Metal type
The ancient framework denotes the Five Elements or Five Phases of life. They are Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal and Water.
This framework is important to me especially when dealing with children who have the modern day conditions known as ADHD, autism, dyslexia etc. So a child that is Fire element will be extremely active, wanting to climb the walls, loud etc so with this child the best activities would be something such as rugby, tree climbing, trampolining, etc. With the water type child, they will enjoy stillness so perhaps an activity such as yoga, reading books, etc. Always play to the child’s advantage and not what you think that the child may need. I say this because in some nationalities, parents tend to want to live their lives through their children, which is wrong on so many levels. When you play to a child’s strength you will notice how quickly the child progresses and you can leave the labelling behind as if nothing is wrong with them. On the other hand, I have come across a couple of parents recently and immediately knew these two mothers are so in tune with the children.
Just as each season and organ are associated with different elements, so are we. Though we are all a bit of each element, there is always a dominant element that helps us understand who we are on a mental and physical level. These are our "gifts" and also our biggest challenges at the same time. I will go through all the elements individually.
Metal element associations: Lung, Large Intestine, Autumn, white.
Metal types are faithful, brave and gallant. They enjoy structure and being organised both personally and professionally. They act with integrity and fairness. The metal element possess great inner strength to be self-disciplined and intellectual. This combination along with their tendency to be logical, perfectionists, detail oriented and methodical can make metal types very successful.
When the metal element becomes imbalanced, they can become overly critical, have trouble letting go and feel intense grief. Gifts switch to the opposite such as integrity turns to hypocrisy, structure turns to rigidity, perfection seeking leads to disappointment, logic turns to self-doubt.
Physically those imbalances manifest in the Lung, Large Intestine and skin. Symptoms like asthma, allergies, eczema, skin rashes, psoriasis, sweating irregularities are what metal types are prone to experience along with IBS, constipation.
Physically, metal types tend to have fast metabolisms and rarely have excess weight. Their bodies are strong and muscular with pale complexions and often times straight hair.
How can metal types positively influence their health?
Breathing: practice deep breathing exercises and meditation where focusing on the breath is the goal, this is beneficial to connect to the mind, body and Spirit.
Nutrition/Food therapy: avoid mucous forming foods like dairy, grease and excess cold foods. Look for foods high in minerals, dark leafy greens and white foods like garlic, onion, pears, potatoes, cauliflower, oats, rice, mushrooms, apples.
Critical: be careful of being too critical and feeling self-righteousness, both things that often metal types use as protection.
Letting go: work through grief, letting go of the past can really support nurturing good relationships.
Community: involvement in community and volunteer work will help the metal element form bonds which is sometimes hard for this element to do.
Honey and liquorice support the metal element through adding moisture to the Lung.
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