Meridians Series by Caroline Thomas of Hoof and Paw Holistic Therapies.
Part 9 – The Liver Meridian
The ‘qi’ in the Liver Meridian is strongest in spring, the time of the year when the earth is being reborn, it is the time for new life and growth. This is the start of the ‘qi’s’ journey along each Meridian, just like day becomes night, night must become day. This Meridian needs nourishment and the right kind of nourishment. Convenience food is just not going to cut it, it needs exercise and that exercise must be of purpose. As I write each of these articles for Fiona, they each seem to take on their own story, often reflecting the human perils in the modern world. It is no coincident that society is getting fatter and has also become less active. The rate of diabetes is souring in the UK and is at crisis point within the NHS. The increase of horses with metabolic syndrome, is also on the increase, with these horses being treated with a combination of diet control and also diabetic drugs. Have we really forgotten how to feed ourselves and our horses? Well the answer is yes, as we pile on the pounds eating convenience food, driving everywhere, we have somehow forgotten how to see the exact same signs in our horses. Their steady weight gain, their proneness to laminitis are all signs of Equine Metabolic Syndrome. I know horses taking metformin tablets (the human diabetic tablet) basically at this point their Liver Meridian is at crisis point and when anything stressful happens they are often pushed into a laminitis episode. As with humans the recommended treatment (Which is going to be helpful) is a good old common sense diet.
Suggested Treatment and Prevention
- Diet restriction (carbohydrates)
- Increase of gentle exercise
- Feed 1.5% of body weight if horse is overweight, 2% to maintain condition, this should be of good quality hay, with a suitable vitamin and mineral supplement/hay balancer.
- No feeding of treats (Be strong and resist their cute faces)
- No molasses
- Use a grazing muzzle during turnout can be useful (best to graze in the mornings)
As horses evolved they would follow the seasons of the year, eating well in the summer months, building up a fat store that would get them through the lean winter months. Their bodies where designed to cope with the differing season. They were able to cross great continents, without being blocked on their vast journeys. There are no wild herds living in the world now, only feral herds, which, proves that man has indeed played a big part in the development of horses. Now they are able to gorge grass and food throughout the whole year and their bodies just aren’t designed to cope with so much excess and so little exercise. Laminitis is becoming increasing more common and is a whole body metabolic issue which eventually shows up in the hoof. A horse living as naturally a life as possible, extensive unrestricted movement, un-shod and eating a balanced diet will be at the least risk. No animal can cope with excess and that includes humans too.
When we look at the Liver Meridian we think about the important job that the liver does for your horse, each and every single day of the year. The liver is called the ‘General’ or ‘Chief of Staff’ and is responsible for filtering, detoxifying, nourishing and storing blood. It is the power house organ that stores glycogen which is released into the blood stream as glucose, whenever the body needs an extra boost of energy. It works tirelessly to filter everything your horse eats, so that anything toxic can be eliminated.
The Liver Meridian is a Wood element which governs growth, desire and the development of your horse. Like any Wood horse, when the energy of the Liver Meridian is blocked it will cause frustration, frenzy and irritation.
Wood horses know exactly where they need to get to and do not appreciate being blocked. When the course of the ‘qi’ is changed it can cause negative outbursts such as ‘anger’. This block of ‘qi’ will manifest emotional symptoms such as depression and indecisive behaviour.
Tapping on the liver meridian
This is where EFT is master of all things, it will help to un-shackle the un-shakeable, the anger and stagnant ‘qi’ that blocks their Liver Meridian. It will allow the ‘qi’ to once again move freely and be the ‘general’ of all of the other meridians.
The Liver Meridian tapping point is located by tapping on your ribs. You need to connect to the energy of your horse and tap on statements similar to these; ‘Even though I have Laminitis, I deeply love and accept myself’ ‘ Even though I don’t know why I have laminitis I deeply love and accept myself’ ‘Even though, I don’t deserve to overcome this problem, I deeply love and accept myself’ ‘Even though I am in pain, I deeply love and accept myself’ After each statement and tapping session, wait for a few minutes to see if anything comes up, then tap on that statement. EFT can shift many things and is particularly good for horses that are in pain, it has been proven to help with pain so should be considered as a natural solution for pain control.
Eat without excess, exercise with gusto and most of all love like it is your very last day.
A huge thank you to Caroline Thomas for this incredible ninth part covering the Liver Meridian in this wonderful series of articles we will be bringing you over the coming months exploring the 12 meridians in depth.
Links to the previous articles in the series are below:
Part 1 – Introduction click here,
Part 2 – Heart Meridian click here,
Part 3 – Small Intestine Meridian click here.
Part 4 – Bladder Meridian click here.
Part 5 – Kidney Meridian click here
Part 6 – Heart Protector Meridian click here
Part 7 – Triple Heater Meridian click here
Part 8 – Gall Bladder Meridian click here
Part 9 – Liver Meridian click here
Also thanks to her very talented son Michael for the beautiful artwork that compliments the article.
For more information on Caroline visit her website http://emotionalhealing4animals.co.uk or follow her on Facebook at Hoof and Paw.
As the liver meridian relates directly to exercise and diet you may be interested to read these other articles