What imbalance is this? Itchy throat, stuffed nose...

[Guest guest]

for the past few nights during my sleep, around 2-3am. My throat or

tonsils area itchs so much that it awakens me. I have to gargle with

mint mouthwash to give temporary relief for the itchiness. This is

accompanied by itchy skin on both sides of mouth and stuffed nose.

funny thing is, I don't experience these during daytime or maybe too

mild to notice it.

 

I tried drinking more water before I sleep thinking maybe its because

my throat is dry but it didn't help.

 

can anyone help me diagnose what kind of imbalance is this? are there

natural food/fruits I can try before trying herbs?

 

thanks,

marilyn

[Guest guest]

Hi Marilyn,

 

2-3 am suggests an 'excessive' (ie, overexcited) liver, possibly the result of

windy weather.

Whether this is the actual imbalance is another matter -- for that you need to

consult a

TCM practitioner. In the mean time, you can try some simple dietary remedies.

 

To calm the liver, eat some spicy food (containing any spice, from cinnamon to

chili) or

pungent food (containing onion, garlic, ginger, mustard, basil, parsley, etc.,

but not mint

or other herbs with a strong cooling taste). I don't know whether gargling with

mint has

the same effect as eating mint, but I'd try to find something else, just in

case. Also reduce

sour foods and salty foods.

 

Pick whatever appeals and stop if it makes you feel worse.

 

Be well!

Ariel

 

------

Ariel Frailich

Ginseng Press, publisher of " The Chinese Almanac "

http://www.ginsengpress.com

 

 

Chinese Traditional Medicine , " emailme_marilyn " <emailme_marilyn

wrote:

>

> for the past few nights during my sleep, around 2-3am. My throat or

> tonsils area itchs so much that it awakens me. I have to gargle with

> mint mouthwash to give temporary relief for the itchiness. This is

> accompanied by itchy skin on both sides of mouth and stuffed nose.

> funny thing is, I don't experience these during daytime or maybe too

> mild to notice it.

>

> I tried drinking more water before I sleep thinking maybe its because

> my throat is dry but it didn't help.

>

> can anyone help me diagnose what kind of imbalance is this? are there

> natural food/fruits I can try before trying herbs?

>

> thanks,

> marilyn

[Guest guest]

Why not mint (Bo He in Chinese medicine)?

It is not very cooling and it does help to relieve a stagnant liver

 

Guy

 

 

2007/5/17, Ariel Frailich <ariel:

>

> Hi Marilyn,

>

>

> To calm the liver, eat some spicy food (containing any spice, from

> cinnamon to chili) or

> pungent food (containing onion, garlic, ginger, mustard, basil, parsley,

> etc., but not mint

> or other herbs with a strong cooling taste

>

 

 

 

> ).

>

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

mint is drying, each herb has contraindications you need to read bensky's before

deciding on what herbs to use and then read the dui yao about combining them

 

Guy Sedan <guysedan wrote: Why not mint (Bo He in Chinese

medicine)?

It is not very cooling and it does help to relieve a stagnant liver

 

Guy

 

2007/5/17, Ariel Frailich <ariel:

>

> Hi Marilyn,

>

>

> To calm the liver, eat some spicy food (containing any spice, from

> cinnamon to chili) or

> pungent food (containing onion, garlic, ginger, mustard, basil, parsley,

> etc., but not mint

> or other herbs with a strong cooling taste

>

 

> ).

>

 

 

[Guest guest]

Hi Guy,

 

If liver is excessive, I'd avoid cooling foods as much as possible

(Water generates Wind). Having said that, there are far worse

offenders than mint, indeed.

 

All the best!

Ariel

 

------

Ariel Frailich

Ginseng Press, publisher of " The Chinese Almanac "

http://www.ginsengpress.com

 

 

On May 17, 2007, at 6:35, Guy Sedan wrote:

 

> Why not mint (Bo He in Chinese medicine)?

> It is not very cooling and it does help to relieve a stagnant liver

>

> Guy

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

Hi Ariel,

I don't know if mint is the correct herb for Marilyn, but you wrote that

mint is not recommended for a stagnant liver. I tend to disagree with you

statement " that one should avoid cooling foods (herbs) " . Both mint (Bo He)

and bupleurum are cooling herbs that are used in " Xiao Yao San " , one of the

main formulas to sooth the liver. Since Liver Qi stagnation usually causes

the Liver to warm up, the herbs most used to relieve the liver are pungent

and cooling.

 

Guy

 

 

 

2007/5/17, Ariel Frailich <ariel:

>

> Hi Guy,

>

> If liver is excessive, I'd avoid cooling foods as much as possible

> (Water generates Wind). Having said that, there are far worse

> offenders than mint, indeed.

>

> All the best!

> Ariel

>

> ------

> Ariel Frailich

> Ginseng Press, publisher of " The Chinese Almanac "

> http://www.ginsengpress.com

>

> On May 17, 2007, at 6:35, Guy Sedan wrote:

>

> > Why not mint (Bo He in Chinese medicine)?

> > It is not very cooling and it does help to relieve a stagnant liver

> >

> > Guy

>

>

[Guest guest]

One of the first things to rule in or rule out is if your AC is making

the air too dry in your bedroom. Air that is too dry can trigger an

itchy throat and a stuffy nose. If this is a possibility, you might

want to experiment with during the AC up to a higher setting at night.

 

An itchy throat often is a symptom of Wind Heat Invasion. A stuffy or

runny nose, cough, occipital stiffness and pain can be symptoms of Wind

Heat Invasion or Wind Cold Invasion. (Keep in mind that when Cold

becomes trapped it can transform into Heat.)

 

BUT, the fact that this is waking you up around 2-3 am points to Liver

involvement. 1 - 3 am is the time of maximum activity in the Liver

meridian, and the Liver can display some very strong symptoms at this

time. (Also keep in mind that the Liver is particularly vulnerable to

Wind.)

 

Do you sleep in a draft? Are you exposed to a draft for any length of

time during the day? Like at your work station. Drafts from ACs, fans,

heating systems, and even hair dryers are forms of Wind. An artificial

source but still Wind.

 

How often do you wash your bedspread (or other top bed clothes) and

your bedroom curtains? In some sensitive individuals dust (and/or pet

hair or dandruff) on a bedspread or curtains can trigger an itchy

throat and even coughing and sneezing. The bedspread and curtains may

appear clean and there's no obvious dust on them, but enough has

accumulated that sensitive individuals can be affected. If you don't

wash your bedspread every time you wash your sheets, try this and see

if there's any relief.

 

Usually when an individual is having problems with dust or other

allergens collecting, the syptoms start when the person first comes to

bed or shortly thereafter. But in your case they're coming at 2-3 am,

the time of maximum Liver activity. So what is there about the Liver

that could account for some of the symptoms you're having?

 

One function of the Liver is that it stores the Blood when a person is

at rest. A person can be mildly Blood Deficient and the symptoms aren't

that great during the day while all the Blood is circulating in the

system. BUT, when the person is at rest and the Liver stores some of

the Blood, Blood Deficiency symptoms can appear that don't appear

during the day. Keep in mind that even though the usual cause of

susceptibility to Wind Cold or Wind Heat Invasion or invasion by any

other external Pernicious Evil is weak or Deficient Protective Qi,

Blood Deficiency and/or Kidney Yang Deficiency also can play a role in

the person being susceptible to Pernicious Evils in the environment. As

a general rule, the person is going to tend to be the most vulnerable

to the Pernivious Evils that already exist in the Interior (the trunk

of the body, the Organs). For example, if there's already Interior

Wind, the person is going to tend to be very sensitive to Wind in the

environment. If the person already is too Cold in the Interior, the

person is going to tend to be most affected by Cold in the environment.

Etc.

 

Something else to keep in mind about the Liver is that when it's

too " active " (and the Liver is the most active between 1-3 am), it

can " Invade " the Stomach or Spleen. The itching around the sides of the

mouth causes me to wonder if there's some Stomach involvement. Do you

have a snack before going to bed, and if so how late? The Stomach and

Spleen can be Invaded by the Liver because the Liver is too active,

because the Stomach and Spleen are too weak, or because of a

combination of the two. In some people, when the stomach (note the

small case " s " - the anatomical organ) is empty (or too full), this

weakens the Stomach, and the Liver can Invade.

 

Yhese are just possibilities. A TCM healer in person can determine

which imbalances are present and operating.

 

Chinese Traditional Medicine , " emailme_marilyn "

<emailme_marilyn wrote:

>

> for the past few nights during my sleep, around 2-3am. My throat or

> tonsils area itchs so much that it awakens me. I have to gargle with

> mint mouthwash to give temporary relief for the itchiness. This is

> accompanied by itchy skin on both sides of mouth and stuffed nose.

> funny thing is, I don't experience these during daytime or maybe too

> mild to notice it.

>

> I tried drinking more water before I sleep thinking maybe its because

> my throat is dry but it didn't help.

>

> can anyone help me diagnose what kind of imbalance is this? are there

> natural food/fruits I can try before trying herbs?

[Guest guest]

Also check the filter on your AC window unit or central AC unit. The

fact that the symptoms have appeared in the spring during the time when

people are switching over to their AC units causes me to wonder about

this possibility.

[Guest guest]

Hi Guy,

 

I'm afraid you're putting words into my keyboard! I didn't claim that mint isn't

recommended for a stagnant liver. My point is that, according to Five-element

theory

(applied only to nutrition here), Water generates Wind -- cooling foods increase

liver

energy, so they're best avoided, at least until the problem is properly

diagnosed. That --

and treatment -- is up to the TCM practitioner.

 

In any case, it's highly unlikely that mint (or other cooling foods) in the diet

is going to

diminish the symptoms if the diet is otherwise inappropriate for the condition.

 

I just noticed one other thing:

 

Chinese Traditional Medicine , " Guy Sedan " <guysedan wrote:

 

>I tend to disagree with you

> statement " that one should avoid cooling foods (herbs) " .

 

Could it be that you mistook my culinary use of the word 'herbs' here for its

medical

meaning?

 

All the best!

Ariel

 

------

Ariel Frailich

Ginseng Press, publisher of " The Chinese Almanac "

http://www.ginsengpress.com

[Guest guest]

Sorry if I misunderstood you. My response was to you previous quote :

" To calm the liver, eat some spicy food (containing any spice, from cinnamon

to chili) or

pungent food (containing onion, garlic, ginger, mustard, basil, parsley,

etc., but not mint

or other herbs with a strong cooling taste). "

 

I never heard of " Water Generating Wind " . Usually tonifying the water

element (Kidneys) also tonifies the Liver and prevents Liver wind, as the

old Chinese adage says " The Liver and the Kidney share the same root " .

 

Should there be a distinction between the culinary herbs and the herbal

medicine. Chinese medicine does not make such a distinction. Regular food

affects the body like herbs but has a milder influence.

 

 

 

2007/5/18, Ariel Frailich <ariel:

>

> Hi Guy,

>

> I'm afraid you're putting words into my keyboard! I didn't claim that mint

> isn't

> recommended for a stagnant liver. My point is that, according to

> Five-element theory

> (applied only to nutrition here), Water generates Wind -- cooling foods

> increase liver

> energy, so they're best avoided, at least until the problem is properly

> diagnosed. That --

> and treatment -- is up to the TCM practitioner.

>

> In any case, it's highly unlikely that mint (or other cooling foods) in

> the diet is going to

> diminish the symptoms if the diet is otherwise inappropriate for the

> condition.

>

> I just noticed one other thing:

>

> Chinese Traditional Medicine <Chinese Traditional Medicine%40>,

> " Guy Sedan " <guysedan wrote:

>

> >I tend to disagree with you

> > statement " that one should avoid cooling foods (herbs) " .

>

> Could it be that you mistook my culinary use of the word 'herbs' here for

> its medical

> meaning?

>

 

 

 

 

 

 

All the best!

> Ariel

>

> ------

> Ariel Frailich

> Ginseng Press, publisher of " The Chinese Almanac "

> http://www.ginsengpress.com

>

>

>

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

Hi Guy,

 

Chinese Traditional Medicine , " Guy Sedan " <guysedan wrote:

 

> I never heard of " Water Generating Wind " . Usually tonifying the water

> element (Kidneys) also tonifies the Liver and prevents Liver wind, as the

> old Chinese adage says " The Liver and the Kidney share the same root " .

 

Ouch! I'm sorry, that should have been 'Water generates Wood' Does that make

more sense

now?

 

> Should there be a distinction between the culinary herbs and the herbal

> medicine. Chinese medicine does not make such a distinction. Regular food

> affects the body like herbs but has a milder influence.

 

I thought it would be obvious given the context and the audience, but I'll try

to be more

clear in future writings.

 

All the best!

Ariel

 

------

Ariel Frailich

Ginseng Press, publisher of " The Chinese Almanac "

http://www.ginsengpress.com