As a Belgian who has lived and/or travelled in the US and Asia, I often find myself questioning everything I thought I knew. With a master’s in public health, working in a Critical Care Unit, and later in the pharmaceutical industry, I found that human health, my passion, is not always understood the way one would expect from an advanced civilization like ours.
Indeed we live in an evermore complex world, where we juggle several types of roles on tight timelines. Our activities boil down to endless checklists and satisfaction comes from ticking them off. The same goes with our relationship to our health.
Traditional medicines of the four corners of the world teach us how to be human again. How to make sense of the world, find our place in it, and make an impact to ourselves and our loved ones, and be again in the driver’s seat of our life path. The symptoms which you are experiencing, whether they are a burn-out, a cold, endometriosis, allergies, chronic stress, fatigue, irritability, pain … all are the entry points to your broader self that is in need of attention and care.
Classical Chinese Medicine is a collection of systematized information based on incessant observation of human behavior, linked to context (astronomy, climate, wartime, famine, …). In that sense, I have been in love with this body of knowledge since I first encountered it myself, as an acupuncture patient in 2005.
I hold a degree of Doctor of Acupuncture from the WFAS (World Federation of Acupuncture-Moxibustion Societies) who are recognized by WHO (World Health Organization). I am member of the Belgian Acupuncture Federation (BAF). I live in the countryside, with my husband, two kids, pets, and surrounded by wildlife. As context matters in Chinese medicine, I decided to leave the city to offer my treatments. Over here, you’ll hear the sound of birds and peace. These are all important aspects of healing.
Last-minute rushing gives us a kick of cortisol – and we feel alive. However, repeated kicks of cortisol are addictive and unhealthy. We only know how to operate in fight-or-flight mode. Additionally, we are less efficient. We end up building up chronic fatigue, which can lead to burn-out or other chronic health issues in its culmination. Without the cortisol to blind us, we wonder what was the higher purpose behind all the running, we realize there may not have been one, and this can lead to a form of existential crisis.
At “5th Element”, we want you to regain control of your life, and build awareness that will increase efficacy and targeted action. But most of all, we want you to be (re)connected to your “higher self”, the one that believes, dares, and durably accomplishes, and that doesn’t let anything stand in its way. Then, all your thoughts and actions become a generous reflection and sharing of your deeper self with the world.
How can you reach your true self? With acupuncture, a body-mind approach, the objective is to get rid of the clutter; the 4 elements, as described and established by Aristotle 2000 years ago (fire, water, earth, air) should function in harmony (meaning fluidly, without “traffic jams”), to support you and your loved ones, removing disease and enhancing your natural talents.
Ancient Chinese healing arts aim to then cultivate the 5th element, debated and defended by Plato, Plotinus, Pythagoras, and much later, Hildegarde von Bingen, and integrated in Classical Chinese Medicine (there is a difference between Wu Cai and Wu Xing), Ayurveda, Tibetan Medicine, and the rest of the “ancient word” (native Americans, Australian and African aboriginals, …).
The 5th element could be plainly defined as your soul, your uniqueness, your character, and is referred to as “wood/ space/ ether” in ancient cultures. In other words, what instigates movement, life, and is the element before, after, and throughout the other 4 elements. To me, I call the 5th element “motivation”, or “potential”.
Motivation shapes your mind, and your mind shapes your body, and the reverse is equally true. We want to enhance and release this dynamic with acupunctural techniques.
These techniques are not new, but are borrowed from knowledge developed in the past 2-5 millenia, and which I consider complete, universal, and timeless. However, the aim is to bring it to the modern-day man or woman, in an efficient and relevant way, while promoting autonomy and clairvoyance.
May you be the best version of your body and life. May you exist like a heart-warming flame, let your light shine, and know that every second of your existance counts.
“When the body is in harmony with nature, illness cannot arise.” Zhang Zhongjing, a prominent Eastern Han Dynasty physician, 2nd century AD, emphasizes the interconnectedness of the body, mind, and environment in maintaining health and preventing disease.
