With the new year looming however, most of us, frogs and non- frogs alike, will resolve to transform bad habits, beautify ugly bits or shed excess flab in an attempt to metamorphose into, if not handsome princes and beautiful princesses, then at least improved human beings. To remove the antiquated to allow new growth to take place is to tune in with the natural flow. As the natural world seems to go through its cycles of birth, death and re-birth seemingly painlessly, our ability to change appears to be less graceful, as anyone who's tried to stick to a set of new year's resolutions would know.

We have, it seems, a paradox to reconcile when it comes to changes and transitions. While most of us would want to change something about ourselves, when faced with an opportunity for growth, all sorts of fears, anxieties and resistance slow us down sometimes to a point of complete standstill. Such resistance to change can largely be traced back to our divorce from Nature and to the birth of ego-consciousness both of which trick us into the illusionary isolation of separateness. The fact is, we are not in charge and we are not separate. Birth, growth, senescence, disease and death happen to all of us whether we co-operate or not. Current Western civilisation's attempts to remove the undesirable bits out of the life process either by censoring them or by creating a virtual reality are bound to rob us of something valuable. For example, to stuff "Prozac" down a neurotic, Woody Allenish patient might well get rid of their symptoms and lull them into believing in their disappearance but it also prevents them from finding out what generated their disease in the first place thereby hindering opportunities for healing.

While this might be desirable when symptoms are so strong that they prevent the emergence of insights into their disease-process, this attitude, when pushed too far, may well deprive the person of their life-experience. Perhaps facing the fears, doubts, anxieties and resistance IS what truly matters in the process of change as it offers the possibilities of self-discovery and of genuine growth. Similarly, when physical pain appears, to take pain-killers while carrying on as normal could well cause further damage and prevent true healing to take place.

As a practitioner of Chinese Medicine, I have the privilege to accompany many patients on their healing journey. Many a time, have I seen people discharge emotions, talk about their frustration, anguish, fears, hopes and physical pains and many a time have I seen them accept, transform, forgive, reconcile, pacify themselves, soothe themselves, rediscover joy and a sense of peace. While I have no doubts about the efficacy of Acupuncture and Chinese Herbal Medicine, I believe Love to be the most important ingredient instrumental to transformation. To lack the love to give oneself or another space and means to heal is, in my experience, the biggest obstacle to metamorphosis. Negotiating changes also requires courage. To shed an old skin always leaves us open and vulnerable and until we feel strongly established in our new ways, we need the safety and the protection of the healing space. We need the courage to let go and to accept our wobbliness. Determination and discipline are also crucial ingredients in resolving healing crises for without these, there is no continuity. A last crucial ingredient: a practitioner who will be able to catalyze these qualities in you and who will see you through your process.

So, princesses and princes, may your healing journey be filled with love, courage and determination; be loving kindness to yourselves and to the World around you, for in the end, we are just dust and dreams settling on the mirror of time...