WEird SYmptom #2: Fire pits!
Ever had fire pits? “Fire pits” is the feeling that your armpits are on fire and shooting out invisible flames of heat. According to Traditional Chinese Medicine Theory (TCM) “Fire pits” comes from heat in the pericardium and heart organ or meridian. Heat can be trapped anywhere in the body and manifest in many ways such as pain, inflammation, fever, swelling, infection, redness, sweating, bleeding etc. Heat or inflammation can be caused by emotional stress, lack of exercise, overwork, sunburn, chemotherapy, infection, a rich diet and certain medications and other factors. In the case of fire pits, a form of heat and inflammation is lodged in and “attacking” the smooth energy in the heart and pericardium meridians. It can be full blown heat or what TCM calls “deficiency heat” or heat coming from a lack of cooling factors in the body.
Who knows why heat gets trapped in certain parts of the body. I liken it to a faulty mousetrap. The mouse gets whacked by the trap, but escapes. The mouse travels to die in another part of the house like the basement or attic. The undetected vector dies and stinks up the area. It’s kind of like your immune system or regulatory system not dealing with “the mouse”, infection or factor completely. So the infection escapes and hides in the most convenient out of the way place and creates problems.
Heat build up in the heart and pericardium can cause many symptoms including fire pits, heart palpitations, insomnia, anxiety and more.
What is the best way to get rid of fire pits? Cooling down the heart and pericardium is essential. Recommendations always include, herbs and supplements, food and lifestyle adjustments and acupuncture. The usual culprits like rich food, smoking and drinking alcohol, emotional upset, stress, over work, all of these things must be reduced.
The common cooling household or kitchen herbs like rose petal tea, corn silk tea, mint, hawthorn tea will help support the heart. Reducing exercise and over work can help calm the aggravation of symptoms. Prana yama and cooling breaths may also help reduce heat in the body.
The best remedy is to address the stress in your life and get acupuncture. Acupuncture can remedy this condition by relieving stress and releasing heat from the organs and meridians in the body. Herbal formulas can also quickly and effectively clear heat out of the heart. Fire pits can be relieved by several formulas including Dao Chi Wan, Gan Mai Da Zao tang, Huang Lian Er Jiao Tang and others but consultation with your herbalist is essential to receiving the correct formula for you.
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