Insomnia and Weak Liver

Thought this was an interesting read. I purchased the Chinese Bitters for myself to see if it will help..


from: http://sensiblehealth.com/Journey-07.xhtml


My Personal Journey of Healing
Julia Chang, MSc

7. Chinese medicine's view of Depression and Insomnia
Depression
Depression, a common symptom of stress, is an indication of blocked liver energy according to Chinese medicine. Some prescription drugs such as tranquilizers, sleeping pills, and anti-histamines are known to possibly cause Depression because these medications weaken the liver. A Chinese herb, Curcuma (Yu-Jin), is helpful for Depression because it unblocks liver energy. As a matter of fact, Yu-Jin means "gold for depression" in Chinese. Curcuma is also helpful in stimulating energy circulation and resolving blood clots or bruises. Curcuma works better when it is taken in conjunction with Chinese Bitters to decongest the liver.

Depression is also common among individuals who have their gallbladders removed or whose gallbladders are loaded with stones. When the gallbladder is loaded with stones, there is limited space or even no space left for bile storage. The bile that is produced in the liver ends up getting congested in the liver causing energy blockage. Anyone without a gallbladder is in the same situation. Bile is forced to stay and become congested in the liver leading to depression.

A good example of how depression can be caused and cured would be a 31-year old man who suffered from depression for years. He took a lot of Antibiotics as a child for his tonsillitis (most medications, including Antibiotics , tend to weaken the liver). By the time he was in school he was hyperactive and was prescribed Ritalin. At age 25, he became very depressed and was on various anti-depressant medications for 5 years, to no avail. At 31, he started with Chinese Bitters and Curcuma first. When he experienced significant relief in his symptoms in only a few weeks, he decided to do the complete program of liver and gallbladder cleansing. His depression never returned after he cleansed his liver and gallbladder.

There was also a case of a 62 year old woman. She woke up one morning feeling very depressed. She tried Y-Dan exercises and her depression went away. I explained to her that her depression must have been caused by her "blocked liver energy" (to use the Chinese medicine terminology) due to blood retention in her liver. Y-Dan exercises helped her to clear this congestion, improve her general blood circulation, and unblock her liver energy.

According to Chinese medicine, the liver works hard at night to filter the blood. A substantial amount of blood may be retained in the liver upon waking in the morning if the liver is sluggish. Therefore, morning exercises will help get this blood moving and "activate" the liver. It does not have to be any particular kind of exercise, so long as it involves a lot of deep breathing and stretching. Y-Dan is an example of a low-impact morning exercise that meets these criteria.

Insomnia
I always needed a lot of sleep from the days of my teenage years although I had no problem falling asleep in those days. I had too much sleep but I never felt refreshed. Looking back, I realize that too much sleep and yet never being able to feel refreshed is an early sign of liver and spleen weakness. As the years went by, in my late 30's, I had problems falling asleep and would wake up several times every night. I was told that was part of the aging process.

According to Chinese medicine chronic sleep disorders are usually caused by "Yin-Yang" imbalance resulting from a weak liver, spleen, heart or kidneys. Since these organs affect one another, they all have to be taken care of, especially the heart and the liver. According to Chinese medicine, the liver filters all our blood through the night, especially between 1-3 am. A weak or congested liver means that it has to struggle through the night. Poor quality sleep or even insomnia may result in more severe cases.

With my organs healthier, they are more in harmony. I sleep well now and rarely have to get up at night even though I am over 60. Best of all I feel refreshed in the morning. For people with sleep problems, taking the Chinese herbal tinctures Chinese Bitters in the morning and Coptis at night has been found to be very helpful in improving the quality of sleep. For some people, taking Curcuma at night instead of Coptis may be more effective.

A 57-year old man came to see me a few years ago with sleep problem. He took painkillers regularly for 6 years for his pain after a car accident. He woke up every morning at around 2 am. He had no more problem sleeping after cleansing and detoxifying his liver with Chinese Bitters and Coptis in addition to daily morning exercise.

Stress congests the liver and constricts the blood vessels. It causes poor blood flow and the whole body becomes sluggish. Furthermore, it is believed in Chinese medicine that anger (especially suppressed anger) injures the liver, grief injures the lungs, fear or fright injures the kidneys and worry injures the spleen. As mentioned earlier, all these organs support each other and work together. Disharmonies in one of these organs tend to produce an imbalance in the corresponding emotions and vice versa.

According to Chinese medicine, cold and raw vegetables such as salads tend to weaken the spleen unless the individuals who consume them are robust and strong ("Yang" type person). This could be the reason why many vegetarians look pale because of their weak spleen although Vitamin B12 deficiency may also be responsible. Also, most vegetarians eat a lot of salad, even though cooked vegetables are better to eat. One of the common signs of weak spleen is dry lips or frequent thirst. Chronic diarrhea or loose bowel may be another sign of weak spleen. Since the spleen is an important organ for red cell production, weak spleen is a common cause of anemia, especially in cases that do not respond to iron supplements.

I suffered from heart palpitations since my early teenage years. I fainted for the first time in my life in school at the age of eleven. It was due to a hereditary weak heart according to the doctor who saw me. He warned me that I might faint easily throughout my life. He was right in that prediction: I fainted more than 10 times in my life. But I have not fainted again ever since the health of my liver was restored at age 47, and my heart palpitations disappeared as well.

When my liver became healthier my vision also improved and is actually better than it was in 1989 when I was still suffering from liver congestion. I had never used eyeglasses at any time during my life and I still don't need them. The Chinese have a saying: "The liver opens into the eyes. When the liver is harmonized, the eyes can distinguish the five colors". Clean and nutrient-rich blood from a healthy, efficient liver can flow easily and nourish the eye tissues better. Stimulation of blood flow to the eyes by massaging also helps. I massage the pressure points for blood circulation to the eyes twice daily, morning and night when I lie flat in bed. In this position blood does not have to flow against gravity.

I am in my mid-60s now and I can still read without reading glasses, although I do have difficulty reading very small print.