Calm the Spirit and Nourish the Heart
Learn to calm the spirit and ensure a good nights sleep. This tutorial will focus upon the root causes of most sleep disorders and easy to use, self help techniques from Traditional Chinese Medicine. Learn acu-points and herbs for getting a good nights sleep.
What is going on
80% of all sleep disorders are caused by anxiety. Fear is of something real and anxiety is when the mind latches onto some imaginary. If you have fear of something you should do something about it. If there is nothing you can do about it you have to learn to let it go.
Consider the person laying in bed at 2 o’clock in the morning. They hear somebody jimmying open their window with a crow bar. This is real, fear is appropriate, the body releases adrenaline so you can fight or flight. Consider another person laying in bed every night worried that someday somebody might come beak in their window. This is imaginary but the adrenal glands don’t know the difference so they release adrenaline anyway and these anxieties can keep you up all night long.
Heart & Kidney Disharmony
In Chinese medicine anxiety causes the spirit to become agitated and disturbed. The spirit cannot settle down at night and wanders onto thinking about all kinds of imaginary troubles. Treatment is to calm spirit and nourish the heart.
Got a good book you are reading. One way to calm the spirit and nourish the heart is to keep a good book handy at all times. Reading is the simplest form of meditation and the easiest way to take your mind off the troubles of the day. More formal meditations like Qi breathing and the healing sounds meditations are even more powerful sleep aides.
Herbal Formulas
These formulas Calm the Spirit- Nourish the Heart and Calm the Spirit
An Mian Pian,
Suan Zao Ren,
Tian Wang Bu Xin Tang = Shen Disturbed
Huang Lian E Jiao Wan
Jiao Tai Wan
Zhu Sha An Shen Wan
Acupuncyure points that Calm the Spirit.
Spleen 6 “Three Yin Junction” Sanyinjiao Meeting point of 3 Lower Yin Meridians
Anmian Peaceful sleep on the back of the neck
Ht 7 Shen men Spirit Gate, calms spirit AND is a major point for insomnia, anxiety
Ht 5 Calms Spirit AND is for speaking difficulties like stuttering; also for bradycardia.
Pc 6 Calms Spirit AND helps nausea, vomiting, stomach and chest pain.
Kid 1 Calms Spirit AND is for reviving consciousness and shock, as well as seizures and psychosis.
St 40 Calms Spirit AND Transforms Phlegm & Dampness– for coughing and mucous
Tui Na Massage, all Back Shu Points, Hua to JIa jI
Additional Causes of Insomnia
Dual Deficiency of Heart & Kidney
Ever been so tired you could not sleep? In Chinese medicine this is a dual deficiency of heart and kidney’s. You are burning the candles at both ends and it will result in insomnia, poor memory, anorexia, sallow complexion, palpitations, dream disturbed sleep, lassitude, listlessness.
Nourishing Herbs
Ht & SP = Gui Pi Tang
Ht & GB (Timid) An Shen Ding Zhi Wan
Heart Yang Deficiency (hypersomnia, depression) Fu Zi Li Zhong Wan or Si Ni Tang
Liver Fire Blazing Upwards
A really stressful day, anger, frustration, resentment, leads to liver depression and the stagnant Qi flows upward causing dream disturbed sleep.
Stress Countering Herbs
Free and easy wanderer – Jia Wei Xiao Yao San/ also Fu Shen & Ye Jiao Teng,
Heart Fire Add Huang Lian & Dan Zhu Ye, Liver Qi Stagnation Add Yu Jin,
Phlegm Heat In Stomach
This type of insomnia is simply eating too much too late. Eat earlier in the evening or if you must snack late at night stick to light stuff. If you find yourself bloated and belching you need to harmonize the middle jiao.
Acupuncuture Point For Indigestion
Ren 12 “Middle Cavity” Zhongwan
Front Mu point of the Stomach
Influential Point for all Yang Organs
LOCATION: On the midline of the abdomen, 4 cun above the umbilicus
IMAGE: Anatomical reference to the Middle Jiao
FUNCTIONS: Regulates the Stomach Qi, Transforms & Suppresses rebellious Qi
Herbs for Indigestion
Wen Dan Tang + Shan Sha, Shen Qu, Mai Ya & Gu ya, Lai Fu zi Radish Seed if Constpated add Da Huang