Lifestyle Advice for Angry Type-A Action People by Brian B. Carter, MS, LAc

1. What you know you know (your known abilities)

2. What you know you don't know (your known limits)

3. What you don't know you know (your hidden abilities)

4. What you don't know you don't know (your hidden limits)

1. Your Known Abilities - Don't take these for granted!

You know what you know you can do. You might want to make a list of these things to refer back to when you get frustrated. List your talents, skills, achievements, hobbies, etc.

2. Your Known Limits - Limits are no fun, but if you are honest with yourself, you can find ways around them.

If you know you don't know what's causing your disease, you can at least go find resources to answer your questions (that's why I love the world wide web!). The right question will lead you to the right answer. If you know you have headaches, migraines, eye pain, redness, insomnia, irritability, frustration, and anger, your questions maybe be: Why do I have these? What causes them? What makes them better or worse? How can I change them?

3. Your Hidden Abilities - These are cool because they reflect untapped potential!

The only way to find out what you are capable of is to try something new. Bouldering has been that way for me. I always loved to climb trees, thought about rock climbing, and never got around to it. Having a climbing partner has made all the difference in the world. There are many things we should do, even things we want to do, but we find we cannot do them alone. Human beings need human beings.

So, try that new thing you haven't gotten around to. Rent a musical instrument. Get a book. Talk to someone new. Search the web. And find someone who's just as excited about it to share it with. You won't know what you can do until you've really tried!

4. Your Hidden Limits - This may be the scariest category. Fortunately, we have solutions:

Oriental Medicine is a system of relationships based on thousands of years of clinical experience. An OM doctor can say, "Your red eyes, headaches and anger are related. They are part of a pattern. We have herbal formulas to treat that pattern" The 5 constitutional types (Wood, Earth, Water, Metal, Fire) are one system of relationships. Once we have an idea of your pattern or type, we can give you not just herbs, but also appropriate diet, lifestyle, and exercise advice. For example:

Balancing the Wood Type

Exercise: Wood Types do better with aerobic exercise. Running is better than lifting weights. There's nothing wrong with lifting weights, but wood types need to move a lot. They have a lot of energy to burn off, and if they don't do that, it just stagnates and leads to symptoms.

Diet: Wood Types should avoid greasy fried food. And coffee! Sour foods are good for them. Spicy foods could be too hot and moving for them.

Lifestyle: Movement is the key with wood types. A healthy wood type is actually a great leader, a good planner. The archetype is the General.

Write it down. Thoughts need to move. Sometimes this isn't possible just 'in your head.' You may just be going in circles. Journaling, writing, and self-examination are good ways to get your thoughts in order and moving. You'd be amazed. I am every time I do it. Write down your goals, your priorities, your resentments, your fears. If you know it, you can do something about it. If you can't write it, you don't really know it.

Just do it. Get into action. Do something you know you can achieve. The enemies are impatience and frustration. Don't choose goals that are unreachable; if you do, divide them into pieces you can achieve. If you get frustrated, stop doing what you're doing, and do something else that you can accomplish. Go back to #1, what you know you know, and experience your ability.

Renew your inspiration. Many wood types are naturally creative 'idea-people.' If you don't get a chance to let your ideas flow, you may feel frustrated. For ideas to flow, you must be unblocked, rested, relaxed, and enthusiastic. Self-examination (writing or talking) unblocks you. Get out of your head! Restorative sleep (enough and the right kind) is imperative. Learn to relax. Read or listen to inspirational sources for enthusiasm. Seek God with all your heart.

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BIO:

Acupuncturist, herbalist, and medical professor Brian B. Carter founded the alternative health megasite The Pulse of Oriental Medicine (http://www.PulseMed.org/). He is the author of the book "Powerful Body, Peaceful Mind: How to Heal Yourself with Foods, Herbs, and Acupressure" (November, 2004). Brian speaks on radio across the country, and has been quoted and interviewed by Real Simple, Glamour, and ESPN magazines.

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