Michelle Lim, 30
How did you first experience wind and what is your understanding of it?
Since childhood, my grandparents and parents would caution against things like showering late at night and going to sleep with wet hair, because it could allow the wind to enter my head and that was a bad thing. My understanding of wind comes in various forms – it could be in the form of headaches or stomach bloatedness. I’ve also recently read that arthritis is a form of wind!
Who told you about wind?
Grandparents, parents, TCM doctors
Do you believe in it? (Why or why not?)
Yes, I believe in it, because there was a period of time when I got very intense headaches when I showered immediately after hot yoga sessions. I couldn’t understand why this was the case until a TCM doctor told me it’s because going from hot yoga into an air-conditioned room and then the shower enabled wind to attack my body and caused the headaches. He suggested wrapping a thick towel around my body to insulate it from the air-condition immediate after the hot yoga, and only showering after about half an hour’s wait. When I did this, I no longer had the headaches.
I also believe in it because whenever my stomach feels bloated, I would rub Yu Yee Oil (如意油) on my stomach and it would go away almost instantaneously. I think it has something to do with the herbal oil entering the stomach through the skin and counteracting the wind that was present there. This oil is something that my grandparents and parents have used on my when I was young, and I continue to carry a small bottle of it with me everywhere I go to this day. The smell is something that’s comforting to me and its effects are real even though I don’t understand how it works.
What are some ailments you have that may be caused by wind?
Headaches, stomachaches
What are the daily rituals you practice on your own for health and wellness?
I drink peppermint tea or ginger tea to get rid of bloatedness, especially after a heavy meal, I use Yu Yee Oil whenever I feel stomach discomfort. I use muscle rub of various sorts on my headaches, as well as lavender and peppermint essential oils.
When did you start practising these rituals in your routine?
Since childhood
How did you learn of these rituals?
From my parents and grandparents, but also my partner who is quite into herbalism
Do you think health and wellness is something that you should spend a lot on for it to be effective?
No
Why so?
Money is not a marker for how successful remedies are, no matter how much marketing would like to have us believe that. And it should not be something that is only accessible to the affluent.