In modern society, the pace of life is very fast. Especially in bigger cities, we are required to be efficient and effective as much as possible. Therefore leading to a disruption of work-rest balance.
Work-rest balanced has been introduced to the ancient Chinese people a couple of thousand years ago from classic Chinese Medicine texts. Both Excessive Work and Excessive Rest can lead to diseases.
Excessive Work
There are three main types of Excessive Work in Chinese Medicine.
1. Excessive Physical Work
Excessive physical work includes overuse of the body such as professional athletes or people who have a high physical labor job.
Excessive physical work can exhaust Qi and Blood, resulting in fatigue, shortness of breath. It can also reduce the functionality of all internal organs.
2. Mental Exertion
Excessive thoughts can impair the Heart and Spleen, leading to the depletion of Heart-Blood and Spleen-Qi.
The depletion of Heart-Blood can lead to palpitations, amnesia, insomnia, etc. While a deficiency of Spleen-Qi can cause poor appetite, abdominal distention, and diarrhea.
Too much emotional stress can impair the circulation of Qi and blood. Causing Qi and Blood stagnation.
3. Excessive Sexual Activity
Sexual activities have beneficial effects on the body. But if there is an excess of sexual activity, it can cause the over-consumption of Essence and Qi of the kidney, causing pain and weakness in the lumbar region and knee joints, dizziness, tinnitus, etc.
For men, it can cause spermatorrhea, impotence, and nocturnal emission. For women, it can cause irregular menstruation and vaginal discharge.
Sexual activities should be regulated according to your age and health condition. I will be explaining this in details in future articles.
Excessive Rest
Excessive work can consume the energy of one. Excessive rest without physical work and exercise can also lead to diseases.
Excessive rest can result in impairment of the circulation of Qi and Blood, leading to a stagnation of Qi and Blood. It also impairs the functions of spleen and stomach, leading to poor appetite, soreness, weakness of the bones and tendons, shortness of breath and palpitation.
Conclusion
Both excessive work and excessive rest can lead to diseases. Therefore one must have an appropriate level of regular physical exercise and rest. As I mentioned in my very first article, Balance is the Key in Chinese Medicine.
Everyone’s physical condition is different. Therefore you will need to set up a work-rest balanced schedule that is suitable for yourself. Also, keep in mind that even one’s physical condition is not the same all the time. Therefore allow some flexibility to your schedule.
I used to compete in martial arts. The training was very intense especially the couple months before the tournament. However, with school, work and other commitments at the same time, I can’t train like professional athletes. Therefore I have put in some flexibility in my training routine. For example, If I do not have a lot of energy that day, I would practice techniques, strategies, and tactics that day instead of intense conditioning.
Up next I will be talking about two very important pathological product in Chinese Medicine – Phlegm and static blood. Stay-tuned!
Registered Acupuncturist (R.Ac), Alex Hui created this blog to share with the world the treasures in Chinese Medicine (CM).
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