Ancestral medicines and popular wisdom have always combined body and mind. It is impossible to relieve one while neglecting the other. The liver does not escape these interactions. “Traditional Chinese medicine considers that to take care of your liver, you must act on your diet and also on your emotional state., recalls Jean Pélissier. Taking care of your liver is a lifestyle, a holistic approach that focuses on the plate but also on bodily and emotional well-being. For detoxification functions to be carried out as best as possible, a healthy lifestyle is encouraged with restful sleep, physical activity, good stress management. According to these philosophies, massages, yoga, breathing play a significant role in this natural purging process.
Breathe well to manage your emotions
Chinese medicine considers the stomach as the seat of emotions with the liver as the central element of anger. Just like in Ayurveda, it is considered the seat of aggression, resentment, inner storm. “In traditional Chinese medicine, one of the two main causes of energy and blood stagnation in the liver (causing heat, inflammation and pain) is poor management of emotions.“, explains Jean Pélissier. The antidote? Learn to tame this anger. “In Chinese medicine, managing emotions and forgiveness is essential to free the circulation of blood and energies in the liver. Abdominal breathing is a key element for unblocking the diaphragm and massaging the organs. When you breathe through your stomachwe raise and lower the diaphragm by 15 to 20cm which physically massages the liver, flushing out the blood which stagnates in this area“.
Exercise : lying down, or sitting with your back straight, one hand placed on your stomach, inhale through your nose while inflating your stomach. Exhale through your nose, your stomach deflates. Repeat several times calmly when emotions run wild.
Hepatic, stimulating and protective plants
Medicinal plants work very well and stimulate the work of the liver in three different ways: they increase the secretion of bile (choleretic effect), tone the muscles of the gallbladder for better digestion (cholagogue effect) and protect the liver cells, hepatocytes, poisons (protective effect).
Dosage: three times a day before a meal, in the form of herbal tea, decoction, capsules, ampoules or mother tincture. Of course to adapt according to your tolerance and sensitivity without exceeding three cups per day, for three weeks maximum. In high doses, draining plants can be more or less demineralizing. To start, we don’t mix the plantss. The ideal is to alternate during a long treatment to stimulate the liver at different levels. If in doubt, consult a naturopath, your pharmacist, or a phytotherapist.
8 plants to adopt
The acupressure point
Point F3 (Tai Chong), located between the big toe and the 2nd toe, is considered one of the most powerful points for regulating liver energy, relieving tension, improving blood circulation and energy, support hepatic detoxification functions. Massage in the evening before going to bed or 2 to 3 times a day.
The aromatherapy ritual
Mix 40 drops of rosemary verbenone essential oil, 50 drops of lemon essence, 27ml of olive vegetable oil. Pour into a tinted glass bottle, label. Take 3 drops in the mouth before meals morning and evening. Three-week treatment. Not recommended in cases of asthma and pregnancy.*
*Recipe taken from Ma santé au Naturel, Charlotte Jacquet and Caroline Gayet, Ed. Leduc.