But, a side effect is it has made me a little sluggish and triphala and bitters do not seem to help.
I remember you say certain herbs need to be mixed with something to maintain the intestinal moisture, but I can't remember or find which herb you recommend. Was it yucca?
Yucca is one. Slippery elm, marshmallow root or even seaweeds will also work.
Or what is used to combat herbs that cause sluggishness?
I would try herbs high in B vitamins first such as pollen or nutritional yeast.
Actually had a question about slippery elm and marshmallow. Do they need to be boiled to get their full benefit, or will the powder just mixed in water work for their moisture effect?
It really does not matter. Boiling will help form a mucilage ahead of time, which is great if you want to soothe a sore throat. But if you are only using it as an intestinal moisturizer then it does not need to be boiled first.
I wonder if the chang shan depletes B-vitamins.
Not sure, there does not seem to be a lot of information available on this herb.