Liver Qi Stagnation that transforms into Heat
The information provided here is not a replacement for a doctor. You shouldn't use it for the purpose of self-diagnosing or self-medicating but rather so you can have a more informed discussion with a professional TCM practitioner.
At a glance
Preliminary reading: What is a pattern?
Diagnosis
Common symptoms: Hernial pain Irritability Bitter taste in the mouth Intermittent epigastric pain Painful periods that get worse with hot food or drinks
Pulse type(s): Rapid (Shu), Wiry (Xian)
Tongue coating: Yellow coating
Tongue color: Red
Treatment
Common formulas: Jin Ling Zi San
Pathology
Liver Qi Stagnation that transforms into Heat is a pattern of disharmony in Chinese Medicine.
Chinese Medicine views the human body as a complex system that tends toward harmony. A pattern of disharmony is a disorder that prevents that harmony from occurring.
Patterns give rise to symptoms that may at first glance seem unrelated from a Western standpoint but that actually make a lot of sense when one understands Chinese Medicine theory. For instance here Liver Qi Stagnation that transforms into Heat gives rise to such diverse symptoms as intermittent epigastric pain, hernial pain, painful periods that get worse with hot food or drinks and irritability.
To diagnose a pattern, analyzing a patient's pulse as well as their tongue is common practice. In the case of Liver Qi Stagnation that transforms into Heat patients tend to exhibit rapid (Shu) or wiry (Xian) pulses as well as a red tongue with yellow coating.
Patterns aren't exactly the Chinese Medicine equivalent to Western diseases, they're rather the underlying causes behind diseases or health conditions. Here Liver Qi Stagnation that transforms into Heat is thought to sometimes induce conditions such as chronic gastritis, peptic ulcers, hepatitis or cholecystitis.
Diagnosing Liver Qi Stagnation that transforms into Heat
Diagnosing a pattern in Chinese Medicine is no easy feat and should be left to professional practitioners. In particular one has to know how to differentiate between different types of pulses and tongue coatings, shapes and colors as well as learn to read from a long list of seemingly unrelated symptoms.
Pulse type(s): Rapid (Shu) or wiry (Xian)
Tongue coating: Yellow coating
Tongue color: Red
Main symptoms: Hernial pain Irritability Bitter taste in the mouth Intermittent epigastric pain Painful periods that get worse with hot food or drinks
Treating Liver Qi Stagnation that transforms into Heat
Herbal formulas used to treat Liver Qi Stagnation that transforms into Heat
Jin Ling Zi San
Source date: 992 AD
Number of ingredients: 2 herbs
Key actions: Moves Liver Blood and Liver Qi. Drains Liver Heat or Fire. Stops pain.
Formula summary
Jin Ling Zi San is a 2-ingredient Chinese Medicine formula. Invented in 992 AD, it belongs to the category of formulas that promote Qi movement.
Besides Liver Qi Stagnation that transforms into Heat, Jin Ling Zi San is also used to treat Qi And Blood Stagnation.
Related conditions
Please keep in mind that a Western Medicine condition can be caused by several Chinese Medicine patterns of disharmony and vice versa. As such a patient suffering from one of the conditions below will not necessarily be suffering from Liver Qi Stagnation that transforms into Heat, it is just one pattern that's commonly associated with the condition. Click on a condition to learn what other patterns it's associated with.