Hysteria according to Chinese Medicine

In Chinese Medicine, hysteria is sometimes associated with Qi-Phlegm, a so-called "patterns of disharmony". Chinese Medicine sees the body as a system, not a sum of isolated parts. A "pattern" is when the system's harmony is disrupted. It is not equivalent to the Western concept of "disease" because both concepts arise from totally different ways of seeing the human body.

To understand whether someone's hysteria might be caused by the pattern Qi-Phlegm, one needs to look for signs and symptoms associated with the pattern beyond what one might typically experience from hysteria alone. Indeed if hysteria is caused by Qi-Phlegm, patients also experience symptoms such as difficulty swallowing, feeling of a lump in the throat which comes and goes and stuffiness of chest and diaphragm. Similarly, patients with Qi-Phlegm typically exhibit slippery (Hua) or wiry (Xian) pulses as well as a tongue with thick white coating.

We've listed below a more detailed description of Qi-Phlegm so that you can have a better understanding of where hysteria might find its root according to Chinese Medicine.

Once identified, patterns are often treated using herbal formulas. Drinking herbal infusions is the most common remedy in Chinese Medicine, together with acupuncture. Here we detail below five formulas that can help treat Qi-Phlegm.

Qi-Phlegm, a "pattern of disharmony" associated with hysteria

The five herbal formulas that might help with hysteria