Energy that`s too low to do anything. Its not that one is lazy or slothful, because of a character defect. Its about one`s biological reserves being so low that the body has gone into conservation mode. There`s a biological drive to it much like a bear gone into hibernation.

There`s only enough energy for core bodily functions and not a whole lot left over. This puts a person in a state where they have no motivation. It can be confusing. Before the energy crash, there were all these goals, a to-do list. Now, much of that got backburnered and for no particular reason. At least it may not be a conscious decision, its more that the reserves are low that any amount of pushing oneself to do more backfires, leading to lower levels of energy, and possibly getting sick. The person may be needing a lot of sleep and still wake up tired, lethargic and need naps during the day. There`s just not enough juice to get the jobs done.

When the Kidney energy is low, this can affect a person on the mental level, their motivation. It can lead to feelings of depression and hopelessness. The mental aspect of the Kidney system is called the Zhi

(“juh”). Other ways to describe the Zhi include willpower, drive, or ambition. When the Zhi is strong, we set long term goals and are easily able to follow through and see them to completion.

When the Kidney system is deficient, the pulse will typically be weak overall and even weaker on the Kidney position. The tongue will appear as either pale, swollen, or the root of the tongue may show pathologies such as a thick coat (not enough Kidney Yang to burn off the phlegm) or a peeled coat (not enough Kidney Yin).

Balanced Kidney energy looks like a person moving through life getting important things done without needing to apply a whole lot of consciousness will power to do it. Activity is slow and steady towards meaningful goals. There`s not much daily thought about those goals, because the Zhi is operating in the unconscious and the tasks get done without a lot of forcing or willpower.

Does that seem unusual? If so, well I agree with you. To me it often seems we`re either whipping ourselves like a race horse trying to get more done, or, perhaps as a consequence of that, feeling burned out and having a lack of will. The reason for both is that Kidney energy has become depleted.

For an acupuncturist, it`s one of the most common health patterns in modern people. This can come from inheritance, our emotions and our lifestyle. When we were conceived we got what our parents bodies could spare. If their Kidney energy (Essence, also called Jing) was depleted, there wasn`t much extra for the developing embryo. This can also come from the experience of fear. For healthy Kidney energy, fear is always overcome or balanced with faith. Faith can mean a lot of things to people, faith that we have the strength to overcome our challenges, or faith in a higher power, faith in a brighter tomorrow, faith that if we do good unto others, that good will come back to us in some way.

Now fear can be a very unconscious thing, like an iceberg, where we are only aware of the tip on the surface of the water of our conscious mind. What lies below the surface is vast and profound. All this to say, that we may have fears that are more unconscious or subconscious. We may be labelling this experience as “stress” but the root of it is fear. Addressing fear that may be driving us excessively to the point of burn-out can be very helpful in healing and improving our energy.

Kidney energy also relates on the mental level, the Zhi, to the acquisition of wisdom. When we move through life with healthy balanced Kidney reserves, we learn gradually through our experiences, trials and tribulations, gathering up bit by bit stores of wisdom, so that by the time we reach old age, although our Kidney reserves (Jing) tend to be low, we are compensated by our wealth of wisdom.

Low motivation can be addressed using acupuncture on the Kidney channel. I like to use a tonification gua to solidify and secure more Kidney energy to allow for a healthy flourishing of ones energy and ones life goals.

Yours in health,

Cynthia McGilvray, R.Ac.