Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) views health as a dynamic balance between Yin and Yang. Disease develops when this balance is disturbed. Qi is responsible for keeping the body in balance. Disharmony or imbalance can be caused externally by weather changes or internally by excessive emotions. Other causes of disease are quality of inherited Congenital Essence, Improper Diet, Unbalanced Lifestyle, Trauma, Parasites, and Treatment errors.
External Causes
Because in TCM philosophy everything in the universe is interconnected, the changes in the universe, such as weather, would impacts my body. Changes in weather are characterized by six external energies that can cause disharmony in my body. Usually they are said as the Six Evils :
1) Wind, is a Yang pathogenic factor and causes these symptoms : sneezing, shivering, colds, running nose, fever, joint pain, headache.
2) Cold, another important pathogenic factor with Yin quality. The symptoms are freezing, cold extremities, joint pain, arthritis, gastrointestinal disorder, diarrhea, vomiting, and abdominal pain that improves with warmth.
3) Dampness, is a Yin pathogenic factor that stems from damp weather conditions, wet surroundings, or wet clothing. The symptoms are chronic fatigue, feeling of heaviness in head and libs, dizziness, edemas, dyspnea (shortness of breath), tightness in chest, loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea.
4) Heat is pathogenic factor with Yang character. The symptoms are restlessness, irritability, nervousness, sleep disorder, insomnia, hyperactivity, delirium itching, red rashes, fever, thirst, dry mouth and lips, reddened, sore throat.
5) Fire or Summer Heat ia a Yang pathogenic factor that can deplete Qi and Body Fluids, which cause dehydration and exhaustion.
6) Dryness is a Yang factor and often appears in combination with heat. Dryness damages the lung and harms Yin and Body Fluids. The symptoms are dry and scaly skin, chapped lips, dry cough, little saliva, thirst, and constipation.
Internal Causes
According to TCM, my emotions are not good or bad, they simply are part of my being and live. There are good reasons to feel fear at times, to be angry, to worry, to feel joy, to feel grief and sadness. These feelings are indicator of my personal and collective relationship with the world and myself. In optimal heath, my emotions flow freely, are acknowledged, responded to appropriately, and then I move on to the next feeling. Disease only arise when I become stuck in my emotions, try to ignore or suppress them. There is a direct relationship between my emotional life and my physical health. Each of my organ is associated with a range of my emotions in these following ways :
1) Shock or Fright scatters Qi and affected both my Kidneys and my Heart and to a certain extent, my Small Intestine. The Qi of my Heart is weakened rapidly, leading to palpitations, breathlessness and insomnia.
2) Fear makes the Qi descend and affects my Kidneys. Excessive or prolonged fear drains my Kidneys. Fear also disturbs my Heart.
3) Anger affects my Liver and makes the Qi rise. Excessive and inappropriate anger causes Stagnation of Liver-Qi or Liver-Blood, the rising of Liver-Fire which may cause Heart Fire.
4) Joy slows down the Qi and affects my Heart. In general, joy is beneficial. Being at peace and filled with happiness calms and slows the Qi. Excessive joy is damaging, can harm my heart.
5) Worry knots the Qi and affect my Spleen, bringing an accumulation of Dampness. Worry also affects my Lung, leading to anxiety, breathlessness and stiffness of shoulders and neck.
6) Sadness dissolves Qi and affects my Lungs, leading to Lung Qi deficiency, also affects my Heart, bringing on Heart Qi deficiency.
Other Causes of Disease
1) The quality of my inherited Congenital Essence depends on the health and age of my parents, particularly at the time of conception. It also depends especially on my mother’s health and age during the pregnancy. My Congenital Essence can be prematurely drained through overwork, inadequate rest, alcohol, and excessive sexual activity.
2) Improper Diet. From a TCM point of view, diet can be unbalanced from the quantity and the quality aspects. Malnutrition seriously weakens my Qi and my Blood and results in Spleen Deficiency. Over-eating also weakens my Spleen and Stomach and leads to bloated feeling in my Stomach, belching, nausea and gastric efflux. Excessive consumption of food that is hot or cold in energy can also be detrimental. Eating in a hurry, going straight back to work after eating, eating late in the evening, eating in a state of emotional tension can lead to Stomach Yin deficiency.
3) Unbalanced lifestyle like overwork - mental and physical – can cause localize Qi or Blood Stagnation, deplete Qi, deplete the Kidneys and the lower back. Excessive sexual activity depletes my vital energy. As a woman I loss my vital energy through the process of childbirth. But for men, the body draws on vital energy at ejaculation and orgasm.
4) Trauma causes Qi Stagnation and Blood Stasis.
5) Parasites
6) Treatment Error.
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