I often talk with people who are looking for help with chronic digestive issues.

Many of the women I see who are struggling with menstrual cycle and/or fertility concerns also have digestive challenges. Men and women both write to me with questions about how to get rid of their reflux or GERD symptoms. In general, I hear from many people who experience some degree of post-meal bloating, even when they’re not reporting this as their primary health concern.

Though common, chronic bloating and digestive difficulty after meals is not normal.

There’s no need to panic, but we also do not need to accept that we are destined to struggle with digestive issues for the rest of our lives.

I strongly encourage clients not to accept that they are just “someone who gets bloated easily” as if it is a part of one’s personality.

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Digestive distress is very commonly a signal that:

1) some aspect of the digestive system is weak and unable to process the digestive load;

2) foods entering the body are not appropriate for the individual at that time;

or

3) a prior or present injury/pathology is not allowing for full digestive capacity

As we work together to determine what is the root cause of the individual’s digestive challenges, we want to see whether or not the individual struggles regularly with food stagnation.

Food Stagnation

In Chinese medicine, food stagnation is a pattern of disharmony in the body where digestion slows down or stops due to overeating, eating too fast, eating a lot late at night, or consuming an excess of heavy/greasy foods, takeout (lots of additives), and sweets.

The food quite literally stagnates and starts to ferment, leading to discomfort.

You may have experienced this after a holiday meal where you ate too much and the food got stuck.

Food stagnation can be caused by a mismatch between what the spleen and stomach can handle and what was actually consumed.

(Keep in mind that this can look dramatically different across individuals. We all know that one person who seems to be able to eat anything, whenever, without the slightest challenge. Maybe you used to be like that in your teens, and wonder where that “talent” went. More on that another time, but suffice it to say that those habits usually catch up to people.)

Food stagnation can also result from emotional stagnation that affects digestion. For example, this can occur if you eat while angry or distracted.

Typical presentations of food stagnation:

• Bloating or distention (especially in the upper abdomen)

• Feeling full for hours after eating

• Belching, a sour taste in the mouth, or foul-smelling breath

• Gas or bad-smelling stools

• Low appetite the next day

• Nausea or sluggishness

• Trouble sleeping after a big meal

• The presence of what the internet has not-so-endearingly dubbed a “food baby”

Prevention and resolution

We can keep ourselves from moving toward a scenario that can create food stagnation by keeping a few good-digestion habits in daily life, such as eating dinner early, and finishing meals at least two hours before getting in bed. We can also work on cultivating a food practice that prioritizes digestive ease, with behavior such as eating wet-cooked breakfasts, creating a dietary practice that considers the directionality of foods, and avoiding the primary heaters in the diet.

If we do find ourselves with bloating and heaviness after a meal, or a feeling of fullness that will not subside, some herbal medicines can be extremely helpful:

• Peppermint + chamomile tea—cooling herbs that help clear heat and move stuck qi, make a strong brew (steep for at least 10-15 minutes)

• Fresh ginger root decoction—ginger is a common kitchen remedy that supports digestion and relieves nausea; ginger supports the spleen and digestive processes more broadly

• Dried citrus peel (organic)—tangerine peels in particular, as well as the peels of various citrus fruits, can clear stagnation and cut through phlegm; add to teas, water for cooking rice, broths, and meat dishes

• Miso soup—stimulates appetite and digestive processes; stir miso paste into warm water and drink 15-20 minutes before a meal

• Bao He Wan (Preserve Harmony Pill)—a classical Chinese herbal formula with hawthorn berry as a main herb; helps to move food downward, through the digestive system, resolving stagnation; commonly taken as a tea pill, can also be bought as a powder/granule and stirred into warm water

I’m curious to hear what other kinds of digestion-related questions you might have. You can write in with a question by responding directly to this message or sending me a dm on Instagram. You can also write to me if you are looking for reputable places to buy herbs from. I’ll look out for your messages! ☺️

Warmly,

Artemisia

Artemisia Obi, MA

Chinese Medicine Practitioner | Clinical Herbalist

innervillagehealth.com 

@innervillagehealth

You may have heard from me or another Chinese medicine practitioner that we can learn a great deal from a quick examination of your tongue.

The tongue reveals the body’s response to pathology. It can show us information about a person across various dimensions of health, including:

• The level of systemic hydration in the body

• The quality and sufficiency of blood

• The presence of stagnation or blockage in a particular area of the body

• The strength of digestion

• Whether or not there is pathological heat (inflammation) in the body

• Difficulties in a person’s health history

Tongue assessments are simple and immediate, providing specific, personal health information about the individual.

Tongue diagnostic techniques are also very old.

In Tongue Diagnosis in Chinese Medicine, Giovanni Maciocia provides a historical account of tongue diagnosis, dating the earliest techniques back to the Warring States Period in China, which occurred between 403 BC and 221 BC. The more robust, detailed version of tongue diagnosis we still use today appeared during the Han Dynasty (206 BC to 220 AD).

When we look at the tongue, we make observations on several aspects of appearance, including tongue coat, color, shape, and texture. We also look at the parts of the tongue that correspond to specific areas or parts of the body and take note of signs of pathology that may be arising in those areas.

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For example, consider the coat of the tongue.

The tongue coat can tell us about the status of the immune system. In Tongue Diagnosis: Visible Responses To Pathology, Ann Cecil-Sterman writes about the importance of tongue moisture, which she learned from Dr. Jeffrey Yuen: “Without adequate fluids, pathogens can be neither resisted nor evacuated.”

A tongue that is dry and cracked indicates a systemic lack of fluids—dehydration. It will be more difficult to prevent and overcome illness without proper hydration. The tongue coat further shows us what is going on with the mucosal lining of the stomach, which we call stomach yin. The status of the stomach yin is deeply connected to the strength and capacity of digestion.

Another example of tongue diagnostics involves the shape of the tongue. A tongue that is swollen and round indicates an accumulation of dampness in the upper and middle parts of the body. (If you need a refresher on dampness, check out this past newsletter.)

As a clinical herbalist, tongue assessment informs the selections of herbs and formulas I make for my clients. 

Of course, what a client verbally shares is just as important, but the tongue can sometimes reveal or express certain aspects of health that a person may not say (or know to say). I use information from tongue assessments to choose warming or cooling herbs, clearing or tonifying formulas.

Chinese medicine practitioners can also teach clients how to start “reading” their own tongues at home. If you see a thick white coat, you can know that today is not the day for ice cream, and you may want to hold off on dairy for a while. If you see lots of little cracks, you may make a greater effort to prioritize hydrating meals.

Note: Tongue analysis is not akin to palm reading, and it is not a form of fortune telling. This is not a new age practice, but rather, a very old, very well-documented clinical practice that is inherent to the diagnostics of the Chinese medicine system.

Tongue Analysis Mini-Sessions (15 minutes | $20)

If you’d like to have your tongue assessed and learn about how you can get started with this technique at home, I am offering a few mini-session spots on Wednesday evenings over the next few weeks that will involve tongue analysis. Each mini-session is 15 minutes. The cost is $20. I will point out 3-4 main observations on your tongue and talk with you about what they mean. This is a good way to dip a toe into Chinese medicine if you’ve been curious.

Sign up here

In any case, I hope you’ll consider the tongue with a little bit more curiosity and perhaps reverence going forward! 😀

You are welcome to respond directly to these emails anytime. I read every message, and I love to hear from you!

Warmly,

Artemisia

Artemisia Obi, MA

Chinese Medicine Practitioner | Clinical Herbalist

innervillagehealth.com 

@innervillagehealth

As many of you know, Chinese herbal medicine works with formulations—combinations of herbs.

Herbs are combined in strategic ways that enhance and support each other’s benefits.

In Chinese medicine, we don’t use a “this for that” model that, unfortunately, has become so pervasive in what we might call social media herbalism or new age herbalism.

Instead, we identify what is disharmonious in the individual’s health and select a formula that addresses the imbalances. The symptoms the individual is experiencing are borne out of those disharmonies, so really, we’re getting to the root issue.

In real life, this might look like two completely different formula selections for two women who both come to me with fertility struggles or menstrual cycle irregularities. Or, I may see several members of the same family with digestive issues, but each person receives a different herbal formula.

This is one of the major strengths of individualized medicine.

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Today, let’s zoom in on a classic qi tonic in Chinese medicine.

In Chinese medicine, qi (pronounced "chee") is your body’s vital energy—it powers everything from movement to digestion to thinking clearly. When your qi is deficient, you might feel fatigued, cold, have a poor appetite, or get sick more easily.

Qi tonics are herbal formulas that help build up this energy, kind of like nourishing your internal battery so you can feel stronger and more balanced.

The formula I’m thinking of is called Bu Zhong Yi Qi Tang or “Tonify the Middle and Augment the Qi Decoction”. It contains 10 herbs that work together to support the middle of the body, which we recognize to be the spleen and stomach.

The spleen and stomach transform food into usable energy and distribute that energy throughout the body. When the spleen is weak, you may feel:

• Tired, especially after eating or physical activity

• Mentally foggy or ungrounded

• Easily affected by changes in posture (e.g., dizziness when standing)

• Prone to digestive issues like bloating, loose stools, or poor appetite

• Vulnerable to organ prolapse (like uterine, rectal, or gastric prolapse)

If qi, especially spleen qi, becomes so weak that it cannot "hold things up," we may see:

• Prolapse

• Chronic diarrhea

• Low energy that worsens with activity

• A general feeling of heaviness or being weighed down

This is where Bu Zhong Yi Qi Tang comes in. 😊

This formula comes to mind often because many people I see struggle with disharmonies that relate to qi deficiencies. Bu Zhong Yi Qi Tang stands out because it:

Tonifies the spleen and stomach qi

→ Strengthens digestion, energy, and metabolism

Raises the yang qi of the middle jiao (middle of the body, where the spleen and stomach are)

→ Helps lift what has sunk downward (organs, energy, mood)

Supports the body in holding and containing

→ Helps prevent further qi collapse or leakage (e.g., chronic diarrhea, prolapse, spontaneous sweating)

We don’t use Bu Zhong Yi Qi Tang to just “give more energy,” but to restore the body's ability to lift, hold, and center. It’s a way to support the body in reestablishing its natural upward and outward momentum — vital for vitality, clarity, and movement in life.

Bu Zhong Yi Qi Tang is one of many herbal formulas that have been used for centuries. It dates back to 1247 AD, giving us a long history of documentation—both ancient and modern—on how these herbs work together to support the body.

If you are curious to learn how Chinese herbal medicine might support a health issue you’re going through, you are welcome to schedule a free Compatibility Chat with me here.

In any case, I’m always happy to hear your questions about Bu Zhong Yi Qi Tang—you can respond directly to this email. 📧

Warmly,

Artemisia

Artemisia Obi, MA

Chinese Medicine Practitioner | Clinical Herbalist

innervillagehealth.com 

@innervillagehealth

We arrive once again at the summer solstice. 🌞

The date fluctuates slightly (sometimes June 20th, often June 21st) due to the slight mismatch in alignment between the calendar and the rate at which the Earth orbits the Sun. But in any case, this is a significant time from a Chinese medicine point of view.

In Chinese medicine, this is the most yang time of year.

Plants are blooming, and it’s hot outside. Energy is going outward. Growth is happening. For certain herbal medicine remedies, this is the time when we harvest the flowers of medicinal plants, as the strong, ascending energy is most potent in the full blooms.

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Maybe you are also feeling like a lot of your energy is pouring outward.

This is a good time to be outside and to get involved with the people and endeavors you love. However, it is prudent for us all to remember that bounding outward energy is not the same as burning energy in excess. We still want to preserve and protect our yin during this time. There are many ways to enjoy an active life without stepping across the line into overexertion. These boundaries are different for us all.

If you are interested in learning more about your health this summer, I am offering short Chinese medicine tongue analysis sessions on Wednesday evenings. During these 15-minute sessions, I’ll point out the 3 major highlights apparent on your tongue and talk with you about how Chinese medicine understands your individual presentation. The tongue can reveal many helpful insights regarding your digestive capacity, the movement or stagnation of your blood and qi, and the foods and herbs that may best support you.

Find a time here.

I’m always excited to hear from you—send me a line if you have any questions!

Warmly,

Artemisia

Artemisia Obi, MA

Chinese Medicine Practitioner | Clinical Herbalist

innervillagehealth.com 

@innervillagehealth

Over the past few weeks, my husband and I have been preparing our house for the market and planning our move out of state. It has been very exciting to consider all of the possibilities for the future, but I will admit that time has felt somewhat squeezed. Perhaps evidenced by a few skips in the weekly newsletter (I missed connecting with you and reading your responses here!), my mental space has felt a bit cramped.

Above all, this time of change in my own life has made me even more aware of the shift in season out there in nature and has stoked a kind of renewed reverence for the yearly perseverance of springtime.

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Here in New Mexico, the spring lands with turbulence. Even just a couple of weeks ago, we had deep snow in the mountains. Today, the wind is cold, and each day, we wonder if we will start up the woodstoves again.

So when I step outside and see the motherwort sprouts popping up in their usual place, even more robust than the years prior, I am reminded of the way nature moves forward and steps confidently into the next season, even when the conditions seem challenging.

The transition to spring can sometimes be rough for people. Digestive challenges may arise or intensify. It’s not required, of course, but if you observe something along these lines, you are not alone. Spring tends to stir stuff up for people.

Chinese medicine teaches us to move with the seasons. We can make shifts in our food choices, thought patterns, and daily behaviors that support the letting go of what we held onto over the winter, what we no longer need to carry. We can make room inside of ourselves to embrace what is happening now and what is to come.

Practically speaking, this is a time to welcome gently clearing springtime foods, like asparagus, clearing broths (without heating additions, like garlic and onion), and dandelion greens. If you developed a reliance on bread or wheat over winter, ease up a little bit now and explore other grains that are less heavy, like rice.

Start to bring in more herbal teas in the form of leaves and flowers, like peppermint leaves, chamomile flowers, and osmanthus flowers. I especially love a blend of chrysanthemum flowers and goji berries steeped as a tea this time of year.

If you are trying to make a change in your health, write it down or set a reminder on your phone to keep your intention front of mind. Chinese medicine shows us the association of the spring with the liver and gallbladder, which correspond with our goals, plans, and decision-making.

The spring may awaken all kinds of thoughts, plans, and ideas, which can be exciting, but also introduce a burden of choice for some people. Try to maintain a sense of clarity with your intentions for your health, and remember that it is always an option to reach out to a practitioner if you need more support during this time.

As always, you are welcome to send me a note if you are looking for some new recipes or want to inquire about a session. I’ll be keeping some availability open for virtual sessions while we transition to a new home!

Warmest,

Artemisia

Artemisia Obi, MA

Chinese Medicine Practitioner | Clinical Herbalist

innervillagehealth.com 

@innervillagehealth

One of my lifelong interests has been the expansiveness of human potential.

(At least in my adulthood. I’m not sure I was thinking about this as a child. 😆)

Ideas about human potential led me into the cognitive and psychological sciences and steered my path into the fascinating world of Chinese medicine.

Yes, maybe this seems like a big topic, but to bring it down into the reality of daily life, I think often about the way our outlook can widen or shrink the realm of possibilities for ourselves.

For example, if we think we need to get started with everything we want to try before age 30, we might miss out on the possibility of becoming a great painter in our 60s.

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This concept is relevant in my Chinese medicine practice because I think sometimes people shrink their realm of possibility by accepting certain health conditions or symptoms as “normal” that actually have no place in a normal, healthy life.

Common and normal are not the same.

It may be important to recalibrate our idea of what is normal so that we can move toward our full potential in life.

Let’s think about some examples together:

If we accept that we are bound to have some amount of digestive discomfort after most meals, how does this affect our lives? Do we skip out on certain social events or fun activities because of our regular post-meal burden?

If you (or your daughter/wife/niece) just accept that menstrual pain and cramps are a normal part of a monthly cycle, what is the overall impact on your life? Do you plan ahead for a week of misery each month? Do you miss out on opportunities you want to take?

If a certain condition runs in your family and you just accept that you will be affected in the same way, how is your excitement about the future impacted? Do you see yourself as having less potential for vibrance later in life?

A majority of the people I work with in my practice come to me for support with a chronic health condition.

In the session, we look together through the lens of Chinese medicine and talk about the way the different aspects of health are interconnected.

A key strength of Chinese medicine is that we don’t play whack-a-mole with symptoms. Instead, we are looking at the way your physiological symptoms, emotional symptoms, food choices, sleep patterns, life history, and thought patterns are all related to and affecting each other.

A lot of people in the world today have gotten so used to feeling bad that they may not even recognize their symptoms as anything out of the ordinary. However, in so many cases, there is no reason to accept a health issue as something you need to just deal with for the rest of your time in this life.

Digestive distress is not normal.

Period pain is not normal. (In fact, all symptoms associated with periods are seen as signs of disharmony from a Chinese medicine perspective.)

Regular insomnia is not normal.

Chronic headaches are not normal.

This list could go on.

We do not need to accept a life sentence with these health challenges just because we’ve had them for a long time or we know other people with similar struggles. Common is not the same as normal, and it might be time to reimagine what normal means to you.

Anytime is a good time to get started!

Warmest,

Artemisia

Artemisia O’bi, MA - Chinese Medicine Practitioner, Clinical Herbalist

innervillagehealth.com | @innervillagehealth

You can browse through the archive of newsletters here.

It is always nice to hear from you. You’re welcome to respond directly to this note if you have a question you’d like to send my way. 💌 

How often do you eat congee or porridge for breakfast?

Congees and porridges are the traditional breakfast foods from a Chinese medicine point of view.

These wet-cooked meals are made with water and a grain (white rice, in the case of congee) and a bit of oil or butter, then topped with an assortment of additions, like eggs, fish, scallions, ginger, veggies, dried fruit, or various leftovers in the family fridge.

A morning porridge sets the scene for a day of good digestion, as the water in the wet-cooked food is released throughout the process of food breakdown in the body. This kind of soothing, hydrating breakfast supports the stomach yin and the downward directionality of the stomach organ. The ever-so-sweet note of the grain supports the spleen qi. Together, the spleen and stomach work in harmony to carry out their digestive responsibilities. The importance of this pairing cannot be overstated, as the rest of our health relies on our digestive capacity.

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When we get in the habit of each a wet-cooked breakfast, like congee or soup, every system in our body benefits. Our digestion, our physical movment, our skin, our blood, and our yin. It is easier for us to overcome depletion and illness when we are systemically hydrated.

Every cultural lineage has an example of porridge, similar to the way every cultural tradition has a history of herbal medicine, textiles, and celebratory rituals. These water-based grain preparations used to be part of most people’s everyday lives. It’s interesting to consider how these norms shift and change.

A wet breakfast could be a congee or porridge. It could also take the form of very soupy oatmeal or simply a soup. I sometimes recommend clients who prefer to have something like scrambled eggs and toast for breakfast to at least try a cup of miso soup on the side. You can buy a high-quality miso paste at the store and stir it into broth or water in the morning. This provides such a savory, comforting source of hydration with digestive support from the fermented paste to boot. Perhaps you shift your breakfast to white rice, boiled eggs, and a small cup of miso soup.

If you’re intersted in trying congee, check out this article by Andrew Sterman, a classical Chinese medicine practitioner/teacher and musician based in NYC.

You can send me a short note if you’re looking for more ideas. Chinese medicine has many suggestions for wet-cooked foods (e.g., poached pears, braised chicken, noodle soups).

If you’re curious to have your tongue assessed with classical Chinese medicine diagnosis, which provides a window into health, look below for a link to sign up - all Wednesday evening sessions are remote/online. 😊

Yours in wellness,

Artemisia

Artemisia Obi, MA

Chinese Medicine Practitioner | Clinical Herbalist

innervillagehealth.com 

@innervillagehealth

Upcoming Events

Are you struggling to make a change in your health?

I often hear from people who really want to feel better, but they are unsure where or how to start.

I always recommend taking an incredibly honest look at your dietary practices and sleep habits. For example, we can sometimes unintentionally convince ourselves that we only stay up late on our phones every once in a blue moon, but actually, we’re doing this three or four times a week.

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This kind of habit observance is super important, but I’m also curious to know what truly motivates you.

What drives your desire to make a change? What do you notice in your own life? What doesn’t feel right to you?

Health and wellness can be complex, and part of the value of working with a practitioner like me or someone similar is the opportunity to have someone else perceive us and reflect an assessment through a finely tuned lens. (I seek treatment and guidance from Chinese medicine practitioners, too.) Yet, in lots of instances, we go to these practitioners with at least an inkling about some behavioral or cognitive change we need to make, and we’re ready to do something about it.

From my perspective, that’s the place to start. Yes, take that close look at your diet and sleep. In addition, take note of the undercurrent that inspires you to seek care and change.

Maybe you have little kids and you want to be able to run around with them with strength and vigor for years to come.

Maybe you have painful periods and - even though you’ve been told that it’s just “part of being a woman” - you sense that the pain is pathological. You might be motivated by a future desire to have children and a curiosity to know how to have a healthy cycle.

Maybe you’ve entered your wiser years and you want to be able to breathe more deeply, to relax more fully in the moment.

These glimmers of motivation and inspiration are important. Keeping them at the front of our minds can help us get started and continue to serve us by bolstering the formation of new habits along the way to fuller health.

Are you struggling to get started with changes in the way you take care of yourself? You are welcome to reach out to me by responding here directly, or you can schedule a free compatibility chat to share more.

Warmly,

Artemisia

PS: Stop in at Fly By Provisions in downtown Albuquerque this Saturday if you would like to meet with me. I’ll be taking pulses and reading tongues from 1-3 pm. Sign up below or just walk in!

Artemisia Obi, MA

Chinese Medicine Practitioner | Clinical Herbalist

innervillagehealth.com 

@innervillagehealth

Upcoming Events

Last week, I touched on sleep as a pillar of foundational health, and the discussion continues this week with a spotlight on movement.

Chinese medicine centers on the concept of the free flow of qi. Qi, in reductive, translational terms, is the universal life force energy that flows through all things. We need qi to move smoothly in the body, through the channels, in our minds.

Physical movement is essential.

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The relationship between qi and blood

Chinese medicine teaches us that qi and blood are in an inseparable relationship. The blood brings nourishment to the qi, and the qi moves the blood. Without healthy, replete blood, the qi becomes deficient. Without freely flowing qi, the blood cannot move and becomes stagnant.

Blood stagnation leads to pain. Have you noticed in times when you have achy muscles, a gentle walk provides so much relief? The muscles ache as blood has stagnated, and walking gets the qi moving again, which in turn moves the blood and resolves the pain. Menstrual cramps are also often the result of stagnant blood. Warmth helps the qi to move. Heating pads and hot water bottles can restore the free flow of qi, allowing the blood to move, in turn resolving cramps.

Note: Chinese medicine very strongly teaches us about the dangers and harm of cold. The introduction of cold can hinder, constrain, and injure blood and qi. This includes ice baths and cold plunges.

Blood stagnation also affects how we feel emotionally. In Chinese medicine, emotions are stored in the blood. When the blood is not moving freely, emotions may not be either (and vice versa). We can probably all think of times when we felt emotionally stagnant or constrained. We may have been tense and pent-up or maybe not even aware of our feelings because they had become repressed and pushed down. Movement often releases these feelings. People talk about the stress-relieving capacity of exercise. Chinese medicine helps us understand these effects by way of the blood.

A daily movement practice

There are all kinds of exercises and physical movement modalities you already know about. The most important point is that you choose something you can and will do with consistency.

Chinese medicine guides us toward whole-body movement that prioritizes strength and flexibility while steering us away from very intense regular workouts, like daily HIIT routines or sprinting. Instead, we want to consider forms of movement where we are expending and recouping energy, without depleting our resources.

Walking | Simple going for walks moves the qi and blood. It is ok to move at a slower pace. Try to swing your arms naturally. Try to find time for at least 20-30 minutes daily. (If it is cold where you live, always wear a scarf, as cold can enter points on the back of the neck, leading to cold invasion and potential subsequent illness.)

Qi gong | Qi gong is a type of gentle, flowing movement that traces back along the same historical lineages as Chinese herbal medicine, acupuncture, dietary practice, and bodywork. Some people think about qi gong and Chinese medicine in a relationship similar to the way yoga fits together with Ayurvedic medicine. Interestingly, qi gong means “energy work”. I like to recommend Mimi Kuo Deemer’s online resources for those hoping to get started.

Strength training | Moderate weight lifting, resistance training, or bodyweight training can strengthen muscles and bones. This form of movement can offer an appropriate intensity level without the depletion of our resources as long as proper recovery time is also planned between sessions.

It is good to challenge and move our bodies, but every yang aspect of life needs an equal yin counterpart. When planning your regular movement practice, go ahead and plan your rest and recovery time into your schedule as well. More “working out” will not be of much long-term help if there is a chronic sleep deficit; burning the candle at both ends is not a sustainable plan.

Reach out if you’re having a hard time with movement or are curious about Chinese medicine perspectives, and remember to check out the upcoming events below!

Warmest,

Artemisia

Artemisia Obi, MA

Chinese Medicine Practitioner | Clinical Herbalist

innervillagehealth.com 

@innervillagehealth

Upcoming Events

It’s been a few weeks since I’ve connected with you all here. I was away in LA, and I had some time to observe what Chinese medicine looked like in my life when I was in transit. Travel gives us a valuable opportunity to check in on how flexible we are willing to be and reminds us of the beautiful variation in the world. You can read more about how I weave Chinese medicine practices into my travels here.

If you are going to LA soon, I highly recommend the porridge options available at Jook Hyang. You are always welcome to send me a note if you are traveling and want some Chinese medicine tips for packing. I have soup and porridge recommendations for most big cities in the US. ✈️

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about pillars of foundational health - sleep, nutrition, movement, and mindfulness.

Sometimes, our pursuit of good health can unspool into a long list of changes we try to make all at once and it can feel like a directionless tangle. A few strong priorities allow us to cut through the mess and scaffold our health focus in a way that is clear and effective.

The importance of sleep cannot be overstated. I know you’ve all heard it before, but perhaps you would be interested in looking at some aspects of sleep through the lens of Chinese medicine.

When we sleep, our qi moves and “works” inwardly. This is the time when we can replenish our resources and restore harmony. Our yin and blood depend on this period of rest and replenishment.

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When we sleep, the gallbladder/gallbladder channel needs to be able to relax and bring blood into the liver. The liver then sends blood to the heart. In Chinese medicine, our mind/spirit (shen) is stored in our heart, and our ethereal soul (hun) is stored in our liver.

According to the Chinese medicine body clock, the gallbladder begins to return the blood back to the liver at 11 pm. The blood is then stored in the liver.

When the liver is full, when it has enough blood of good quality, it can relax. If not, the liver tries to hold on to everything it can, which causes it to become very tense and constrained. Liver constraint can present in the form of irritability, depressed states, body pains, headaches, or anxiety. Menstrual and reproductive issues can also arise downstream from liver qi constraint.

Our quality of sleep is not only determined by the number of hours we sleep, but also when those hours occur and the current state of our shen and hun. It is very important that we fall asleep before 11 pm on a regular basis so that the gallbladder and liver can fully relax.

When we go to bed later, we give ourselves a shorter, inadequate amount of time to store blood in the liver, leading to blood deficiencies. When we cannot store enough blood, we feel fatigued, and our minds are foggy. We feel sluggish and unable to think sharply. Some people develop migraines.

Good sleep patterns set the stage for better health. If you are chronically losing sleep, you may find that some of your wellness concerns resolve simply by restoring consistent sleep hygiene.

A few considerations for sleep:

Go to sleep and wake up at similar times each day. Regular sleep times are important for adults and children, giving structure to our days and helping to regulate our circadian rhythms. This regularity supports our liver qi.

Eat blood-building foods. Blood deficiency and sleep loss are in a chicken-and-egg relationship. When we are deficient in blood, it can be harder to fall asleep; sleep loss leads to blood deficiency. Foods that help to build blood are red meats, cooked dark leafy greens, red beans/adzuki beans, beets, cherries, berries, goji berries, and eggs.

Take more walks. Gentle, flowing exercise - like walking, stretching, yoga, qi gong, tai chi, golf, swimming, and dance - moves our qi and blood. Chinese medicine teaches us that our emotions are stored in the blood. When we move our blood, we can resolve or avoid emotional stagnation. Likewise, movement can support regularity in our digestive processes. Emotional and digestive regularity contribute to better sleep.

Consider herbs. Many Chinese herbal formulas can aid in restoring harmony within the body. Herbal formulas to support sleep do not need to be sedatives. Instead, these herbs help us overcome the root causes of our sleep troubles. For example, Suan Zao Ren Tang is a 5-herb formula that nourishes the blood and calms the mind. The main herb in this formula is jujube date seed. The formula helps with sleep by way of restoring blood quality.

Hope to see you at an event soon or hear from you in a message 🧡

Warmest,

Artemisia

PS: Check below for some Chinese medicine mini-session options. I have a few new offerings online and in-person!

Artemisia Obi, MA

Chinese Medicine Practitioner | Clinical Herbalist

innervillagehealth.com 

@innervillagehealth

Upcoming Events

In my work with individuals, I often hear about how complex health and wellness can feel for people.

There is so much information in circulation and lots of varied voices - some with wildly different priorities and values. Many people are tempted to self-diagnose or label themselves. The sheer number of differing perspectives can feel overwhelming for people.

Similarly, there has been an emergence of a sort of tribalism across different health and wellness camps. You’re either paleo or vegan or gluten-free or carnivore. Or you follow a traditional medicine system. Somehow, these choices become fixed parts of identity, which has led to a sort of nervousness I observe in people who may want to change their minds.

You are welcome to change your mind anytime.

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As more information comes in and your knowledge expands, it makes sense that your mind may change. For example, if you have been gluten-free for five years and learn that eating a sourdough bread prepared properly with ancient grains does not disrupt your digestion, you are allowed to make that shift in your diet. You can dislike yoga for five years and then decide you want to try it (and maybe even like it).

In science and research, we are expected to keep our finger on the pulse of new publications and adjust our empirical perspectives based on new findings in the field. It would be foolish not to. How can the same not be true about personal wellbeing?

If you are feeling stressed or anxious about what to do for your health because you are overwhelmed by perspectives or bogged down by rules you previously identified with, I encourage you to pause for a moment.

Maybe this isn’t quite the time to subscribe fully to an entire system or set of rules in a top-down way. Maybe the process can be more bottom-up, one day and one new practice at a time.

This may prevent an unnecessary clinging to rules that don’t fully resonate with you in exchange for a false sense of security.

Instead, consider taking a look at your foundational health - sleep, nutrition, movement, and mindfulness - in broad strokes. If you’re not getting 8 hours of sleep - truly 8 full hours - that is a good starting point. What can you do this week to support your sleep cycle? All aspects of health benefit from adequate sleep, regardless of your health perspective. You may be surprised (or perhaps it comes as no surprise) by how many health disharmonies resolve when a person sleeps enough. I’ll write more about these foundational pillars of health over the next few weeks.

You are welcome to send me a note if you have thoughts on this letter - I would love to hear from you!

Artemisia

PS: If you want to read about some recent research on children’s sleep patterns and emotional regulation, you can check out my article for Psychology Today here.

Artemisia Obi, MA

Chinese Medicine Practitioner | Clinical Herbalist

innervillagehealth.com 

@innervillagehealth

Hello readers, old and new!

We are in the heart of winter, and I’m curious to know how it’s going for you.

In Chinese medicine, winter is associated with the water element. Chinese medicine teaches us that all aspects of our lives ideally relate in harmony with nature, and winter is the time of reflection, replenishment, and rest. The kidneys and bladder are the organs and channels associated with the water element, and this time of year, along with fear. The kidneys and bladder are a yin-yang pair, and they are related through interconnected functions.

Chinese medicine teaches us that the kidneys are the foundation of life, often likened to the body's “pilot light.” They produce and store jing - life essence - derived from inheritance (our parents) and sustained by diet and lifestyle.

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Western medicine sees the kidneys as filters for waste and excess water, regulating fluid balance and blood pressure.

Similarly, Chinese medicine emphasizes the kidneys' role in water metabolism, respiratory support, reproduction, and bone health, linking kidney strength to the condition of bones and marrow. When we think about what we need the kidneys to do, we can think about blood, bones, hormones, and digestion.

The energy of the kidneys also supports digestive processes, which involve the function and responsibility of the spleen and stomach. When kidney yang is weak, it cannot adequately power the digestive organs, potentially leading to spleen qi deficiency and the accumulation of dampness within. Kidney yin often refers to the hormones at what we call the constitutional level of the body.

There are many ways we can support our kidneys with herbs and foods. Perhaps in this second half of winter, you can tune in to the needs of your kidneys and hold this thought front of mind when you’re at the grocery store.

Foods that are supportive for the kidneys include:

• Eggs (including yolks!)

• Cooked meats (especially small amounts of pork) and bone broths

• Black sesame seeds

• Beans

• Nuts (dry roasted)

• Seeds

• Mushrooms

Stimulants will stress and strain the adrenal function of the kidneys, so it is best to avoid caffeine and sugar.

It is interesting to notice the contrast in the way Chinese medicine encourages rest, quietness, and reflective moments in winter, while our modern lifestyles urge us to amp up our busyness. For many, the winter involves getting the house ready for holiday guests, crunching numbers and tax estimates in business, a frantic shopping spree for gifts, or a strenuous week of finals in school.

I don’t mean to say that these parts of life are always bad, but if you are experiencing what feels like an uptick in your hustle-and-bustle requirement in life right now, I encourage you to strategically choose a few ways to prioritize restoration. Focus on cooking meals at home and getting into bed earlier.

Over the holiday time, I pressed pause on this newsletter to turn inward and embrace some of the quiet, reflective aspects of winter. Holidays also tend to be challenging for me, at least historically, so each year I try to create more space. It is still a work in progress. We are still in this yin season, but I am inspired to continue communicating with you through these weekly notes. I hope you continue to find meaningful and thoughts and information here throughout 2025.

As a reminder, you are always welcome to respond directly to these emails if you have a question, want to make a comment, or need to schedule a session. 🤍 🙂

Warmest,

Artemisia

Artemisia Obi, MA

Chinese Medicine Practitioner | Clinical Herbalist

innervillagehealth.com 

@innervillagehealth

More resources:

Search through the newsletter archive here

Read my Psychology Today articles here

Check out my book suggestions here

This week, I have a very small note for you to share that this will be my last newsletter for the year. I am turning the focus of my writing attention to a few other projects that are tugging substantially at my mind.

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I hope you have enjoyed the notes throughout the seasons this year. Remember that you can always reference and bookmark these posts through the online archive. You can also search for other topics there.

• If you have questions, you are always welcome to respond directly to this email to get in touch with me. You can also reach me directly at innervillagehealth@gmail.com or via Instagram message.

• If you need to schedule a Chinese medicine session, you can still book as usual through my clinic website. (Please note my new limited availability.)

If you want to keep reading along with my writing, consider checking out my emerging blog at Psychology Today or revisiting my piece on children’s awe experiences, which was published in Psyche magazine earlier this year!

Chinese medicine is a huge support for me during this chilly, dark season, and I hope these newsletters have introduced you to some ideas you can try at this time of year as well.

Wishing you all a restorative and calm holiday season, as easygoing as possible. ✨

Warmest,

Artemisia

Artemisia Obi, MA

Chinese Medicine Practitioner | Clinical Herbalist

innervillagehealth.com 

@innervillagehealth

One of my priorities in this newsletter is to help this community start to incorporate Chinese medicine without feeling that you need to know everything.

Chinese medicine is a lifetime of study for professionals and non-professionals alike.

One of the first ways to start getting to know Chinese medicine is by way of your dietary choices and the creation of your food practice.

Another way to bring Chinese medicine into regular life is with herbal medicine, but I always encourage you to pause temporarily before “self-diagnosing” without a bit more foundational information, as Chinese herbal formulation cuts right to the chase and can be quite strong, especially when paired with dietary changes.

Today, I want to look together at a common Chinese herbal formula - one that you may want to consider keeping on hand during these cold weather months as you focus on staying warm. You can save this newsletter as a reference.

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Gui Zhi Tang

Gui Zhi Tang, also called Cinnamon Twig Decoction, is a 5-herb formula from the Shanghan Lun - one of the primary texts of Chinese herbal medicine, which was written before 220 CE.

This formula helps the body push pathogens off of the exterior muscle layer, particularly in cases of exterior cold and wind attacks. This is a Chinese medicine way of describing the initial stages of illness that arise when cold invades the body.

In these cases, the wei qi - or protective qi - on the outermost layer of the body is not effectively protecting the exterior of the body, and ying qi - or nutritive qi - is not able to nourish and stabilize the interior well.

We may begin to sweat ever so slightly, and signs of sickness start to emerge. During this phase of illness, we may experience symptoms we normally associate with a common cold:

• mild fever

• mild chills

• body aches - especially in the upper back and neck

• stiff neck

• headaches

• sweating

• cold limbs

• slight aversion to cold (you want to throw on an extra layer, but may not necessarily want to be bundled in blankets on blankets)

When you feel this way, do you find yourself brushing these symptoms off and/or “just waiting to see” if you really get sick before taking action?

Chinese medicine suggests another course of action.

We want to address the pathogenic influence when it is still at this initial, external layer. We still have an opportunity to push the pathogen off the body, to stop it from going deeper and becoming more serious.

In this context, Chinese medicine calls this function “releasing the exterior”.

It is a good idea to be dynamic and act now, instead of “waiting to see”.

We can do this effectively with herbal formulas, such as Gui Zhi Tang (GZT).

Herbal Formulation of GZT

Gui Zhi | Cinnamon Twig: warm and sweet, releases the exterior by bringing about a very light (almost unnoticeable) sweat, warms the body and disperses cold, promotes circulation of qi and blood

Bai Shao | White Peony Root: bitter and sour, supports yin and works with cinnamon twig to help the protective layer of the body dispel pathogens

Sheng Jiang | Fresh Ginger Root: warm and acrid (spicy), releases the exterior and warms the middle of the body, helps to engender fluids at the surface layer

Da Zao | Jujube Dates: warm and sweet, supports the spleen and stomach (digestion), helps to build the blood, calms the mind, works with white peony to support qi and blood

Gan Cao | Licorice Root: neutral and sweet, harmonizes the actions of the other herbs in the formula

There are multiple methods of preparing and taking herbal formulas. Two methods I generally recommend to clients are decoctions and granules.

Decoction

A decoction is the traditional way of preparing herbs in Chinese medicine. This water extraction method creates a strong brew. This is my favorite method, which you can make at home with raw herbs, but this is also the most time-consuming.

• Collect all of the herbs in a large pot, cover in ~4 cups of water, bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer until the volume decreases by half (~2 cups). Strain out the herbs and set the liquid aside. Then put the herbs back in the pot and repeat the process, except this time start with ~2 cups and reduce by half. Once again, strain out the herbs and then combine the liquid with the liquid you set aside from the initial brew.

Granules 

Decoction granules begin with the same decoction process outlined above, usually in a professional herbal pharmacy. Once the decoction is made, the brew is concentrated, dried, and ground into a sandy consistency to make granules. These granules can be easily shipped and rehydrated with hot water to make tea at home.

Note: I find that the fresh decoctions are more efficient, but the granules still work well. There are pros and cons of each (prep time, potency). The most important thing is that you actually take the formula when you need it. 🙂

When you keep GZT at home, you can be ready to start working with it at the first sign of a cold invasion.

One aspect of this formula I love: it is made almost entirely of common ingredients.

Two herbs in the formula - cinnamon twigs (sticks) and fresh ginger - are kitchen ingredients you may already have in your kitchen. Licorice root is a common herb with a sweet flavor that you may have tasted in an assortment of other herbal teas. White peony and jujube dates may be new to you, but the dates are common in Chinese cuisine and are also considered a food that can be added to soup broths and stocks.

As with most Chinese herbal formulas, GZT has many indications. Alongside its efficacy at the initial stages of cold invasion, this formula is also very helpful for muscle pains, menstrual cramps, and stagnant emotions.

Part of the reasoning behind this is that cinnamon, the main herb, promotes the circulation of blood and qi (energy) in the body, and stagnant blood and qi often lead to physical body pain and emotional issues.

You are welcome to write to me if you are looking for ways to source this formula. You can also ask your local acupuncturist or Chinese herbal medicine practitioner. Not all herbal distributors make the same quality products, so please be discerning when looking online and reach out to me (or another practitioner) if you have questions about the reputation of a distributor.

I hope you are all feeling empowered to take charge of your health and inspired by the wonders of Chinese medicine. 🧡 I would love to see you in class this weekend (details below) if you’re in Albuquerque!

Artemisia

Artemisia Obi, MA

Chinese Medicine Practitioner | Clinical Herbalist

innervillagehealth.com 

@innervillagehealth

Lately, I’ve been thinking about fun and the perceived contrast between seriousness and playfulness.

Along our healing pathways, things can feel really serious.

We know it’s important to eat well and get to bed early. There are many writings and teachings about minimizing screentime and optimizing the body’s natural cycles, and we may work to deepen our meditation practices and engage in self-cultivation.

Along similar lines, if we are struggling with chronic illness, severe conditions, or addictions, the ripple effects of these disease patterns can have dramatic implications on the experience and quality of our day-to-day lives.

We make changes and follow protocols to the best of our ability, and the positive changes we make usually have good outcomes that motivate us to stay the course and continue in healthy routines.

But at what point does life start to feel…too serious?

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I’m writing about this because the tendency towards too much seriousness is one of my personal tendencies, and I thought that some of you might be able to relate.

I’ve become increasingly curious about how to prioritize physiological and psychological integrity while simultaneously peppering playfulness into most aspects of life, both for myself and my clients.

A few elements that seem immediately obvious include:

• Flexibility with plans and perspectives

• Humor

• Clarity on exceptional cases (staying up late for an exciting show or event, even when you’re working on sleep cycles)

When there is too much heavy, serious energy, it can be easy to become “holier than thou” in perceptions of self vs community.

I often observe people who incorporate new health routines or habits and begin to perceive themselves as elevated in status because of it. It’s nice to feel good about the efforts we make for our health, but I encourage all of my clients to recognize the individualized nature of this medicine and the different timelines we each are on. A friend or family member might not be in the same place at the same time, and that is ok.

It is also still very important to be able to enjoy life within the health-informed scaffolding we build for ourselves. Maybe you’ve stopped eating chocolate on a daily basis and you’ve acclimated to the absence of this food in your regular life, but you’re traveling to France next month and want to sample chocolate croissants. We can care about our health and also embrace the adventure of the present moment! This is an example of playfulness that can be a welcome bend from the daily norm. (Note: If you struggle with addiction, I am not encouraging you to diverge from working your program. There certainly are times when more structure is highly beneficial.)

When we embrace Chinese medicine, we are still normal, everyday people doing our best. It can be fun to experiment with congee, porridge, bone broths, and herbal decoctions. It can feel really good to learn different qi gong forms for the water element and do a few minutes of movement when you are in the grocery store parking lot (😅).

I never want to unintentionally prop up the idea that working with Chinese medicine should somehow infuse our lives with rigidity. In fact, it is quite the opposite. The Dao, or “the way,” teaches us to live in harmony with the natural order of the world, the universe. It teaches us to embrace what is.

Let me know what you think about this and how you walk the line between taking your health seriously and keeping your life lighthearted. 🧡

Bits & Bops 🪐

I was recently gifted Feeding Ghosts: A Graphic Memoir by Tessa Hulls, and as I make my way through the book, I love the blend of honest narrative + DIY graphic storytelling. Throughout the book, Hulls unravels the story of her grandmother, who was a prominent journalist during the Chinese Cultural Revolution, and the ensuing mental health break that accompanied her risky escape from China. She reflects on the way her grandmother’s mental illness affected her mom and how she was shaped by her experience growing up in a house with both of them. A good read if you’re interested in a memoir and ready for some art.

You can peruse my Inner Village Health recommended reads on Bookshop for more reading recommendations. (This is not an affiliate link for me, but my local Albuquerque bookshop - Organic Books - may receive proceeds if you order from my list.)

Check out the Upcoming Events section below. By the time you’re reading this newsletter, I may still have a few spots open for pulse and tongue readings tonight at Lost Cultures Tea Bar here in Albuquerque. The next Tea As Medicine class is on November 16th (Saturday), and we’ll be focusing on digestive support for the upcoming holiday times.

Sending my best,

Artemisia

Artemisia Obi, MA

Chinese Medicine Practitioner | Clinical Herbalist

innervillagehealth.com 

@innervillagehealth

I find that traveling is always more enjoyable when I’m able to be flexible rather than rigid.

Plans are nice, but aspects of plans usually need to change, and it’s nice to have space in life for unplanned moments too.

When I’m traveling, I try my best to incorporate what I’ve learned from Chinese medicine as often as I can, while embracing the reality that my flows and habits will be not be just as they are at home.

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Today, I’ll share some ways that I scaffold my travels with Chinese medicine:

Herbal teas. When flying, I bring an insulated travel mug and packaged tea in my backpack so that I can get hot water (usually free!) at an airport coffee shop and enjoy herbs on the go. I usually reach for the peppermint or chamomile + ginger tea blends from Traditional Medicinals (not an affiliate link), and I steep at least 2 tea bags at a time. This is such a comfort for me and helps keep any digestive woes at bay.

Rice for breakfast. At home, we eat congee or other porridge for breakfast, but this isn’t always possible to prepare when traveling. Rice is a lot more common to find via takeout or quick to prepare at someone’s house, and can be paired simply with a protein. It can be tempting to have toast, pastries, or bagels for breakfast while traveling, but these foods can be very sticky and challenging for digestion, especially if we already have an accumulation of heat or depletion of fluids in our bodies (common while traveling). Rice is lighter and easier for our spleen + stomach.

Qigong. Sleep schedules and emotions can be all over the place when traveling. A few minutes of qigong can make a huge difference, even if you don’t have time for a full set of forms. There are many qigong movements that you can do in your normal, everyday street clothes without needing a ton of space. These movements facilitate the free flow of qi and require us to take deep, full breaths. Qigong supports our physical and emotional flexibility. You might like to start here with five-element qigong.

Herbal formulas. There are a few herbal formulas I always bring while traveling. In the cooler months, I keep a bottle of Gui Zhi Tang (Cinnamon Twig Decoction) in granule form with me to start drinking at the first sign of cold invasion, which can include mild chills, headaches, and neck and upper back pain. This is called the taiyang stage of illness, when a pathogen is on the most external layer, and Gui Zhi Tang helps us to push that pathogen off the exterior so that it cannot get deeper and more serious. I also bring a bottle of Bao He Wan teapills. This formula, also called Preserve Harmony Pill, resolves indigestion, food stagnation, reflux, and abdominal distention.

What kinds of health challenges do you encounter while traveling? Do you have questions about how to incorporate Chinese medicine as you are moving from place to place?

As always, you can reply directly to this email if you have questions or thoughts to share. 🧡

Warmly,

Artemisia

Artemisia Obi, MA

Chinese Medicine Practitioner | Clinical Herbalist

innervillagehealth.com 

@innervillagehealth

Chinese medicine guides us towards warmth throughout our lives.

Warm foods, warm teas, warm water.

We need to stay warm to support our digestive processes and prevent illness. In fact, a canonical text in Chinese medicine - the Shang Han Lun - was written before 220 CE and the title roughly translates to the “Treatise On Cold Damage”. This text gives us many herbal formulas that help the body get rid of or recover from an invasive cold.

Note, however, that this warmth is different from heat. Prolonged hot saunas, hot yoga, and high-intensity workouts are instances of intensely heating the body in a depleting manner. Likewise, spicy peppers, chocolate, fried foods, coffee, garlic, and onions are very hot-natured foods that bring hot hot heat into the body. Heat and warmth and not one and the same in Chinese medicine.

It’s important to recognize the importance of warmth for the maintenance or health and prevention of illness, but especially in these colder months, I also think it’s nice to conceptualize the embrace of warmth in our lives as an act of self-kindness.

It can feel so nice to prepare a cup of warm ginger and cinnamon tea. Or to come home at the end of the day and cozy into some nice, thick wool socks. When we direct a little bit more energy toward the cultivation of warmth in our days, we benefit from the comfort of the stew we remembered to start in the crock pot the night before.

This does not have to be an expensive or super time-intensive endeavor, but I would encourage you to consider what little extra step you could do in this time to bring more warmth into your daily life.

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Start the day with 2 cups of warm water. Make the water as hot as you can comfortably drink it. Have this before you drink coffee or tea and eat breakfast. Warm water helps to prepare our digestive system for the day ahead, and this simple practice in the morning can be helpful for those who struggle with slow digestion or constipation.

Wear a scarf more often. There is a point on the back of neck, along the taiyang channel, where the cold can enter (invade). Keeping an assortment of scarves on hand allows you to be prepared to take a weather-appropriate scarf with you whenever you leave the house.

Slip into slippers. Get some fuzzy slippers - and if you already have some, take them out from wherever you store them in the summer. Set them by the front door so you can remember to put them on when you come home.

Prepare cinnamon formulas. Gui Zhi Tang (GZT) is a well-known Chinese herbal formula that is easy to work with and can be taken right the the first signs of a cold cold (there are “cold” colds and “hot” colds in the Chinese medicine paradigm). GZT and its variations prominently feature cinnamon twig as the emperor herb - the herb in greatest quantity that carries out the main function.

Make some bone broth or a noodle soup. Wet-cooked, warm foods allow the body to become deeply hydrated. Chinese medicine guides us to eat these kinds of foods daily. Andrew Sterman’s Taiwanese Beef Noodle Soup is one of my favorites - we keep it in our cold weather rotation at my house.

Get in bed earlier. Set an earlier bedtime for yourself. Create a bed that is a space of warmth, perhaps with a hot water bottle or heating pad, and allow yourself to get more rest. This is a season to prioritize rest.

Let me know how you’re cultivating warmth in your self and your life as we move closer to cold-weather season, I’d love to hear from you! 🧡

Warmly,

Artemisia

Artemisia Obi, MA

Chinese Medicine Practitioner | Clinical Herbalist

innervillagehealth.com

@innervillagehealth

Chinese medicine dietary therapy shows us the importance of wet-cooked foods.

Wet-cooked foods are what they sound like they’d be: foods prepared with water.

Think soups, stews, watery oats, and congees (porridge).

We put so much empasis on wet-cooked foods in our dietary practice because they continue to release hydration throughout digestion, which enables us to become truly, deeply hydrated.

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As you have heard, hydration is essential to our baseline health. Systemic hydration in our bodies helps us fend off illness. It supports so many of our body systems.

In Chinese medicine, fluids originate in the stomach. We need to take in fluids (or foods that in part contain some fluid) so that we can engender more fluids, mount an immune defense, and keep our digestion moving properly. In particular, when we eat wet-cooked foods for breakfast, we set the stomach up for better digestion all day by introducing substantial hydration early on.

We have all learned somewhere that drinking lots of water throughout the day will keep us hydrated, but Chinese medicine shows us a different understanding. The primary function of drinking water is to flush out toxins and excess. Water comes into the digestive tract and leaves rather quickly. It is important to drink water for this reason, but we also need to cultivate a density of fluids from our foods and the digestive process.

Think about it. How many of you drink water throughout the day, which in turn leads you to use the restroom many times per day or night, but you still feel thirsty or dry?

Our food choices affect our levels of hydration immensely. The daily diets of many people contain dehydrating foods in large amounts. Some of the primary dehydrators include caffeine (especially coffee), chocolate, garlic, onion, hot peppers, and fried foods. These foods dry us out, burn up fluids, and introduce heat, especially if we eat them each day or even multiple times per day.

One of the key ways that this dehydration can show itself is in our digestive process. Slow digestion (constipation) often indicates that there is a lack of systemic hydration and also perhaps an accumulation of heat in the digestive tract.

You can also look at your tongue. If you see many small cracks branching off from the middle, this may indicate that you are deficient in fluid,s and the stomach is “looking” for more fluids.

The practice of including wet-cooked foods can be an enjoyable way to support your health, especially in this fall season, when soups and stews are so comforting. There are many ways to customize these foods, which allows them to be fitting for many family dynamics (where tastes may vary 🙂).

Here are a few ideas to get started:

• Congee | Andrew Sterman has a great article on this classic Chinese preparation of rice porridge. We eat congee every morning in our house (and we mostly prepare it in our instant pot to save time when we’re in more of a hurry). We like to eat congee with boiled eggs, a bit of cinnamon, a splash of tamari, scallions, and fresh ginger.

• Oatmeal, but more watery | Prepare your oats as you normally would, but consider adding 2x as much water. Stir in gently warming spices like cinnamon, cardamom, and nutmeg. You can also make savory oatmeal with some of the add-ins from the congee recipe above.

• Noodle Soup | Try making a soup base without garlic and onion - swap in leeks, fresh ginger, and scallions instead. This soup combo is far less heating, and instead, is gently warming. These vegetables do not burn up fluids in the same way. Add bok choy, daikon radish, rice noodles, and a protein of your choice.

Do you already eat wet-cooked foods? Are you looking for more ideas? Send me a short reply here if you’re looking for more information or if you still feel unsure of how to get started. As always, you can schedule a session if you’re ready to start creating an individualized food practice of your own.

PS: If you live in the Albuquerque area, you might be curious to check out the pulse & tongue readings I am offering at Lost Cultures on Thursday evenings from 5-6pm. These 15-minute readings are kind of like a “mini session” where you can come out, meet me, and learn a bit about what the pulse and tongue reveal about your health in Chinese medicine. The sign-up link is below.

Warmly,

Artemisia

Artemisia Obi, MA

Chinese Medicine Practitioner | Clinical Herbalist

innervillagehealth.com

@innervillagehealth

There are some revisions and new directions happening behind the scenes in my clinical practice, so stay tuned for updates. In the meantime, I want to say hello and share a bit about how I came to Chinese medicine for those of you who may be new to my newsletter.

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I first began by studying herbal medicine circa 2015/2016. Within a matter of months, I had gone from a very energetic and vibrant twenty-something to one with serious fatigue and constant digestive issues.

Earlier in the year, I had graduated from university, run a half-marathon, traveled to Europe, and moved to Pittsburgh, where I was working an intense job. I was very active and commuted by bike nearly everywhere around the hilly city. It was a time when I felt I could do anything and was trying to do everything.

By the end of the year, my life took a confusing turn, and I was slowly unraveling. I couldn’t keep up with myself.

It seemed like everything was “off”. My digestion, sleep, emotional regulation, and stamina were a mess.

Do you know the feeling of not even recognizing what is going on with your own health anymore?

I went to see all kinds of practitioners and nobody seemed to be able to pinpoint anything that could be wrong. I often felt brushed off and increasingly worried about what was happening to me. I was so busy with work that I did not have the bandwidth to keep scheduling appointments.

I started to get curious about the potential of herbal medicine, frankly, as a last resort, but I didn’t know how to get started. I did not have close relationships with any “alternative” medicine practitioners, nobody in my family worked with herbs, and I did not know whom to trust. So I got a few books and began my herbal exploration at home.

Eventually, I chose to leave my job, but instead of taking a breather, I rushed off to Latin America to run a series of youth education workshops with collaborators in several cities. My health was still at a low point, but I was not ready to admit that I needed to slow down.

Things reached a tipping point when I got very sick in rural Mexico - too sick to work - and my collaborators considered taking me to a hospital. I was scared.

In a particularly memorable moment, one of my older collaborators told me sternly and unwaveringly that I must rest more. It was hard for me to hear. I was stubborn and had immense reluctance to slow down. But as I sat there convalescing in the back of a van, I knew she was right.

When I came back to the US, I was motivated to start living differently, but I found myself in a challenging situation, without a stable place to live and also without another job lined up.

I decided to get involved as a work-trade volunteer on a small herbal farm in Oregon, where I could be housed in exchange for work with plants. Little did I know that this farming stint would redirect my life more seriously towards herbal medicine. 🌿

I learned about medicinal herbs and the importance of rest that summer. I drank nettles for the first time and made herbal poultices for my skin. I also ate fresh butter and went to sleep a lot earlier. (The woman I worked for even sat down with me in the grass one afternoon and told me she had a strong feeling that I needed to go to New Mexico.)

My health improved tremendously during that time. A combination of whole foods, herbal medicine, and proper rest went a long way. I came to understand that I had been running on E for a long time, and at some point, it did not matter how young or capable I was - my body had simply been saying no.

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My path continued to weave in and out of academic research and herbal medicine training over the next five years. I went through my first formal herbal apprenticeship in 2018 and took many classes in my spare time alongside my professional academic pursuits. You can read more about my education and training here. I also had the opportunity to be a patient in the clinics of some excellent Chinese medicine practitioners.

When I finally decided to leave academia and turn towards Chinese medicine professionally, I had already lived through many health challenges that the medicine had helped me overcome. My struggles with poor health and my experiences as a patient guided my educational decisions and helped me understand who I wanted to study with. It was through the process of overcoming illness and all-time lows that I started to look at the human experience differently and recognized it was time for a turn in my path.

Today, I feel so much more vital and ready to embrace my life than I did when I was younger. Through Chinese medicine, I learned about the critical nature of rest, the movement of qi, and the nourishment of yin and blood. Rather than being confused and directionless when I feel bad, I now understand how to guide myself toward harmony. It’s a daily practice, but one that I enjoy doing over and over again. You can do this too.

I know it can be very hard when you’ve been feeling low for so long. I also know that it’s possible to make meaningful changes in your behaviors and thought patterns that have big ripple effects across all aspects of your life.

As a Chinese medicine practitioner, I merely help your body help itself, because the medicine is truly within you. 🧡

Warmly,

Artemisia

Artemisia Obi, MA

Chinese Medicine Practitioner | Clinical Herbalist

innervillagehealth.com

@innervillagehealth

How is this late summer to fall shift in the season going for you?

Do you tend to notice certain patterns in yourself that emerge year after year?

Are these patterns playing out again?

Does this year feel different for some reason?

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I know lots of people talk about changes in season. They get signaled to us in a material way all over our cities. (How long ago did we start seeing decorative pumpkins in most of the stores we habitually visit? 🎃)

Traditional medicine systems have so much to say about seasons too. These medicinal forms are rooted so deeply in nature and many of the central principles arose from thorough observations of all facets of season change.

So whether we’re getting it from the media or from a very old text, we know that something is happening when the seasons change.

But what do you feel? What do you notice in yourself?

For some people, the transition into fall can recurringly evoke nostalgia, sadness, or a sense of longing. Some people feel the most comfortable in this time, as they welcome the nudges from the natural environment to turn inward, slow down, and drink tea.

The shifts we experience are about more than just the weather, though the external climatic factors do influence us. We have so many different associations with seasons and sometimes, different seasonal factors can reveal aspects of our pathologies that we were less aware of.

Summer can be very busy - very outward and yang. The fall is not always slower (especially for people returning to school), but it does encourage an inward turn, which can be challenging for many. Sometimes it can be difficult to bring our attention toward ourselves.

In addition to the conceptual turn inward, Chinese medicine also helps us understand that fall is a good time to start gently bringing in more warming foods and herbal drinks. Bone broths, ginger tea, soups. Cinnamon and cardamom are lovely spices to add to your regular meals.

I will be writing more about food energetics and dietary practices for fall in the coming weeks. In the meantime, you are welcome to schedule a Compatibility Chat if you are interested in working together with Chinese medicine this fall - online telehealth sessions are available. If you’re based in the Albuquerque area, it would be great to meet you at one of the classes I host at Lost Cultures Tea Bar here in town (more info below).

I’d love to hear what you’re thinking about for the season ahead and if you have any specific intentions for your health. 🧡

Warmly,

Artemisia

Clinical Herbalist | Chinese Medicine

innervillagehealth.com

@innervillagehealth