AN ALCHEMIST'S PHILOSOPHY
Keri Peters (she/her) is a licensed acupuncturist and massage therapist, beginning her career in the healing arts with a BSc from DePaul University in Psychology and Sociology (mental health counseling). She naturally progressed to a master’s in Chinese medicine from Five Branches University, where she also completed an additional certification in five elements acupuncture. Five elements is the study of mental health through the scope of Eastern medicine. Still paying attention to the signs and symptoms, but with a special focus on the emotions a person is feeling/ struggling with versus a diagnosis.
Keri has a deep love for traveling to new places and learning about different cultures and their connections to body, mind, and spirit. She enjoys working with medicinal herbs and edible plants by growing, cultivating, and making medicines from their spirits. She feels so grateful to be able to share her passions and honored to be able to help people throughout their healing journeys.
"When you touch one thing with deep awareness, you touch everything."
Lau Tzu
WHY FIVE ELEMENTS IS IMPORTANT
Creating Balance for Healing and Harmony
It’s beautiful to see the correlation between the elements and seasons.
The energy of each element directly reflects what nature is doing at that time. Without the growth of spring (Wood), and the full maturity of summer (Fire), there would be no harvest (Earth). It is the work of earth time that allows for the letting go of autumn (Metal), and the deep rest of winter (Water).
Framing our mind in this way can greatly improve the quality of our health.
Five Elements healing is a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) approach to finding balance within our mind, body, and spirit. For thousands of years, the correlation between elements, seasons, organs, emotions, and many more has been developed and passed down throughout generations. The harmony of the elements lies in how they exist in relationship to each other. This visual shows the relationship of the five elements to each other.
The arrows of the outer circle show how the elements feed each other. For example, water feeds wood because trees need water to grow. The elements can also control each other. The arrows that form a star in the center reflect this: Metal cuts Wood, Wood binds Earth, Earth blocks Water, Water extinguishes Fire, and Fire melts Metal. It is helpful to notice how much we have of each element to create balance and harmony as the elemental energies impact how we feel and act. It is important that both your practitioner and you as the patient pay attention to all these signs and symptoms when applying them to treating mental and physical health.
Feelings are meant to be felt and we have to feel it to heal it!
There is absolutely nothing wrong with you for being an emotional/sensitive person. The chaos in this world can cause imbalance and deep emotions. By providing you with five elements tools, you will start to recognize when you are out of balance and learn how to shift your energy back into balance and emotional harmony. Think back to the visual above, if someone is lacking in the wood element, adding the water element by practicing more exercises and dietary shifts that build up water could help improve that balance (water feeds wood). If you have too much wood, boost metal (metal cuts wood) to correct the imbalance. Think of it as being out to sea. Every morning a sailor wakes up and assesses where they are and then resets their course to their destination. When we get attuned to ourselves and how to be able to truly listen to what our body is trying to tell us, we can start looking at our “ups and downs” as clues our body is giving us to live as our most peaceful versions.
SERVICES FOR HEALING
An Integrated Approach to Healing
Keri Peters uses an evidence-based approach to treat the whole person — your mind, body, and soul. The focus is not just your symptoms or conditions- by addressing your physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual needs we can achieve optimal health. The services offered by ALTRUISTIC APOTHEKERI, including massage, herbal remedies, meditations, and nutritional plans, align with this integrated approach to healing.
TESTIMONIALS
