Self-care for your liver using the wisdom of traditional Chinese medicine

According to traditional medicine, we should allow nature to inform our self-care practice as we step into the different seasons. During spring the liver and gallbladder energies begin to rise, which gives us the motivation to emerge from our winter cave and start putting ourselves back into the world. The liver is thought to support digestion, store blood, influence the smooth flow of qi (energy), work closely with the gallbladder, have an intimate relationship with anger, and be reflected in the eyes, tendons, and nails.

How do I know if my liver needs some love?

An imbalance in your liver energy may look like digestive issues, bloating, IBS, constipation, depression, or insomnia - especially if you are waking up between 1 am-3 am. For women in their fertile years, menstrual disorders such as painful periods, heavy periods, clots, PMS, tender breasts, or issues with your fertility may reflect an overworked liver.

How can I love my liver back to health?

Move your body

Most of us spend a lot of time working at a desk which can cause physical stagnation, or a 'stuck' feeling when we get up out of our chair. Moving your body gently and regularly will counteract this physical stagnation. Walking, stretching, or yin yoga are gentle ways to nourish your tendons and circulate oxygen throughout your body. If you have been in hibernation mode during winter, be mindful to emerge with gentle movement rather than a full-on exercise regime.

Feel your feelings

Even though any part of the body can hold any emotion, unexpressed or unresolved anger tends to be stored in your liver. When your liver is in balance you are able to practice flexible thinking and confident decision-making. When your liver is out of balance you are more likely to feel frustration, irritability, or resentment. For women especially, we are brought up in a culture where expressions of anger may have been deemed inappropriate, or it may have been unsafe for us to show anger, so instead of having our anger rage like fire and quickly burnout, the embers are often constantly glowing in the background. If you find that your anger bursts out of you and frightens you and everyone around you, then it might be time to pause and sit with your feelings, reflecting on any unmet needs. Feeling your feelings in a safe space, without any judgment will free up resources for you to live with more vitality.

Don't forget to play

The liver's energy is at its peak during springtime. The spring years were those childhood years when we had no responsibilities and lots of wild abandonment. Some of us were asked to be caregivers at a young age. Some of us were made to do adult things while we were still children. Sometimes we need to grieve the loss of the childhood we should have had. Or maybe the responsibilities of adulthood or parenthood have got in the way of play. We can honor our inner child by taking them out to play. Spring is a great time to support your liver by tapping into the joyful child-like energy and dancing, drawing, growing sunflowers, or jumping in the waves.

Eat green things

You already know the importance of optimizing your nutritional status. Green foods and bitter tastes are beneficial to the liver. If you don't know where to start, then add fresh lemon juice to warm water first thing in the morning, or add avocado and rocket with apple cider vinegar and lemon as a side salad to your meals. Once you have started adding more green foods into your diet you can then start to remove the more detrimental processed foods, trans- fats, and sugar.

Get sleep, a lot of it.

You don’t have to do anything because your liver does its best deep clean while you are sleeping! The quality of your sleep matters, so make it count. You know what I’m going to say - reduce your screen time before bedtime, leave your phone out of the bedroom if possible, or invest in some blue-light-blocking glasses if you have to look at a screen before bed. Try to have your last meal 3 hours before you go to sleep, it's quite hard to wind down when you are busy digesting food or your news feed. If you find that you often wake up between 1 am - 3 am then your liver is probably too busy processing.

Go green

The products you put on your body also have to be metabolized by your liver. Some of the products that we put on our hair, skin, and nails are absorbed into the body and this is then another thing that our liver has to clear. Go for more natural products - although beware of ‘greenwashing’ where a company will put a natural-sounding word on the label even though it is full of harsh chemicals! Having fewer chemicals absorbed into your skin will give your liver more resources to deal with all its other jobs.

Live your life in sync with your cycle

If you are in your fertile years then your hormones will run on a cyclical monthly cycle. Oestrogen, progesterone, and testosterone all rise and fall during the month. Running at 100 miles per hour throughout the whole month will raise your stress hormones, and tell your body that now is not a good time for a pregnancy. This may reflect changes in your periods or it may affect your fertility. Do you remember that anger and irritability are often stored in the liver? Well, that PMS might be your body telling you that you need to stop, rest and retreat while you are on your period so that you can get back to wonder woman duties around ovulation. Connecting in with your cyclical nature rather than trying to fit into a linear lifestyle will help give your liver the downtime it needs to metabolize.

If you are drawn to supporting your liver health but don't know where to start, then book an acupuncture appointment and I can give you a full body evaluation with tips and tricks that are manageable for you.

Alison is a registered acupuncturist and co-owner of Blossom Natural Health in Chelmsford. She has been specialising in fertility and women's health for the last 20 years and is the fertility acupuncturist for Bourn Hall fertility clinic in Wickford. She loves combining Acupuncture, Cranio-Sacral Therapy and Somato-Emotional Release to help her clients with stress, digestive issue and pain relief.