Touching Spirit

In ancient China, TCM practitioners referred to Spirit as "Shen." They would look into the eyes of the patient to determine the quality of Shen. Tired, dull or lifeless eyes would indicate poor Shen. This indicated that even if the symptoms were mild, the prognosis was not good. However, if the patient had bright shining eyes with life and vigor and the symptoms were severe the prognosis was still good.

Today we have many ways of evaluating the quality of your Shen, including your eyes as well as your relationship to life in general. Someone with healthy Shen has a general sense of well-being, a mostly positive outlook on life, is able to enjoy relationships and chooses a career path that is joyful and compatible with their skills. A healthy Shen does not mean that you do not encounter stress, but when you do encounter stress you have the resources to help and manage the stressful situations.

In our clinic we will consider your spirit as a major factor in your overall health and well-being. We may use specific techniques based in the Hakomi method (a mindfulness based somatic education) to help support you in unwinding unsupportive patterns of behavior and create a more balanced life for yourself.