Did you know that the qualities of decisiveness and courage are actually associated with your gall bladder? If it’s healthy, you probably have a daring and decisive nature and some “gall” in meeting life’s challenges. If not, indecision will reign, molehills will become mountains, and it’s primary function of storing and releasing bile and digesting and metabolizing fats and oils from the liver, as well as its ability to rid the body of toxins, will be impaired.

Energy blocks in this meridian can create a bitter taste in the mouth; migraine headaches; muscular, tendon, and ligament weakness; low energy; dizziness; a bluish color in the eye sclera; eye weakness; and problems in the face, skin, and legs. With dysfunction, one can also experience anger and irritability for no apparent reason or, on the other hand, even be unable to express these emotions. In fact, difficulty in dealing with anger is a hallmark of imbalance in both the liver and gall bladder meridians.

The body’s meridian systems can illustrate the cooperative nature of, for instance, wood and water. In this regard, as a tree needs water for sustenance, the Water elements of the kidneys and urinary bladder help the liver and gall bladder (both Wood elements) to detoxify and stay in balance.

The Gall Bladder Meridian covers quite a large area of the body and, with forty-four points, affects many diverse parts of the body. It begins at the eyes’ outside corners to the temples, goes down the skull sides and over the shoulders to the front of the body, across the chest and trunk sides, down across the hips, thighs, and leg sides, and ends in the fourth toes.

With all the possible problems resulting from an out of balance Gall Bladder Meridian, it is wise to practice exercises to keep it in good health! For instance, side bending or body tapping will help stimulate this meridian.

Or try this one: Sit in a half-lotus position with your fingers interlaced above your head and with palms facing the sky. Inhale. Relax your neck and shoulders as you bend to the left side. Hold for as long as the position is comfortable. Exhale. Perform to the other side. Repeat three times.

— Chungsuk Lee