Sometimes, people ask me, "Is healing possible for me in this lifetime?" I don’t have the answer, and I won’t promise something beyond my knowing. But what I have come to understand is this: healing isn’t something the mind can control. It unfolds when we’re truly ready—when something deeper within us allows it.

I embarked on my conscious healing journey in 2000. At that time, my life appeared to be picture-perfect. I had graduated from universities in Tokyo and NYC, secured an exciting role as a Marketing Manager at an IT company, and was living in a beautiful suburb of Vienna, Austria, with ample opportunities to travel. On the outside, I seemed happy and successful. But inside, I was far from it.

Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) recognize the world as a meaningful context. The five elements are forces of the cosmos, which have a noticeable effect on all natural phenomena and people. When the five forces are in balance, humans and nature are healthy and in harmony. An imbalance of the elements manifests itself in illness and weakness.