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Lung & Spleen Qi Deficiency - Frequent Urination

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Five TCM syndromes which can manifest as frequent urination are

Urinary Bladder Damp Heat, Kidney Yin Deficiency, Failing Kidney

Consolidation (Yang Deficiency), Lung and Spleen Qi Deficiency, and

Liver Qi Blockage.

 

Lung and Spleen Qi Deficiency:

 

" Frequent, clear and profuse urination, with possible incontinence,

worse with exertion, and accompanied by typical symptoms of qi

deficiency of the Lungs and the Spleen, such as expectoration of

clear thin mucus or excessive saliva, tiredness, shortness of breath,

reluctance to speak much, sensitivity to cold, poor appetite, loose

stool, pale lips and tongue, white tongue coat, and a large floating

but forceless pulse. " (Fluid Physiology and Pathology in Traditional

, Steven Clavey, p. 95.)

 

The two most important Organs for Qi are the Spleen and the Lungs.

The Spleen extracts the Grain Qi from food which is " rotted and

ripened " in the Stomach and carries it to the Lungs where it mixes

with Air Qi which the Lungs have extracted. If either the Lungs or

the Spleen is Deficient, a person will become Qi Deficient. (Note:

TCM Organs are collections of functions and encompass more than the

anatomical organs they are named after. A rough though inadequate

translation of Qi is " energy " .)

 

When the Lungs especially are affected, breathing symptoms will be

emphasized. Note the " shortness of breath " and " reluctance to speak

much " symptoms. When the Spleen is very weak, digestive system

symptoms will be emphasized.

 

If either the Spleen or the Lungs become weakened, in time this will

weaken the other and then the entire body. The Spleen and the Lungs

supply the Qi for the entire body. When Qi Deficiency has gone

untreated for some time, it is not uncommon for both Lung Qi

Deficiency and Spleen Qi Deficiency symptoms to be very pronounced.

 

One of the functions of Qi is to hold things in their proper course.

One of the symptoms of Qi Deficiency is what I call " leaks " -

excessive perspiration, diarrhea, incontinence, dribbling of urine,

etc. Incontinence not only is possible with Lung and Spleen Qi

Deficiency, it is probable. There actually are three mechanisms at

work in cases of urinary incontinence due to Lung and Spleen Qi

Deficiency. One of these is the lack of Qi to supply to the rest of

the body, including the Kidneys and Bladder. Another has to do with

the Spleen Qi's function of " lifting " . " Once deficient, the qi can no

longer lift properly and, lacking this support, the Urinary Bladder

is unable to retain fluids. " (Clavey, p. 96.)

 

A third mechanism has to do with the Spleen's function of

transforming and transporting water in the body. " Added to this is

the increased volume of fluids which impairment to the Spleen and

Lung fluid functions generates: these fluids pour down into the

Urinary Bladder and cause profuse clear urination, and also lead to

the tell-tale expectoration of clear thin mucus as these fluids well

upwards. " (Clavey, p. 96.)

 

When interviewing clients note if the periods of increased urination

also are occuring during times when the person's " allegies " worsen

and there is an increase in nasal mucus. If so, the probable Roots

for both are Spleen and Lung Qi Deficiency.

 

Another function of the Spleen is to " control " Blood and keep it in

its proper channels. If the Spleen is weak and unable to perform this

function, bleeding into tissues can result. Deficient Spleen Qi is

one of the possible Roots for blood in the urine. This bleeding can

occur without infection being present. The Root in this case is

Spleen Unable to Control Blood (a subclass of Spleen Qi Deficiency).

 

Urinary frequency, incontinence, and dribbling due to Spleen and Lung

Qi Deficiency will worsen when the person is overworked and sometimes

will clear up without herbs when the person gets more rest - provided

the diet is adequate. Overwork will damage the Spleen. Once the

person starts to get enough rest, the weakening assault on the Spleen

stops, and the urinary frequency, incontinence, and dribbling stop.

If the individual resumes over-doing, the frequent urination,

incontinence, and dribbling start again.

 

I have presented the 5 most common Roots of frequent urination as

though they occur separately. They can, but they also can occur in

combination. For example, in cases of long-term, chronic illness, it

is not uncommon for a person to be both Kidney Yang and Spleen Qi

Deficient. It's not uncommon in cases of chronic illness involving

Kidney imbalance and Spleen Qi Deficiency for Damp Heat (and

infection) to accumulate in the Bladder. Also, whenever a person is

Kidney Yang Deficient, the individual almost always is Kidney Yin

Deficient to a lesser degree. Whenever a person is Kidney Yin

Deficient, s/he also is Kidney Yang Deficient to a lesser degree.

 

A Complex Picture:

 

Sometimes when a person has been sick for sometime and both Kidney

Yang Deficiency and Spleen Qi Deficiency are present, the symptoms of

Lung and Spleen Qi Deficiency can be very pronounced. There may be

joint Dampness and Dryness symptoms. The Dryness primarily is

affecting the blood, and the red blood cell count may be elevated due

in part to the decreased blood volume. The symptoms of polycythemia

vera are present, but this is not necessarily true P.V. In order to

ease the breathing problems, the person must drink liquids in order

to increase blood volume. The problem is that anything the person

drinks is going straight through him or her. In extreme cases, the

person may be urinating every 15 minutes or less.

 

In some of these cases, the person will have a sore spot along the

spine in the area of the middle back (up a few inches from the

waist). There may be additional sore spots along the spine between

the shoulder blades and in the neck. If these sore spots are

massaged out or corrected with chiropractic or D.O. treatments, the

breathing problems and frequent urination will ease somewhat. The

underlying TCM imbalances still will have to be corrected in order to

cure the tendency to the problem, but the massage and/or chiropractic

treatments can bring immediate relief in some cases. In these cases,

in addition to Kidney and Spleen imbalances, there is almost certain

to be Liver imbalance as well.

 

Victoria

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