Obviously this could be due to a myriad of reasons in Western medicine, but as an acupuncturist and herbalist I thought I would give you the take on it in Chinese medicine.
Chinese diagnosis is vastly different to western medicine and often sounds more like a weather report than anything to do with illness, because we view the human body as a part of and extension of the natural landscape around us. For example, somebody who is always hot, has a red face and dry skin would be said to be suffering from Heat (like Heat in the desert) and someone who has joints that seize up when the weather gets colder would be suffering from the slowing down and constriction that is caused by Cold (like water that slows then turns to ice causing movement to stop until it warms up again).
In your case, you seem to be suffering fromLiver Qi Stagnation and 'Phlegm-Dampness'. The former takes a lot of explaining that would sound really strange to anyone not involved in TCM, but I'd be happy to explain more if you are interested. The Phlegm-Dampness is a kind of water-logging of the system when your digestion is not as good as it could be. This can manifest as a constant runny nose without actually having a cold, or constantly needing to clear your throat. If the 'dampness' goes to a different part of the body, it can manifest as being over-weight, or oedema in the lower legs or face or of muzzy-headedness. Typically the person would have had a lot on their mind either from studying or excessive worrying about someone or something. The thoughts would go round and round their head but without a resolution being found that would allow them to move on. It is also common for a sense of the head being full of 'cotton wool' or of a lack of clarity in thinking. Overall, 'Dampness' is like wading through treacle instead of swimming through clear water - being weighed down by things, having a heavy feeling in the limbs and 'plodding' and the sense of taste might be lessened so the person would have a preference for strong flavoured foods rather than subtle flavours, and most definitely a sweet tooth and possible a preference for convenience/junk food!! It will be worsened by spicy foods such as curry or acidic foods. It is also likely to be worse when you are lying down, or when you first get up from lying down and you may like to consider having extra pillows to prop you up.
The Liver Qi Stagnation is a big issue but broadly speaking it is massively aggravated by stressful situations involving anger and frustration or equally by repressed anger and frustration. I would strongly advise you to get the Liver Qi moving by undertaking exercise that is appropriate for your ability but tat will get your blood pumping around faster than usual. Also, I would advise breathing exercises that completely fill your lungs - as the diaphragm expands and contracts it kind of massages your internal organs and improves the circulation around them as well as improving oxygenation.
I don't know whether any of this applies to you at all, but thought it may be an interesting insight to how Chinese medicine would view it. It will improve with things such as cardamon being used in cooking, and it will most definitely be worse if you have cheese and dairy products. Barley is a good food to add to casseroles to help improve the root cause of the problem.
This is the most common cause in Chinese medicine, but as with anything, there can be lots of other causes and without doing a full diagnosis I couldn't say for sure. If you want to look it up further, research 'Spleen Qi Xu' and 'Liver Qi Stagnation'. Acupuncture and herbal medicine could definitely help you, so if you want to look for a practitioner in your area contact the British Acupuncture Council or the Register for Chinese Herbal Medicine who are the two main bodies in the UK that govern the profession.
All the best!
Simone
Chinese diagnosis is vastly different to western medicine and often sounds more like a weather report than anything to do with illness, because we view the human body as a part of and extension of the natural landscape around us. For example, somebody who is always hot, has a red face and dry skin would be said to be suffering from Heat (like Heat in the desert) and someone who has joints that seize up when the weather gets colder would be suffering from the slowing down and constriction that is caused by Cold (like water that slows then turns to ice causing movement to stop until it warms up again).
In your case, you seem to be suffering fromLiver Qi Stagnation and 'Phlegm-Dampness'. The former takes a lot of explaining that would sound really strange to anyone not involved in TCM, but I'd be happy to explain more if you are interested. The Phlegm-Dampness is a kind of water-logging of the system when your digestion is not as good as it could be. This can manifest as a constant runny nose without actually having a cold, or constantly needing to clear your throat. If the 'dampness' goes to a different part of the body, it can manifest as being over-weight, or oedema in the lower legs or face or of muzzy-headedness. Typically the person would have had a lot on their mind either from studying or excessive worrying about someone or something. The thoughts would go round and round their head but without a resolution being found that would allow them to move on. It is also common for a sense of the head being full of 'cotton wool' or of a lack of clarity in thinking. Overall, 'Dampness' is like wading through treacle instead of swimming through clear water - being weighed down by things, having a heavy feeling in the limbs and 'plodding' and the sense of taste might be lessened so the person would have a preference for strong flavoured foods rather than subtle flavours, and most definitely a sweet tooth and possible a preference for convenience/junk food!! It will be worsened by spicy foods such as curry or acidic foods. It is also likely to be worse when you are lying down, or when you first get up from lying down and you may like to consider having extra pillows to prop you up.
The Liver Qi Stagnation is a big issue but broadly speaking it is massively aggravated by stressful situations involving anger and frustration or equally by repressed anger and frustration. I would strongly advise you to get the Liver Qi moving by undertaking exercise that is appropriate for your ability but tat will get your blood pumping around faster than usual. Also, I would advise breathing exercises that completely fill your lungs - as the diaphragm expands and contracts it kind of massages your internal organs and improves the circulation around them as well as improving oxygenation.
I don't know whether any of this applies to you at all, but thought it may be an interesting insight to how Chinese medicine would view it. It will improve with things such as cardamon being used in cooking, and it will most definitely be worse if you have cheese and dairy products. Barley is a good food to add to casseroles to help improve the root cause of the problem.
This is the most common cause in Chinese medicine, but as with anything, there can be lots of other causes and without doing a full diagnosis I couldn't say for sure. If you want to look it up further, research 'Spleen Qi Xu' and 'Liver Qi Stagnation'. Acupuncture and herbal medicine could definitely help you, so if you want to look for a practitioner in your area contact the British Acupuncture Council or the Register for Chinese Herbal Medicine who are the two main bodies in the UK that govern the profession.
All the best!
Simone
