How the Five Element Chart Helps Me Understand Your Health

If you’ve visited my clinic, you may have seen the colorful Five Elements poster hanging on the wall. It’s titled The Law of 5 Elements and it’s more than just art—it’s the original chart I reference in my most recent video and use every day to assess your health through a Traditional Chinese Medicine lens.

Be sure to check out my video below titled: “Why Your Symptoms Change with the Seasons | The Five Element Chart Explained”.

This Five Element Chart helps me understand how your symptoms, emotional patterns, and energy levels relate to the seasons, your organ systems, and deeper imbalances that standard tests often miss. If you’re dealing with fatigue, digestion issues, mood swings, or chronic inflammation, this chart often shows us why—and what to do next.

“My Vital Insights Blog logo is inspired by the very Five Element Chart I rely on every day in my practice. Each element is a reminder that our bodies are intricately linked to nature’s seasonal rhythms—healing is about working with that natural flow, not against it.”

– Dr. Brian Klepzig

🎥 Want to dive deeper?
I walk through this entire system in more detail in my YouTube video on the Five Element Chart—check it out to see how I apply this to real-world health challenges in the clinic.

Why Your Symptoms Change with the Seasons | The Five Element Chart Explained 👇

The Five Element Chart follows the same rhythm as nature. Just like trees bloom in the spring and shed their leaves in the fall, our bodies move through energetic cycles tied to the seasons. Each element aligns with specific organs and emotional patterns—and knowing where we are in that cycle can help explain why certain symptoms pop up when they do. Let’s take a look at how each season affects your energy and organ systems.

In winter, your energy pulls inward. This season is linked to the kidneys and bladder, which support your bones and adrenal system. The related emotion is fear. If you feel anxious, drained, or cold to the bone, your Water element may be depleted.

Winter is the time to rebuild your energy reserves, not to push harder. Supporting kidney function and immune health here sets the tone for the rest of the year.

Spring brings upward movement. This season is governed by the liver and gallbladder, which influence your joints and your body’s ability to process anger. If your energy feels stuck, or you’re more irritable or achy than usual, your Wood element may be overloaded.

Spring is the season of cleansing and renewal. It’s often when old emotions and unresolved health issues rise to the surface—giving us the chance to clear them.

The height of summer activates the heart, small intestine, and thyroid. These systems thrive on joy, movement, and connection. If that joy is missing—or you’re experiencing sleep issues, anxiety, or heat intolerance—it could be a sign your Fire element is imbalanced.

Supporting your heart and endocrine system in summer helps maintain energy and emotional resilience through the rest of the year.

Late summer is a time of grounding. This phase is centered on the spleen and stomach, with a focus on muscles, digestion, and worry. If you’re bloated, tired after meals, or mentally foggy, your Earth element may be out of sync.

This season is ideal for digestive reset and immune support, especially through nutrition. It’s also when we strengthen the foundation of your health before fall arrives.

Fall is about release. Energy turns inward again, activating the lungs and large intestine, which are connected to the skin and the emotion of grief. Respiratory issues, constipation, or skin flare-ups often signal that your Metal element is congested.

Fall is a great time for gentle detoxification, breathwork, and emotional clearing—to prepare your system for winter.

In my clinic, I use the Five Element Chart alongside energy-based testing, nutritional protocols, and herbal therapies to address chronic health concerns. By understanding where your body is in the seasonal energy cycle, I can better support organ function, hormone balance, detox pathways, and emotional wellbeing.

This isn’t guesswork. It’s a time-tested system that helps guide your body back to its natural rhythm—where healing happens best.

To support the body through these seasonal shifts, I often turn to whole food-based nutrition from Standard Process and herbal therapies from MediHerb. These tools allow me to tailor support to your specific element and organ system—whether we’re boosting kidney energy in winter, supporting liver detox in spring, or calming the heart in summer. When used in alignment with the Five Element Chart, these high-quality supplements help reinforce your body’s natural ability to adapt, repair, and heal.

Symptoms are signals—and they often follow a seasonal pattern. The Five Element Chart helps me see the full picture so I can create a plan that supports both immediate relief and long-term healing.

Whether you’re facing joint pain in spring, fatigue in winter, or digestive sluggishness in late summer, your body is communicating with you. Let’s listen—and help it heal.

Let’s start by finding out what your body really needs. Click here to👉request an appointment and we’ll create a personalized plan to help your system reset, restore, and thrive. Let’s see what we can accomplish together!

– Dr. Brian Klepzig

These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.