I Can Talk to the Internal Organs-Chapter 73 - 66: The Definition of Health

"Dr. Lu, why do I feel a bit of warmth in my chest?"

"Is it dry heat or warm heat?"

"Hmm~ warm, and quite comforting."

"Okay, today’s acupuncture treatment will end here. I’ll prescribe some medicine for you."

The warmth indicates that it isn’t an evil heat, so the purpose of tonifying and reducing has been achieved.

The Heart Yang has returned, so now we will use medication to replenish Wei Jun’s Qi and blood.

Even though Wei Jun looks bulky now, don’t assume he doesn’t need replenishing. Many people are actually experiencing virtual obesity, like overexertion-induced fatigue which results in over-fatigue weight gain.

It’s like your body parts are originally designed to support a normal operation of one hundred forty pounds, but when you reach one eighty or two hundred, the parts operate under overload. Over time, this causes severe wear and tear, naturally leading to signs of deficiency.

This time, Lu Jiu didn’t prescribe the Liver Detox and Cooling Formula for Wei Jun, but rather the Carefree Powder.

The main function of the Liver Detox and Cooling Formula is to clear heat and eliminate dampness, soothe the liver, and unblock collaterals, whereas Carefree Powder functions to soothe the liver, relieve depression, nourish blood, and strengthen the spleen.

Obviously, the latter is more suitable for Wei Jun’s exhibited symptoms.

Approaching the medicine cabinet, Lu Jiu began to prepare the herbs.

Baked licorice, Danggui, Poria, white peony, Atractylodes, Bupleurum Root, ginger, mint.

In this formula, Bupleurum Root is the monarch herb, functioning to soothe the liver and relieve depression, and harmonize the interior and exterior. White peony and Danggui are minister herbs; when used together, they nourish blood, soften the liver, and regulate Qi. Atractylodes, Poria, baked licorice, mint, and ginger are adjuvant herbs, focusing on supporting the righteous Qi.

During the process of expelling evils with medication, it is very easy to damage the righteous Qi, just like how taking medicine can deplete Yang. This righteous Qi is essentially our spleen and stomach Qi; with liver Qi acting abnormally against the spleen earth, if the liver isn’t well, the spleen can’t escape the influence, so treating the liver must be concurrent with strengthening the spleen.

Atractylodes, Poria, and baked licorice are precisely components of the Four Harmony Formula, a classic spleen-strengthening formula. Using these three as adjuvant herbs in Carefree Powder can strengthen the spleen, eliminate dampness, preserve Qi, and harmonize the stomach. Lastly, mint and ginger, as agents, disseminate lung Qi and disperse liver Qi congestion.

After preparing the herbs, Lu Jiu handed them to Wei Jun.

"Here is the medicine, keep it safe. After drinking it, record your body’s reactions yourself, such as how your sleep was, whether your pain lessened, if your bowel movements were easier, etc. Keep a daily log; it can serve as data for your gradual recovery," Lu Jiu said.

In traditional Chinese medicine, observing the human body is very detailed, especially concerning health and illness states, with strict standards at a macro level.

Simply put, traditional Chinese medicine categorizes human conditions into three levels. The first is health, which is the state of not being sick; in this state, our body is in a yin-yang balance, able to eat, sleep, and move without any discomfort, with all five viscera and six bowels functioning without issues.

The second level is having symptoms; it could be a cough, insomnia, acne, body pain, any discomfort manifesting from normally unnoticed issues, indicating the body’s five viscera and six bowels are starting to malfunction.

In traditional Chinese medicine, this is called yin-yang imbalance. These symptoms might arise from emotions, nutrition, or weather factors. At this level, most people experience deficiency symptoms, some of which can be measured by instruments, like a fever caused by a failure of protective Qi to consolidate, and some that can’t be measured, like spleen deficiency-induced diarrhea—and this level is also known as sub-health.

If we have symptoms, and the body constitution is relatively good, these ailments may gradually disappear over time. However, some symptoms are stubborn; if ignored or improperly treated, they start to evolve into the third level—illness. Typically, unresolved deficiency symptoms transform into excess symptoms, like cold-damp obstruction causing vascular blockages, stones, polyps, or even cancers, known as organic lesions in modern medicine. At this step, instruments can usually detect them.

Of course, traditional Chinese medicine isn’t incapable of treating illnesses, but compared to the stage with symptoms, once an illness sets in, especially challenging excess symptoms, less proficient practitioners really have no means. That’s why traditional Chinese medicine emphasizes not treating the illness but preventing it. After symptoms arise, seeking traditional Chinese medicine, even if not encountering the top practitioners, can yield good results. Still, once it reaches the excess stage, finding an exceptionally skilled practitioner becomes essential, relying then on personal luck and fortune, as there are very few traditional Chinese medicine experts nationwide capable of treating excess symptoms, especially for malignant ones like tumors or cancer, where proficient practitioners in this field are even rarer.

By employing this macro health standard, traditional Chinese medicine can use the patient’s feelings to judge if the treatment direction is correct. As long as the patient progresses from initial discomfort to being able to eat, drink, walk, and sleep without any unease, it signifies treatment completion.

As for the patient’s blood lipid, blood pressure, or blood sugar levels, their highs and lows are irrelevant, because precise data can’t replace each patient’s personal "feelings."

"Dr. Lu, should this medicine be taken after meals?" Li Xiaxia asked.

"Oh, almost forgot to mention, this medicine should be taken before meals," Lu Jiu said.

The Shennong’s Materia Medica records, "If the disease is above the diaphragm, take after food; if below the heart and abdomen, take before food; if in the limbs and blood vessels, an empty stomach in the morning is recommended; if in the bones and marrow, a full stomach at night is advised."

This actually represents the ancient methods of drug administration adapted to changes in the environment and the functionality of the body’s five viscera.

In the morning, when Yang Qi is rising, the stomach and duodenum contain no food, allowing the medicine to quickly reach the intestines for optimal efficacy. For those with ailments in the limbs and blood vessels, medications such as Yang Replenishing, Qi

augmenting, and cold dispelling formulas are best taken in the morning, leveraging the strong Yang of the day, along with the rising Yang Qi of the body for efficacy.

For ailments below the chest and abdomen, like diseases of the stomach, spleen, liver, and kidneys, pre-meal consumption aids in absorption.

For diseases above the diaphragm, like with the heart and lungs, post-meal medication benefits from the obstructive effect of food in the middle burner, directing medicine to the upper burner for optimal efficacy treating illnesses like colds, coughs, headaches, and chest obstruction.

For bone marrow issues or long-standing, deep-seated disease that has reached the essence and vitality level, full evening dosing utilizes the body’s natural energy ideation for deep penetrative efficacy.

If someone takes medicine just three times a day without regard for timing, the medication might not achieve its full efficacy when taken.

Previously, Lu Jiu forgot about this, but Li Xiaxia’s question reminded him to tell patients exactly when to take the medicine for future instructions.

"Oh, okay. Dr. Lu, then can we take this medicine after returning home?" Li Xiaxia asked.

"Yes," Lu Jiu replied.

"Dr. Lu, how much is it?" Li Xiaxia asked.

"The consultation fee is fifty yuan, acupuncture is thirty, the prescription is nine yuan and three cents, totaling eighty-nine yuan and three cents," Lu Jiu replied.

Not even a hundred?

Li Xiaxia and her companion slightly hesitated.

Is this... not just charity work?