Balanced Wood Element
When the Wood Element is balanced, it’s a powerful source of creativity, vision, and drive. It gives us the direction and clarity to pursue our goals while remaining flexible enough to adapt to changing circumstances.
A person with balanced Wood energy is typically a strong planner – able to move forward with vision and adapt creatively to life’s challenges without becoming rigid or frustrated. This element supports our ability to chart a clear path, both in our personal lives and in our projects.
In TCM, the organs associated with the Wood Element – the liver and gallbladder – play a central role in decision-making. The liver governs long-term planning and direction, offering vision and purpose, while the gallbladder is responsible for decisive action and quick, short-term choices.
Signs of Imbalance
On the other hand, when we feel stuck, unclear about our direction, or chronically indecisive, it may be a sign that the Wood Element is out of balance. These symptoms suggest that the liver and gallbladder could benefit from support – energetically and physically – to restore a sense of flow, purpose, and clarity.
Wood energy fosters adaptability and forward movement, helping us flow with life and actively shape the future we envision. When challenges arise, balanced Wood energy allows us to make thoughtful adjustments and find creative solutions – without defaulting to frustration or anger, which are often signs of excess in this element.
In leadership, balanced Wood energy expresses itself through integrity and inspiration. It encourages us to lead by example, motivating others through our clarity, direction, and calm decisiveness rather than through control or force.
However, when the Wood Element is out of balance, it can manifest as anger, impatience, frustration, and mental or emotional rigidity. This often affects how we relate to others, making interactions more reactive or confrontational.
Physically, this imbalance may show up as migraine and tension or stiffness in the tendons, reflecting a deeper inflexibility in both body and mind. Individuals with excess Wood energy may display controlling or dominant behaviours, reacting strongly to minor setbacks and creating an environment where others feel constrained or unable to express themselves freely.
On a physical level, imbalanced Wood energy can manifest through symptoms like migraines, eye floaters, or even twitching. Pent-up tension, anger and frustration can also result in nervous habits, such as constant leg shaking, which is often an unconscious attempt to release this built-up energy.
Emotional symptoms
◆ Frustration
◆ Tension
◆ Anger and rage
◆ Uneven emotions / mood swings
◆ Impatience
◆ Depression
◆ Stubbornness
Interpersonal & Social Effects
◆ Inability to listen to others
◆ Difficulties to cooperate / lack of goodwill towards others.
Healing habits:
◆ Express your creativity in a non competitive way
Write about your life, keep a journal, or find any other means to express your truth. You can sing, write, paint, anything that helps you express your emotions and connect to your voice, your creativity. If you love cooking create beautiful meals, if you like gardening, do that. However, Wood types tend to be rather competitive, so this is about engaging in a non-competitive endeavour, so that you can make sure you relax.
◆ Exercise
Any type of exercise and movement is beneficial to move stagnant liver Qi: going for a long walk, dancing, running, and so on.
◆ Stretch your tendons and muscles
The tendons are linked to the liver in TCM. A stagnant liver, stiff tendons and rigid thinking tend to go hand in hand. Stretches, such as yoga moves, are ideal to release the pent up stiffness from the body.
◆ Practice speaking your truth
Stuck Wood energy can contribute to feeling tense, angry and frustrated. It can at times even turn into aggression. Expressing it in a non violent way, looking at your anger, speaking your truth can help to move the energy.
Eat leafy greens!
To align with the vibrant energy of spring, embrace the abundance of leafy greens and seasonal plants growing all around! Include nutrient- rich options like arugula (rocket), kale, collard greens, Swiss chard, watercress, spring onions, bok choy, broccoli, mustard greens, cabbage, parsley, endive, Chinese cabbage and cucumbers in your meals. These fresh, green foods support the body’s natural renewal process and provide a boost of vitamins and minerals ideal for this season of growth. The chlorophyll in the green leaves help the liver detox and break down congestion.
Begin your mornings with a fresh juice
A blend of celery, kale, cucumber, and carrots. This powerful combination gently flushes out toxins, revitalising your liver and energising your entire system. The crispness of celery (it feels as if it contained little salty crystals), combined with the mineral-rich greens and sweetness of carrots, not only cleanses but deeply nourishes, giving fresh vitality for the day ahead.
Drinking this juice is more than a morning ritual; it’s an act of renewal, a way of aligning with the body’s natural rhythms and supporting its healing intelligence. Juicing in the morning helps me feel good the whole day, in the sense that I have already taken important action at the beginning of the morning.
