SHARED PATH ACUPUNCTURE

Greetings!

This is a Seasonal Node Share from Shared Path Acupuncture. How are you feeling? Lately at the clinic we have been treating a lot of seasonal allergies, Spring colds, and muscle pain, jaw pain and headaches, as well as irritability and digestive troubles. If this season finds you particularly suffering, we are here to help! We have new extended hours and encourage you to book in again.  

Red, itchy allergy eyes? Try brewing dried chrysanthemum flowers into a strong cup of herbal tea. Once steeped, make a warm (not too hot!) compress with the flowers and hold over itchy eyes to soothe irritation. Afterwards, be sure to drink the tea or use cooled liquid to bathe eyes in a spoon for maximum relief.

If you’ve  ever wondered why you’re suddenly more irritable in the spring, or the symptoms you manage flare up with weather changes, you are not alone. As practitioners, we notice that depending on the time of year, we get a lot of the same questions and patterns from our patients that align with the lunar-solar calendar used in East Asian Medicine. 

The year in East Asian Medicine is divided into 24 distinct seasons, often called “solar terms” or “seasonal nodes” that directly impact our health and wellbeing.  As we move from Spring into Summer, the seasonal node of Early Summer, can be challenging on the body both emotionally and physically.  In fact, treating symptoms that arise in accordance with this seasonal rhythm is foundational to our practices as Acupuncturists.

Spring is represented by the colour green and yang energy rising, both associated with the Liver system. Early Summer builds on the upward motion of Spring with more fire, more yang, and  rising energy which can be destabilizing and deplete our yin grounding source. 

So, while we may benefit from the extra energy the push of Early Summer brings, it is important to ground ourselves by tending our Middle Earth, or, digestive processes, in order to properly anchor yang and avoid the restlessness, tight tendons, fiery moods, digestive troubles and poor sleep this Early Summer leaves us susceptible to. 

A tea we love this time of year acts as a nice early summer mocktail  (room temperature of course) and we call it Smoke Juice (also delightfully dubbed “ashtray juice” by Sydney’s teenager who was a bit turned off by the smokey aroma.)  We love this version of the Sour Plum tea served alongside Hotpot. 

This particular blend consists of smoked plum, red dates, rose buds, osmanthus and a bit of cane sugar and was introduced to us by our colleagues Lydia and Thomas. All of these ingredients are affordable and available at T&T or your local Chinatown Apothecary- Sydney frequents Gua Hua on Main Street. 

The smokey sour plum is great for the Liver and digestion, the red dates for yin and blood, rose buds soothe Liver qi (also great for complexion), and osmanthus, with its tang, is also great for Spleen and Liver harmony. Overall, it soothes the Liver so it does not overact on the Spleen and Stomach – the Middle Earth Organs in charge of digestion– and has a calming effect on the body and spirit. Mix it with a bit of soda water for a mocktail!

And of course, book in soon with Sydney or Remy for some acupuncture and cupping to stay in balance with the Seasons! We are now available 7 days a week.  

Cheers! 

Sydney and Remy 

Smoke Juice Tea

• 1.5 litres of water
• 33 grams of Wu Mei (smoked plum)
• 32 grams of Da Zao (pitted red dates)

Bring above to boil for 2.5 hours

Once cooled, add: 

• 12 gr Gui Hua (osmanthus)
• 3.5 g Mei Gui Hua (Rose Buds) 
• Cane sugar to sweeten

Let sit for 10 minutes, strain and serve 🙂

.

Sydney Hermant R.Ac and Remy Moon R.Ac 

at the Xiaoyin Tea Temple in Taipei, 2025.

At Shared Path Acupuncture, we use East Asian Medicine to treat conditions such as stress, anxiety, fatigue, pain, sleep disorder, chronic and acute illness, sports injuries and mental health.  In addition to Acupuncture, treatments may include Tuina, cupping, gua sha and East Asian Medicine lifestyle recommendations.