The Nose Gets All the Attention, Hayfever Through the Five Elements – Part 1
Connie Ng is an international speaker helping people overcome chronic pain, mobility issues, and complex health challenges, especially when conventional approaches fall short. Integrating Five Elements philosophy, vibrational medicine, and mind-body coaching, she empowers clients to reclaim their health, reconnect with who they truly are, and create lasting transformation.
Opening the windows on a lovely spring morning takes optimism when the next twenty minutes are spent sneezing. Everyone else admires the blossoms, you are counting the tissues left for breakfast. Here in Canberra, where I live, spring is beautiful, but appreciating it is harder when your eyes will not stop watering.
Respiratory health was where my holistic healing work began. I owned what was then Canberra’s only salt therapy clinic. More than 90% of my clients came with respiratory concerns, and spring was particularly busy. Having lived with asthma in childhood, allergies, sinusitis, and eczema myself, I hardly needed convincing that breathing comfortably could change someone’s day. It still has a very personal place in my practice and my life.
What surprises some people is where a conversation about their nose can lead. Before long, we may be discussing bloating, meals that leave them heavy and tired, or a digestive complaint they have put up with for years. Through the Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) Five Elements principles, those details belong together. There is a mother involved, and she deserves some attention.
The lungs have a mother
In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), the Earth element is associated with the Spleen and Stomach, while Metal corresponds to the Lungs and Large Intestine. Earth generates Metal. In the language of the TCM Five Elements, the mother nourishes her child, which gives digestion an important place in how we understand respiratory well-being.
The TCM Spleen describes a functional system that transforms food into nourishment and transports fluids, rather than the anatomical spleen alone. When that function is weakened, the traditional interpretation is that the Lungs receive less support and fluids become harder to manage. Dampness and Phlegm can accumulate. Someone may arrive talking about congestion, yet their bloating, loose stools, or fatigue may be part of the pattern that deserves attention.
TCM pattern assessment recognises several presentations of hay fever, or allergic rhinitis. The “International Evidence-Based Guidelines for Traditional Chinese Medicine Management of Allergic Rhinitis” include Spleen Qi deficiency alongside other patterns, such as Lung Qi and Kidney Yang deficiency. That variety matters. Even within the same tradition, hay fever does not come with one explanation stamped on everyone’s forehead.
Pollen explains the allergic trigger, while my TCM Five Elements training prompts me to examine how the person is functioning between exposures as well. The body has a history that extends beyond this morning’s pollen count.
Ancient Chinese common sense has a long memory
Growing up Singaporean Chinese, I encountered this way of thinking well before I could explain it. With my childhood respiratory history, keeping my feet, shoulders, and joints warm and avoiding icy drinks were ordinary parts of life. My family did not need a wellness podcast to suggest that my constitution deserved consideration.
I wrote about that upbringing in “Why the Same Biohack Can Energise One Person and Exhaust Another”. Food had a constitutional temperature with a place in the season, as well as ingredients. How it agreed with the unique constitution of the person eating it mattered. It has never been about one diet that fits or fixes all.
That perspective still influences my macrobiotic work. In TCM, lingering mucus belongs to a wider pattern of Dampness and Phlegm, where fluids accumulate and obstruct healthy function. Naturopathic attention to the body’s “terrain” offers another way to consider that stagnation. When excess airway mucus is poorly cleared, it can provide conditions in which microbes flourish. My “mucus-free” dietary approach focuses on this excess, considering dairy, sugary, and rich foods traditionally associated with Dampness, according to constitution. Even fruit, such as oranges, deserves consideration of how it agrees with someone’s digestion, bringing us back to the TCM relationship between Spleen Qi, fluid management, and the formation of Dampness and Phlegm.
At my salt therapy clinic, I used to tell clients that if they forgot everything else I had just said, they should remember one important thing when they walked out: start drinking warm or hot water, comfortably sipped. I often used the image of warm air expanding and cold air contracting to explain the traditional association of warmth with movement. In TCM, Cold can constrain Qi, while warmth encourages its flow. The Lungs normally disperse and descend Qi. Congestion can reflect disruption of that movement. Warm water was my simple starting point for supporting digestive warmth and fluid movement, particularly in someone with a Cold pattern. The kettle had a surprisingly important and active role in that daily routine. Such a modest habit could become a game changer in elevating their respiratory and digestive wellbeing.
Wood can upset the family
In the Five Elements, spring belongs to Wood, the season of new growth, linked with the Liver and Gallbladder. Wind is its associated climatic influence, bringing the changeable weather familiar to many hay fever sufferers. Earth corresponds to the Spleen and Stomach, Metal to the Lungs and Large Intestine. In the controlling cycle, Ke, Wood regulates Earth, and Metal keeps Wood in check. A little regulation helps the family function.
Trouble enters when that control becomes excessive. Wood overacting on Earth, called Cheng, describes Liver disharmony disrupting the digestive function of the Spleen and Stomach. In the insulting cycle, Wu, Wood pushes back against Metal, reversing the usual direction of control. Liver disharmony can therefore enter the TCM discussion of respiratory symptoms as well as digestive complaints.
Think of a mother struggling to nourish her child while someone keeps interrupting her. Supporting her and addressing the disruption are different tasks, although both may matter. The person’s symptoms help me consider which relationships deserve attention.
A spring clean with the person in mind
My wellness philosophy begins with respect for the body as an intelligent, interconnected whole, constantly working to keep us alive and maintain internal balance, or homeostasis. Its housekeeping is already underway. The liver processes substances, the kidneys and bowel remove waste, mucus and phlegm help carry trapped particles out of the airways, and sweat regulates temperature. Even a fart has a job, releasing digestive gas, although its timing rarely considers polite company.
When bloating, constipation, and heaviness accompany a congested head, those everyday functions deserve attention. Think of the digestive “sewerage pipes”. We readily attend to what comes into the kitchen, while often giving less thought to what leaves it. My fascination with nourishment and elimination connects Earth (Spleen and Stomach), Wood (Liver and Gallbladder), and Metal (Lungs and Large Intestine). I explored this seasonal perspective in “Is Your Body Ready for a Spring Clean? What Ancient Longevity Wisdom Can Teach Us About Detox, Part 1”.
ZenCleanz’s emphasis on cleansing alongside nourishment, using fermented plant enzymes and whole-food ingredients, fits that interest. Its seven-day Rainbow Protocol combines digestive and liver and gallbladder cleansing programmes, bringing Earth and Wood into the same conversation we have just had about Metal. For those with less time, ZenCleanz ONE offers a one-day format designed to support elimination while nourishing digestion. Further information on the TCM Five Elements detox kits and details of my reader discount appear below the article. Choosing either involves considering health history, medicines, and nutritional needs. Someone depleted may first need strengthening. Daily habits matter beyond any programme.
A tissue box tells only part of the story
Two people can both describe “terrible hay fever” and mean rather different experiences. One has streaming eyes and sudden bouts of sneezing. Another feels persistently blocked, with thicker mucus and a heavy head. Digestive discomfort adds another clue, even when the tissue boxes look identical.
As a Biochemic Therapy Practitioner certified by the Schussler Institute of Biochemic Therapy, I individually select practitioner-prescribed Tissue Salts that are not available over the counter. My facial and tongue assessments come from the German naturopathic tradition taught in my Biochemic Therapy training. Alongside constitution, diet, and lifestyle, these observations inform my selection. My developing framework also compares reported symptoms with recognised TCM patterns of disharmony, comparing notes with the comprehensive TCM tongue diagnosis and drawing on my Five Elements training as a separate interpretive framework.
For a streaming nose with repeated sneezing, I might consider Nat Mur #8 and Mag Phos #7, traditionally associated with watery discharge and spasmodic symptoms. Thick white mucus would prompt consideration of Kali Mur #4 and whether the wider picture suggests Phlegm-Dampness in TCM. Digestive acidity might bring Nat Phos #9 into consideration, while Nat Sulph #10 has traditional associations with liver and fluid-balance concerns. The question becomes how those observations fit the Earth, Wood, and Metal relationships, rather than which bottle has “hay fever” on it.
These are examples of my selection process, not a formula for every reader. In “Can 12 Mineral Salts Change How We Think About Cellular Optimisation?”, I introduced this part of my toolkit. Two noses may look equally miserable while the people attached to them need rather different conversations and individually prescribed combinations of Tissue Salts.
A different experience in Vancouver
My work also includes integrated 0’Ishiki and Star Magic Healing. I begin with 0’Ishiki energetic clearing before moving into Star Magic quantum healing, adapting the session to the person. Dietary and lifestyle conversations may accompany that work.
A client in Vancouver shared an anonymous review for my website that has stayed with me. She described “a sinus/allergic reaction”, with a blocked nose and persistent sniffling. What struck her first was the speed of the experience: “When the session started, I was surprised by the power and speed, but I quickly got used to it.”
She rated her initial discomfort at 8.5/10 and described feeling energy flowing through her brain during the session. Afterward, she wrote: “And my nose was feeling better after the session. It went down to 1.5/10 and progressively unblocked moments later.” This was her account of an immediate change following our integrated session.
Her review ended: “I also appreciated the advice on supplements and diet in addition to the treatment itself. Thanks a lot!” I appreciate that she mentioned both. There is room for an energetic session and a useful conversation about what happens when someone goes home and makes dinner.
The nose has more to say
After years of living with respiratory concerns and working with people who have them, I have little patience for reducing someone’s experience to a seasonal inconvenience. Being able to sleep comfortably, enjoy a walk, or finish a conversation without reaching for another tissue makes a difference to ordinary life. Familiarity should never make us dismiss how wearing those symptoms can be or quietly narrow our expectations of life. That is a question I explored in “What Future Has Your Diagnosis Quietly Persuaded You to Stop Imagining?”.
The Five Elements give me a way to explore relationships that might otherwise stay outside the conversation, while my different modalities offer several avenues for investigating what may underlie symptoms and working towards lasting improvement. Hay fever brings us to the nose, but digestion, constitution, and everyday habits give us much more to work with. Another spring need not mean resigning ourselves to the same conversation and yet another box of tissues.
Before we put the tissues away, there is another part of the equation, and it takes us somewhere more personal. In Part 2, we will explore the emotional and psycho-spiritual perspectives I bring to my work, including irritation, boundaries, and what we find difficult to tolerate. “Something is getting up my nose” may prove an unexpectedly useful conversation starter. You might arrive ready to discuss the pollen and find yourself thinking about a conversation you have been avoiding. Well, I’ll leave you with that thought until Part 2. You may be surprised to learn a thing or two about yourself. Until then, keep sipping your warm water. Your nose has had quite enough of the limelight for one article.
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Explore Connie’s services or book a complimentary clarity call to discuss your concerns and whether her approach feels right for you.
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Connie Ng, Holistic Practitioner, Quantum Healing Facilitator & Transformational Coach
Connie Ng is a Multi-Disciplined Holistic Practitioner and Quantum Healing Facilitator who specialises in helping clients overcome chronic physical and emotional conditions by addressing their root cause at the energetic level. Blending Five Elements wisdom with Star Magic Healing, vibrational medicine, and holistic counselling, she facilitates deep transformation for those who feel stuck despite trying everything. Connie is the founder of The Salt Therapy Clinic & Sanctuary and works with clients both in-person and remotely.
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