Category Archives: Uncategorized

Water ~ Have a cuppa bone broth or chai

Dr. Elizabeth Cox, ND, LAc Posted on by

Cozy up with a cuppa bone broth or chai tea.  How did you come to know and love tea? I grew up with a mom who always created an herb garden wherever she has lived and helped me develop a taste for herbal brews early on starting with spearmint sun tea and catnip.I learned so much about tea in the town I lived for medical school – Portland, Oregon. They actually have tea shops and tea shops within Chinese gardens. My Chinese Medicine teachers always packed their traveling suitcases with tea and spices. The ah too true joke with them … Continue reading →

Water ~ Try a hot ginger foot bath

Dr. Elizabeth Cox, ND, LAc Posted on by

Peak winter conditions are headed for Alabama this weekend.  Let’s combine our Water/Winter wisdoms with a nourishing, gentle Soup Cleanse for the stay at home and stay warm days of ice, sleet & snow. Ginger Foot Bath Instructions: Add ginger tea, decocted fresh ginger root or even ginger powder to hot water. Need herbal tea preparation tips? Click here…midway down the post to learn how to free their medicine. For a warm foot bath, water is warmed to 92-100F (33-38C). For a hot foot bath, water is warmed gradually and frequently tested with elbow to 103-108F (39-42C). Be particularly careful … Continue reading →

Earth: Let it be

Dr. Elizabeth Cox, ND, LAc Posted on by

Let it be. A couple of years ago, a patient shared with me a holy inspired method to temper reactivity and just let it be. When a situation arises, give three days time: one day for mind, one day for body, one day for spirit. For some reason this trinity of letting it be really, really works for me. So much can change in a few days.  More information may present itself.  A dream may come. The whole situation may fizzle completely. Spirit may whisper in our ear.   In the past, I used the rule of 5.  Will this matter … Continue reading →

Earth: You are the peacemaker

Dr. Elizabeth Cox, ND, LAc Posted on by

You are the peacemakerCan you be a peacemaker if you do not know peace? No. The work then becomes developing peace within. I was born into the peace and love generation, the peace out movement. These turbulent years brought people together. The year of my birth brought the Tet Offensive in Vietnam and the tragic assassinations’ of Martin Luther King and John F Kennedy as well as the Civil Rights Act. Our country needed peace then, our world needs peace now. How to we seek Peace? Typically though our habit patterns. Many a young talent of the era – think … Continue reading →

Earth: Peace & Plenty

Dr. Elizabeth Cox, ND, LAc Posted on by

Today I peeled pears.  Bushels a plenty grace the hardwood floor of my Mom’s cabin. From my earliest memories she has been a forager, a gatherer. She preserves abundance. She, like her grandmother and her grandmother before her, pass down peace though preservation. Pears are good fall medicine. They are eaten in season to support the lung during the transition to cooler, dryer weather. In Chinese medicine they are revered for clearing heat and reducing phlegm from the lung, while generating necessary moisture. Pears are used for dry coughs and dry sore throats. They are also used to treat dry … Continue reading →

Water ~ Expand your circle of love

Dr. Elizabeth Cox, ND, LAc Posted on by

Expand your circle of love. When we honor the stillness of winter, love settles. Winter is the quiescent season.   The season to remember, accept, forgive and heal generational to generation. This is all work to be done in the deep and quiet essence of spirit. First we find self love. Then we find love for the other, the beloved. Next we expand our heart to those with which we have difficulties. Finally we can honestly expand our circle of love to the greater community. This is metta. This is the practice of loving kindness.   It will rock your … Continue reading →

Water ~ Power, Drive and will

Dr. Elizabeth Cox, ND, LAc Posted on by

Power, drive & will. The kidneys are the storehouse of will. They are our ambition, our batteries, our strength. The kidneys, adrenals and bladder are ruled by water. Water is the element of winter. Have you ever considered your power, your drive or your will like unto water? I was raised up on the Tennessee River. The singing river has been harnessed to provide hydroelectric power to the multitudes at the expense of snails and darters and such. In our highest, most healthy state our power is like a mighty river determined in it’s purposefulness. In our highest, most healthy … Continue reading →

Water ~ You are a visionary

Dr. Elizabeth Cox, ND, LAc Posted on by

You are a visionary. The water element paired organs that peak in winter are the Bladder and Kidney (plus adrenals). The bladder meridian travels from the inner canthus of the eye across the head down the back side of the entire body exiting out the little toe. It traverses all of us. Many of the point names indicate their function: bright eyes, supporting yang, supporting middle, celestial pillar, soul door, spirit hall, spiritual celestial connection, soul gate. Acupuncture treats all levels of the human – mind, body, spirit. Treating the bladder points can not only treat our organs like the … Continue reading →

Water ~ Adapt

Dr. Elizabeth Cox, ND, LAc Posted on by

Adaptation is key to evolving. Humans and all other organisms are consistently modifying and adjusting to survive, become more fit, and thrive.  Physical and behavioral traits evolve in response to stressors or rewards. In a world of increasing technology, transhumanism, augmented reality and artificial intelligence, we have grown increasingly disconnected from nature.   I invite you to return to the dynamic and seasonal rhythm. In the slowing, you will find your true connection.  In stopping, you will find your way. Winter is the season to rest, restore and reconnect.  We may be uncomfortable in the stillness of this season, unable to … Continue reading →

Water ~ Tone your vagal nerve

Dr. Elizabeth Cox, ND, LAc Posted on by

Stimulation of the vagus nerve plays an important role in the management of anxiety and mental health issues. The vagus nerve is the longest running cranial nerve in your body. It is one of ten paired cranial nerves and runs from the stem of your brain all the way down to your gut. The word “vagus” translates to “wandering” in Latin, and the vagus nerve certainly does that.   As the longest and most complex of all the cranial nerves, it starts at the stem of the brain, behind the ears before it meanders down the sides of the neck, … Continue reading →