When something small stirs a big reaction, it’s rarely about the present moment. A trigger can be the tip of an iceberg, revealing stories and sensations the body still holds. In this reflection, Dr Anny Fodor shares how awareness of what lies beneath can begin to shift the very patterns that shape our health and sense of self.

What happens to us emotionally happens to us physically. Through Chinese medicine and lived experience, Anny explores how our bodies remember and how healing unfolds when we listen.

There’s something revolutionary about a woman coming home to her body.
In a world that teaches us to override, ignore, or manage our sensations, to actually feel ourselves; our energy, our rhythm, our pleasure. A significant act of reclamation.

This is the essence of my work, and why I’ve returned to the heart of Chinese Medicine with The Three Treasures.

This month, we honour Menopause Awareness.

A time to open deeper conversations about women’s health, and really, about the health of our communities.

If you’ve been with me for a while, you know how much I love this work. Supporting women through transitions feels more urgent than ever, in a world where so many of us are feeling the strain of rising crises, physically, emotionally, collectively.

For those who are new, welcome.
This space is a place of Connection; of recognising that our wellbeing doesn’t exist in isolation.

We are always in relationship: with ourselves, our environment, and each other.

Not Just a Women’s Issue — Menopause Shapes Communities

There’s a growing recognition that menopause isn’t just a women’s issue. It’s a community issue. A cultural issue. A human issue.

Every one of us has been shaped by women; by mothers, aunties, teachers, colleagues, friends. And the health of women’s bodies ripples through every layer of society. When women are well, families are well. Communities are well.

Yet, despite living in 2025 with access to unprecedented knowledge, women continue to walk into my clinic saying they have been dismissed, misunderstood, or told that “it’s just part of getting older.” Many of these women are doctors themselves. The medical system, even with all its progress, continues to fail women in one of the most significant transitions of their lives.

We are blood cycle driven. Our bodies follow natural rhythms connected to the moon, hormones, and seasons of growth and release. When we honour these cycles instead of pushing through external demands, we restore balance, vitality, and inner wisdom. Explore how Chinese medicine, qigong, and somatic practices can help you live in harmony with your body’s natural flow.

Spring winds stir the Liver in Chinese medicine, often bringing headaches, irritability, and restless energy. Known as the season of the Wood Dragon, spring is a time for growth, renewal, and expression. Learn simple ways to harmonise Liver Qi—through food, movement, and Qigong—so your inner dragon can rise with vitality and ease.

In Chinese medicine and Daoist philosophy, health is never separate from life. It is the harmony of body, breath, and spirit that creates true vitality. This integration is described as the Three Treasures — Jing, Qi, and Shen.

Each Treasure is precious. Each plays a role. Together, they form the living foundation of our health and the compass that guides us through life’s transitions.

“I desire more connection to my intuition.”
It’s one of the most common things I hear at the moment.

I notice it in myself too: if I don’t ‘check in’ with myself before reaching for my phone, I’m gone. Lost in the noise of messages, feeds, and news. If I don’t connect inward, I start consuming immediately, no wonder I can develop indigestion before I’ve even had breakfast.

When did it become a prescription to:

• Drink two litres of water.

• Get in 10,000 steps — counted.

• Lift weights to “survive” menopause.

In Chinese medicine, the Five Phases or Five Elements recognise the weaving of body, mind, and nature into continuous cycles.

Each organ has its season, its emotion, its flavour, colour, body tissue, body area, its time of day and almost all other categories of the known world.

But beyond the physical, each organ is also home to a spirit.

The Kidneys house the Zhi, the spirit of willpower and deep reserves. She gives us the capacity to hold our course through life.

The Heart houses the Shen, our conscious spirit. She is clarity, presence, and our ability to connect meaningfully to life.

One of my clients came to me after years of psychology and marriage counselling. She had always perceived her mother to be controlling and manipulative when growing up. She thought she had “put it out of her mind,” but lately it was weighing on her and she was worried about her own parenting.

Intimacy with her long-term partner had all but disappeared. She felt numb, without desire for touch or connection. At work, a colleague seemed to push her around, and she couldn’t speak up. And her shoulders? Tight, rigid painful. One was heading toward frozen shoulder, which is all too common in perimenopause.

For many women, physical pain and emotional strain are deeply intertwined. In this post, learn how mind–body integration through Chinese Medicine and somatic embodiment can unlock long-held patterns, support hormonal health, and create a foundation of resilience from menstruation to menopause.

Let’s talk about weight, baby…
Have we been taught to micromanage our thighs since we were thirteen? And now, midlife arrives and shape is definitely shifting.

This isn’t just about what you’re eating.

What if the way we digest life is shaping our body too?
How comfortable are you in your body, and with the layers of your life?
And how do we understand weight changes through the lens of Chinese medicine?

Stress, digestion, and cholesterol are more connected than most women realise. In perimenopause, chronic stress can disrupt digestion, inflame the gut, and raise cholesterol levels. Through the lens of Chinese and Western medicine, this blog explores how to break the cycle with food, movement, rest, and emotional processing so your body can regain vitality.

Shaking is not random. It’s how the body completes the stress cycle, discharging what gets stuck in muscles, joints, and the nervous system. By letting your animal body lead, you can support sleep, mobility, and emotional health while restoring flow and vitality.

In times that feel heavy, play may seem frivolous — yet it is medicine for the body and spirit. In Chinese medicine, playfulness moves stuck Qi, softens rigidity, and helps release emotions held too tightly. This blog explores how laughter, movement, and spaciousness create healing where words alone cannot.

Winter is the season of rest and replenishment in Chinese medicine. By tending to the Kidneys—the root of reproductive health—we can nourish our cycles now and prepare for menopause with greater vitality. This blog explores food, lifestyle, and seasonal practices that honour women’s natural rhythms.

The Winter Solstice marks the deepest Yin of the year — a time for rest, reflection, and nourishment. In Chinese medicine, this season invites us to rebuild our reserves, honour stillness, and embrace pleasure as medicine. This blog offers a gentle ritual and insights to support women’s health and inner renewal at this potent seasonal turning point.

In Chinese medicine, emotions are not only of the mind — they live in the body. When unexpressed, they can deplete yin, disrupt qi, and leave us feeling reactive or disconnected. This blog explores how somatic practices and gentle presence in winter create the conditions for emotions to flow, tissues to restore, and healing to unfold.

Movement has always been more than physical — it carries our stories, releases what weighs us down, and opens the door to healing. In this piece, I share how Qigong and somatic practices support women in midlife through nervous system regulation, fascia health, emotional release, and deep reconnection to the body’s wisdom.