Ethereal Soul that dwells in the Liver and is considered the “Messenger from Heaven”. It is responsible for our dreams and visions and keeps us in a state of growth in order to actualise our potential and to stand up for injustices. According to TCM, the Liver’s physical role is to store blood and deliver it to the different parts of the body as needed – playing an important role in women’s menstrual cycles, and it ensures the smooth flow of Qi – supporting all other organs and being responsible for agitation and jerkiness when not balanced.

The Gallbladder in TCM, being a yang organ, is not only responsible for bile activity, but it also controls the sinews and decisiveness. The decision-making factor is crucial in the continuity of action of the 11 other organ meridians, pathways, and roles.

Some of the gifts of Wood are:

When Gallbladder and Liver are balanced, we have a vision, and we are able make decisions and plans to achieve the desired results. When unbalanced, however, we may experience feelings of guilt, anger and frustration, and thoughts like ‘what’s the use anyway, I can’t do this’. We don’t need to give up on ourselves and our ability to go through with our ideas.  A little bit of help is easy to get and to put our energy cycles back on track. We can start by wearing green clothes, green being the colour of the Wood Element. Increasing green food in our diet is great for our mood, our health, but mostly and definitely detoxifying for the both the Liver and the Gallbladder.

Five Element Acupressure can also help with long term emotional issues, and in the case of the Liver, they may be expressed as depression, resentment, frustration, anger, lack of vision or purpose, whereas on the case of Gallbladder, they will be expressed with constant indecision and hesitancy.

You can book an appointment for a Five Element Acupressure treatment, or try some Five Element Qi Gong, that would help balance your energies and help you find balance in your life.