My experience in treating mental diseases (reformed variant)

kgar

A great experience!!!
Thank you very much Sophia!
You are indeed a SPECIALIST yourself and have VERY good experience. Moreover, you have made good generalization as well.
I would say a few words about my opinions on what you have done. It's only my feeling, not the comments,
To treat insomnia, you have mentioned acupoints Hegu (LI 4) and Zusanli (ST 36), I also suggest the combination between Hegu (LI 4) and Taichong (LR 3), which are known as the "Four-Gate points". So when you open the gate, there will be better running of air, so the Qi would move more smoothly. Apparently this is especially good for cases of Qi stagnation. For sure they are indeed helpful for those with hot temper. But for depression, they can also help.
For drug addiction, I think first of all is to calm down the mind. As we all know, the addiction is not only because of the physical effect of the drugs, but more because of the mental side.
For the chronic cases of epilepsy, I found that many cases are of the syndrome of Qi and blood deficiency or the hypoactivity of spleen and stomach thus there could be damp-phlegm, especially the phlegm. So the patient may look thin, but his/her complexion is pale, extremities cold, spirit low, and they may often feel dizzy. So, we should try to eliminate the phlegm, so please don't forget Fenglong (ST 40).
Ok, that's what I can say so far. Maybe I would tell more about my opinions later.
What's the opinions of the other friends?

kgar

I’m really happy to receive so flattering opinion!
Now I have even greater energy to work and to study.
Thank you for your comments, your experience is very important to me.
With respect to point Taichong (LR 3) it was actually the most useful point to treat insomnia for patients with hot temper and insomnia in a middle of the night. I’ll try to use it for depression as well. I’ll add to my arsenal your other comments too: about drug addiction (you are absolutely right!) and regarding point Fenglong (ST 40).
I’m waiting impatiently for new comments and censorious remark and still studying…

kgar

I also noticed that you take the time of the occurrence or seizures of diseases very much into your consideration! That's very good!
Many physicians of traditional Chinese medicine would ignore this point, so losing a important factor for the cure.
However, you'd better not be limited by the timing only, neither by the Five-Shu points, try to find your own experience, and take the Five-Shu points only as reference, for they are not as reliable as the books said.
It's only my personal opinion on the Five-Shu points, certainly there should be some different opinions against me, so all the comments and critisim are welcome!!! I don't mind being pasted with criticising comments and remarks!

kgar

First, thanks a lot for that great post, Sophia! I hope you don't mind me using your research to help people on my part of the world

I have a comment/inquiry.

In treating mental diseases I would also include the points on the second (outter) line of the Bladder channel. Specifically, points like Po Hu (BL42) for depression or depression-related insomnia, and Hun Men (BL47) for epilepsy, and the other points on that same line which have influence over the spiritual functions of the organs (po, hun, yi, zhi, and shen).

Considering the brain is related to the five organs through their spiritual functions, I would think such points would be very helpful, almost obligatory, for mental illnesses.

But reading the Dr. King's comment that the five shu points are not perfectly reliable, and neither Dr. M.H. nor Sophia mentioning them makes me think twice.

What are your thoughts on the "spiritual function" acupuncture points?

For mental diseases I use scalp acupuncture. It's the only thing I ever plan to use scalp acupuncture for (I still feel more comfortable with whole-body or ear acupuncture), but it seems to work well on mental/neurological diseases.

kgar

HI, Serpent,
Acupoints should be well indicated to the mental disorders, or the neurological diseases, but don't try to find the "spiritual functions" of them,
the spirit is mainly from you!
Scalp acupuncture is good for some neurological diseases.
Some conventional points are related with the spirit, but not all of them, and the ones on the second line of Bladder meridian don't mean anything definitely in connections with the spirit despite of the beautiful names of mentality of spirit.
Any other opinions on this point? All the comments are welcome.

kgar

[quote:78eb21f224="Feathered Serpent"]First, thanks a lot for that great post, Sophia! I hope you don't mind me using your research to help people on my part of the world

I have a comment/inquiry.

In treating mental diseases I would also include the points on the second (outter) line of the Bladder channel. Specifically, points like Po Hu (BL42) for depression or depression-related insomnia, and Hun Men (BL47) for epilepsy, and the other points on that same line which have influence over the spiritual functions of the organs (po, hun, yi, zhi, and shen).

Considering the brain is related to the five organs through their spiritual functions, I would think such points would be very helpful, almost obligatory, for mental illnesses.

But reading the Dr. King's comment that the five shu points are not perfectly reliable, and neither Dr. M.H. nor Sophia mentioning them makes me think twice.

What are your thoughts on the "spiritual function" acupuncture points?

For mental diseases I use scalp acupuncture. It's the only thing I ever plan to use scalp acupuncture for (I still feel more comfortable with whole-body or ear acupuncture), but it seems to work well on mental/neurological diseases.[/quote:78eb21f224]

Hi, Serpent,
Last night I thought of the toxins in the liver, resulting from the stagnation of liver Qi, but couldn't reason out how to explain it, and this morning I found out the clue, so I think the stagnation of liver Qi could be compared as the stagnant water in one place, so the water would become poisonous, and you see the poisonous water? So in the body it would become cancer.

kgar

Today in the morning (for me it’s a morning) I read post of Dr. King in Acupuncture Forum and thought that he is absolutely right.
My first education is biochemistry, so I know that liver is a center of biochemical reactions in the body: hormone synthesis and inactivation, poisonings inactivation and so on. Actually, when Liver Qi is stagnated, it becomes be poisonous. In the other hand, it is possible that tendency to increasing of cholesterol levels in the last time is not indication of “disease of our century”, but defense reaction in century of a stress. Cholesterol, which synthesizes in liver, is a basic molecule to steroid production, you know. So, may be physicians of Western medicine make a blunder trying to reduce cholesterol level too much without find out the root causes this. By the way syndrome of chronic fatigue with low cholesterol levels and signs of depression is known now (deficiency of Liver Qi?).

kgar

Dear Sophia,
It's so nice to see you new post!
I agree with you that there should be the deficiency of liver Qi. But at the moment in China, there is still debate on this point. Some physicians and scholars insist that there must be liver Qi deficiency and the others argue that liver Qi is never deficient, it should be the deficiency of Qi of other organs or it's only the liver blood deficiency.
Personally I had the experience of overdosed Qigong practice for soothing liver Qi. You know the so called soothing of liver Qi is a kind of reducing, so I know the feeling of what the liver Qi deficiency is.
Maybe some people don't believe me and have the opposit opinions, it's always to welcome the opposite remarks from our friends herein.

kgar

[quote:9541516f12="David King"]
Some physicians and scholars insist that there must be liver Qi deficiency and the others argue that liver Qi is never deficient, it should be the deficiency of Qi of other organs or it's only the liver blood deficiency.
[/quote:9541516f12]

I was taught the second theory, that liver Qi is never deficient.

But considering nothing in life is absolute (if are to believe the yin/yang theory), the Liver cannot be entirely and absolutely inclined towards excess. I always thought cases of liver Qi deficiency [i:9541516f12]had[/i:9541516f12] to exist, even if they were rare.

On the other hand, maybe in practice, a Liver Qi deficiency is so rare one could say it [i:9541516f12]practically[/i:9541516f12] (but not [i:9541516f12]absolutely[/i:9541516f12]) doesn't exist.

[quote:9541516f12="Sophia"]By the way syndrome of chronic fatigue with low cholesterol levels and signs of depression is known now (deficiency of Liver Qi?).[/quote:9541516f12]

Those symptoms indeed look like a deficiency of Qi, now that you mention it, Sophia. Maybe when the idea that Liver Qi deficiency was impossible came out, it was because very few people had those symptoms (not considering a low cholesterol level, of course, which I imagine nobody knew abour prior to the 20th century!) because stress was perhaps much lower before, say, the industrial revolution during the 19th century.

Could it be that the level of stress these days is higher than it's ever been in most of the history of humanity, so that a deficiency of Liver Qi is now actually fairly common?

So, in my opinion, there are three possibilities:
[list:9541516f12]
-Liver Qi deficiency exists, it is rare but must be taken into account.
-Liver Qi deficiency exists, but it is so rare it doesn't matter.
-Liver Qi deficiency exists. It wasn't very common before the 19th or 20th century, but now it definitely is.
[/list:u:9541516f12]

kgar

What about a first signs of physiologic aging, such as impaired vision, menopause, changes of liver functions in blood test? Aren’t they signs of liver Qi deficiency? And what is a difference between signs of liver Qi deficiency and liver blood deficiency?