In East Asian medicine, the dance of Fire and Water isnât just poeticâitâs practical. Itâs how our bodies regulate hormones, menstruation, fertility, and the deep transitions of life. đĽđ§
From menstrual shifts to menopause, your symptoms may be the voice of Fire and Water calling for reconnection.
Tap into the deeper rhythm beneath your hormones and learn how acupuncture can support the inner dialogue of your health.
đ At the heart of lifeâs movement are the elemental forces of Fire and Water. In the I Ching, the trigrams for Heaven (â°) and Earth (âˇ) shift into Fire (â˛) and Water (âľ), creating the pulse of life. This transformation is not just symbolicâitâs the energy that flows through us.
In East Asian medicine, Fire and Water are not just elementsâthey're always in relationship. When balanced, Fire and Water nourish, guide, and protect. But when disconnected, life begins to fragment. Acupuncture helps restore this balance, reigniting the flow of energy between these forces. đĽđ§
⨠Let the needles remind your body how to listen.
Read more about this foundational FireâWater relationship in our latest womenâs health article.
Water runs fast through land that can no longer hold it. đď¸
When Earth is weakened, it cannot contain the Water that nourishes us. You may drink plenty and still feel thirsty. Eat regularly but feel unsatisfied. This is the silent unraveling behind blood sugar imbalance: the body is leaking what itâs meant to hold. đŤ´
In Chinese medicine, healing isnât about tightening controlâitâs about restoring flow. It begins with tending the soil, not just chasing the stream.
đŚ If this feels familiar, your body may be asking for a different kind of careâone rooted in rhythm, warmth, and replenishment.
We live in a culture that demands speedâeven in healing. But your body isnât broken. It remembers. It just needs the conditions to restore whatâs been lost: rhythm, moisture, warmth, stillness.
Thereâs wisdom in the slower path. A remembering of how to nourish yourself in ways that ground, rather than overstimulate.
đż You donât need to push harder. You need to come home.
We often think of sugar cravings as a lack of willpower. But in Chinese medicine, they can be a sign that something deeper is offâthe Earth within us is depleted, dried, and struggling to stay grounded.
When we feel drained, distracted, or unsettled, the body quietly asks for nourishment. Not more food, but more rhythm. Not more restriction, but restoration.
When sweetness loses its roots, the soil of the body begins to crack.
đž Are you listening to the whispers of your terrain?
đŠ Read more in our latest Womenâs Health newsletterâsign up to receive the full article and biweekly tips on how to support your health through changes in diet, movement, and mindfulness âĄď¸ https://healerwithin.harlemchi.com/womens-health-newsletter-sign-up
Community Acupuncture NYC - We are a locally owned community acupuncture clinic operating in the heart of Harlem on 125th St. and St. Nicholas Avenue since 2014.
05/13/2025
In the I Ching, the trigram Kun represents Earthânot as inert matter, but as sacred infrastructure: the fertile ground that makes all transformation possible.
The body is not separate from this wisdom. Your belly, your gut, your wombâthese are places of digestion, assimilation, and alchemy.
When we nourish our inner terrain, we remember that healing isnât something we chaseâitâs something we cultivate.
⨠Read more about the Earth element and the trigram Kun in our latest article: The Ground Beneath Our Healing. đ Subscribe to our Womenâs Health Newsletter for the full article and more bi-weekly reflections âĄď¸ https://healerwithin.harlemchi.com/womens-health-newsletter-sign-up
05/12/2025
⨠Receptive devotion. Thatâs how the I Ching describes the Earthâs power. Not passivityâbut presence. Not weaknessâbut the ability to hold, nourish, and transform.
âThe noble one supports others with broad virtue.â This is not about self-sacrifice or constant overgiving. Itâs about a grounded generosityâthe kind that flows from inner abundance, not depletion. True nourishment never asks us to abandon ourselves.
In my latest article, I explore how womenâs health is intimately tied to the Earth elementâfrom the microbiome to the menstrual cycle, from emotional rumination to the very soil beneath our feet.
đą âTo nourish the Earth within is to nourish the world we share.â
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In Traditional Chinese Medicine, Earth is more than just one of five elementsâitâs the ground of your being. When the Earth element is out of balance, everything wobbles: digestion, emotions, boundaries, even your sense of purpose.â
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This image is inspired by a truth too often forgotten: *you are not separate from the soil that grows your food, regulates your hormones, or sustains your energy.*â
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đ In my latest article, I explore how the Earth element shapes womenâs healthâphysically, emotionally, spiritually. Real stories, ancient wisdom, and a call to re-root.â
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đ Join our newsletter for deeper tools, rituals, and upcoming Part II âĄď¸ https://healerwithin.harlemchi.com/womens-health-newsletter-sign-up
05/05/2025
Wood. Fire. Earth. Metal. Water.
These arenât just poetic metaphorsâtheyâre energetic forces, shaping your body, emotions, and cycles in real time. đş
The Five Elements form an ecosystem within usâalive, responsive, and deeply wise. When one Element shifts out of balance, the whole system speaks. Are you listening? đ
Thereâs an ancient spark within every womanâa fire that knows how to rise, how to warm, how to transform. But in a world that moves fast and demands much, itâs easy to forget how to tend that inner flame. đĽ
True balance isnât about fixing symptomsâitâs about listening to the rhythms beneath them. What if your fatigue, your tension, your cycle shifts werenât just issues to manage, but invitations to come home to yourself? đż
This article explores how the Five Elements of Chinese Medicine offer a grounded, nature-rooted framework for reclaiming health. Sign up for our bi-weekly womenâs health newsletter and get full access to this articleâplus ongoing insight and inspiration, every two weeks ⤠https://healerwithin.harlemchi.com/womens-health-newsletter-sign-up
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M. Johanne Picard-Scott is nationally board-certified Diplomate in Acupuncture and Herbology by the NCCAOM and licensed to practice in New York. She earned her Masters of Science in Chinese Medicine from Pacific College (PCOM) in New York, where she began her studies in 2005 while working as a full-time corporate attorney.
What first began as a fascination with Eastern philosophy soon evolved into an intense passion and focused commitment to learning the science and art behind this medicine. Her clinical experience has taken her from a student practitioner at PCOM to internships with various medical institutions in New York City including St. Vincentâs Comprehensive Cancer Center and the Integrative Pain Management Program at Montefioreâs Medical Center.
She continues to take advantage of the opportunity to study and seek the knowledge and guidance of several inspiring master teachers, many who continue to guide and inspire her as she shares the wonders of this medicine with her patients.
In 2013 Johanne began studies with the late Master Dr. Richard Tan, renowned for synthesizing thousands of years of Classical Chinese medical philosophy into a revolutionary, modern and practical understanding of the practice of Acupuncture that produces instant, immediate results. His teachings, recognized today as The Balance Method, not only revolutionized the effectiveness of the practice of acupuncture but has also served as a framework for deepening studies into the vast canon of Chinese Medical science and arts. She continues to study with his three designated senior teachers who have assumed the responsibility to teach The Balance Methodaround the world as he so desired. She obtained her First-Level Certification from Si Yuan Balance Method in February 2019 - the first in the US to obtain this certification level since Dr. Tan's passing in 2015.
Johanne has been very enthusiastic about bringing the community acupuncture practice model to Harlem and making acupuncture more accessible. She firmly believes that by expanding the experience of Chinese Medicine to as many people as possible in any given community this medicine will naturally find its place as a serious complementary healthcare delivery system in this country. Her vision for Harlem Chi CA is to create a community institution that will change the way healthcare is managed both on a personal and community level.
"My intent for Harlem Chi is to provide my patients a place where they can discover a more proactive, natural way of supporting and reclaiming their health through acupuncture, natural herbal medicine, and nutritional counseling. I have been fortunate to be educated in a system of healing that is revolutionary in its potency and efficacy yet so simple in its ex*****on. My mission is to create a community setting that invites people to learn more about this medicine and witness how they can harness their bodyâs own intelligence to heal and thrive."
