THE LIVER MERIDIAN

Considered in some practices, the liver is considered the “second heart” of the body, thus emphasizing its importance.   It is in this meridian where the flow of energy that governs the emotions, vital chi and blood controls the body’s immunological responses. This includes tendons, ligaments and skeletal muscles as well as the function of absorbing what is indigestible.  It is also associated with the eyes.

The liver meridian starts at the top of the big toe and travels up the leg to the pubic bone.  It then circles the sexual organs, enters the lower abdomen and travels upward to connect with the liver and gall bladder. It then moves up the lungs to connect with the LUNG MERIDIAN before curving round the mouth.   It then splits and one branch goes up to each of the eyes. The two disjointed branches meet at the forehead and travel over the top of the head.

Misalignments in this meridian may manifest as dizziness, high blood pressure, hernias, distended lower abdomens in females, nausea, watery stools with undigested food, allergies, muscles spasms, incontinence, retention of urine, eye problems and anger or a moody, negative disposition.

To trace this meridian, place your fingers of the insides of your big toes and trace straight up the inside of the legs, flaring out at your hips, up the sides of your rib cage, and back underneath your ribs, in line with your nipples. In your natural human biological rhythms, the peak time for this meridian is 1am-3am.