Running from the end of the Bladder Meridian on the small toe, the channel travels across the sole and arch of the foot, circles behind the ankle, passes through the heel, runs up the leg and enters the body near the end of the coccyx. It runs internally to the kidney and bladder, then returns to the surface, running up the abdomen and chest. An internal branch continues from the kidney, passing through the liver and diaphragm to the lung, then to throat and root of the tongue. A small branch leaves the lung, joins the heart, then runs into the chest to connect with the Pericardium Meridian.
It's very interesting to look at the differences and similarities between Eastern and Western thinking about the kidneys. In Eastern thinking, the kidneys are the powerhouse of the body, they hold a quality of energy, Jing, you were born with and which you use up in everyday life, more so if you are in stressful situations. Jing can be restored through techniques like Chi Kung. This is kind of similar to Western understanding of the kidneys, that stressful living puts a strain on the adrenal glands attached to them. If we drain ourselves in this way we are more likely to become ill, but we can recover if we start to take care of ourselves.
I find treating patients in the hands-on way that the kidneys are very common health-disruptors, second only maybe to the liver.
FEAR...
Fear is the most common, but certainly not the only emotion which can be held in the kidneys. Fear of change, fear of not having enough energy to get through the day, and the deep rooted fear of being physically attacked. Treating people in the hands-on way, we can explore what a patient's feeling. Things tend never to seem so bad once they seen the light of day a bit, and it's amazing how symptoms will ease.
