spleen issues, dampness, and Qi

[Sunya]

I've been having some physical issues for the past couple years that I now decided to focus on. They appeared very minor to me but now I'm feeling the connection between body, mind, and energy... and see that I need to fix these issues.

 

my symptoms are chronic sinus issues like phlegm and mucus.. cysts/lipomas around my body on lower back and thighs... fatigue sometimes,cloudy head, white coating on tongue..

 

looking all this up, it seems I have dampness in my body...the fatigue/sleepiness is what bothers me most as it affects my meditative ability. the lipomas are also bothering me, I went to a surgeon and he said they aren't dangerous but can be removed.. i don't want that. so I looked into TCM. cases of lipomas were cured by herbal tonics focusing on the spleen, see here: http://www.bluepoppy.com/cfwebstorefb/imag...ures/rr_277.pdf

 

i've already changed my diet, implementing more physical movement (doing some hatha yoga), but am thinking of trying herbal remedies aimed at spleen dampness to help the Qi circulate. something like this: http://www.agelessherbs.com/RestoretheMiddleWayFormula.html (any thoughts?)

 

i'm also thinking about what I can do self-healing wise to help correct my circulation problem and get the spleen working again. I know theres something like the 6 healing sounds, though I never tried that. would that help? any other methods recommended?

 

any advice would be appreciated from those who know a thing or two about such matters

 

 

 

thanks

Edited July 8, 2009 by mikaelz

[Baguakid]

I'm not a TCM doctor but have also researched this much. Off the top of my head, and besides looking at the spleen only, there are two other factors that may be considered when dealing with the Spleen (in TCM). First is the Liver (liver controls stomach/spleen) and Kidneys (the root of all Yin/Yang in the body). Just to give you a little more info.

 

Having said that there are two exercises I have found over the (many) years to help.

 

1. Swimming Dragon Qigong.

2. Wuji Qigong (palms at the sides as taught by Cai Songfang).

 

Swimming Dragon helps circulate qi, open channels and, stimulates Stomach/Spleen activity. This is a very good exercise.

 

Wuji also opens channels, stimulates Stomach/Spleen activity but also builds/strengthens Kidneys.

 

I think these two are a very good and safe combination.

 

Oh, and drink more water

 

hope this helps.

Edited July 8, 2009 by Baguakid

[Gerard]

Start eating warmer food to activate the stomach-cauldron and ignite the fire in the spleen.

 

Foods to Avoid or Limit

 

dairy

wheat

cold drinks

fruit juice

processed foods

refined flour, pastry, pasta, breads

cold raw foods

refined sugar and sugar substitutes

coffee, alcohol

deep fried foods

peanuts and peanut butter

bananas, avocado

 

Foods to Add

 

organic lightly cooked vegetables, corn, celery, watercress, turnip, pumpkin, alfalfa sprouts, button mushrooms, radish, caper

brown rice, barley, amaranth, rye, oats

legumes, kidney beans, adzuki beans, lentils

small amount of lean organic meat, poultry and fish, tuna

small amount of whole fruits, lemon

sesame seeds, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds

seaweed, kelp

green tea, jasmine tea, raspberry leaf tea

 

 

Foods to Add to Tonify Yang

 

raspberry, peach, strawberry, cherry

walnut, chestnuts, pine nuts, pistachios

lamb, venison

lobster, mussels, prawns, shrimp, trout

black pepper, cinnamon bark, clove, dill, fennel, garlic, ginger, peppermint, rosemary, sage, turmeric, thyme, horseradish, cayenne, nutmeg

chai tea, jasmine tea

 

Good luck.

[Aetherous]

Get an actual diagnosis and don't do it yourself.

[Sunya]

Get an actual diagnosis and don't do it yourself.

 

 

well I emailed this lady that sells herbs http://www.agelessherbs.com/ says she has 25 years of experiences, I gave her all my symptoms. she actually has an online evaluation so I did that. she responded that all my symptoms that I listed in my first post are caused by Spleen Qi Deficiency.

 

can this lady be trusted? or should I see a "real" TCM doctor

 

seems like she has some experience, but idk about these things! http://www.agelessherbs.com/aboutcatherine.html

[Aetherous]

Well she isn't doing a pulse diagnosis, or talking with you in person (to see your face, hear your voice, etc)...so she could be missing something. Or maybe not.

[Baguakid]

Scotty is right. If you can swing it, I'd also go to a TCM doctor. I know different places have different prices. If you can find a Chinese community that's fairly large you can probably get a diagnosis for around 10.00 (if you don't want treatment or herbs). Other places with few Chinese the prices are usually racked up high.

 

Like I was saying before. A spleen Qi deficiency could be caused by something else (Liver/Kidney) or other problem. Ask the doctor for the root cause.

[Ryan T.]

Well she isn't doing a pulse diagnosis, or talking with you in person (to see your face, hear your voice, etc)...so she could be missing something. Or maybe not.

 

 

Exactly! You need to visit with a TCMP in person for them to fully define your pattern of disharmony. Pulses, tongue, facial color...all this and more go into a proper diagnosis.

 

Please do not self-diagnose, you may be doing yourself a huge disservice. Trained healers are just that...TRAINED. You don't just learn TCM from reading a couple of books and some stuff on the internet.