Presenter: Kathryn P. White, PhD, DHM, LAc
Objectives: Participants completing this presentation will be able to:
- Define the relationships among the body, the mind, and the life force, according to Chinese medicine.
- Identify emotional phenomena related to depression occurring at the levels of sensations, emotions, and temperament of their clients, along with the associated energetic vectors.
- Use imagery generated from Chinese medicine to help their clients overcome emotional blockages in depression.
Description: Chinese medicine classifies
emotional phenomena as occurring on three levels, and
depressive disorders can stem from any of these three
levels as well:
(1) reflexive and instinctual responses and sensations
(Gan), which reflect our relationship with the outer world
(Wei Qi). Seasonal affective disorders, for example,
involve our instinctual and reflective responses to weather
changes.
(2) learned phenomena or emotions (Qing), which reveal the
inner world of our thoughts and affects (Ying Qi).
Depressions spawned from our reactions to losses of
relationships or failures to meet certain goals in our
lives often involve learned responses and relate to the
inner world of our thoughts and emotions.
(3) inherited temperament or nature (Xing), which
corresponds to our deepest sense of self, our identity, and
our genetics. Some depressions involving feelings that we
have lost parts of ourselves, reflecting issues with our
identity.
All three types of depression require different imagery
strategies for benefit, from a Chinese medical perspective.
Chinese medicine also assigns energetic vectors to our
emotions and our ways of handling them. Anger, for example,
ascends our life energy or Qi, if expressed, potentially
giving rise to headaches, red eyes, red faces, and high
blood pressure, if chronic; and constrains our Qi, leading
to long-term frustration, depression, and even various
blockages or tumors, if suppressed or repressed.
This presentation shows how imagery generated from Chinese
medicine can be used to help patients overcome emotional
blockages involved in depression.