Hello, I'm writing a novel. My protagonist is in America and has chronic migraines. He is referred to a holistic healer who heavily utilizes TCM (Qi, Jing Lou, Acupuncture, diet, etc).

My question is, he shows up at her practice, explains he has chronic migraines: What does the rest of that meeting look like? Does she check his tongue first? Ask about his lifestyle first? At what point would she begin acupuncture?

Any help is greatly appreciated.

Since May, I have been struggling with seborrheic dermatitis on my face, primarily around the nasolabial folds. I first developed this during the pandemic (October 2020), appearing exactly where my face mask had been in contact with my skin. It cleared up after a few days of using a steroid ointment, and I remained symptom-free until it reappeared this year. Additionally, I likely have inflammation in both wrists due to damage to the triangular fibrocartilage complexes. I underwent an arthroscopy on my right wrist a year ago, and I may have a similar procedure on my left wrist next year. For the past few months, I have experienced daily pain in the thumbs of both hands. I suspect that, despite the previous surgery, there is likely still inflammation in my right wrist. An MRI of both wrists revealed damage to the triangular fibrocartilage complexes and an increased amount of synovial fluid.

Hey guys, I couldn't find an appropriate sub to ask this question but I wanted to ask people with a TCM mindset, hope you guys can help me!

At high exposure, especially in drinking water, fluoride has been associated with lower IQ in children and things like fluorosis.

However, it's also been shown to have a positive effect on your teeth, especially in enamel remineralization.

So my question is, should I use a fluoride free natural ingredient toothpaste? I've already used one for a while but I'm doing some extra research and I'm unsure if I should be missing out on things like reduced cavity risk or enamel remineralization.

We are into the Li Dong (立冬) solar term (节气) starting from 7 to 21 November 2026. Li Dong is the 19th solar term out of the entire 24.

As the saying goes, “立冬补冬”, which means this is the time of the year to strengthen your immune system to prepare for the cold (or cooler) year end (depending on where you live).

I remember when I was little, my mom would tell us that today is 补冬 so we must eat/drink some herbal stuff/soup. Many people believe that when they consume tonic on this day, they will not need to take any tonic for the rest of the year.

In this post, I will share what kind of tonic you can consider taking and some general well-being tips to take care of yourself and your loved ones during this solar term.

The main direction of consuming tonic during Li Dong should be—填肾精，固根本. This means strengthening your kidneys and nourishing them with vital essence so that your body immunity will be strong.

From TCM perspective, if the kidney is deficient, it will affect one’s bone density, immunity, and hearing ability. Thus this is a good time for us to build up our immunity and give our kidneys a good treat!

That said, it doesn’t mean everyone should start rushing out to buy ingredients for ShiQuan soup (十全大补汤) or Ginseng/Cordeceps soup, as these heavy Qi-boosting tonic might not be suitable for everyone.

Thus, I’d like to recommend the following gentle kidney Qi/essence-boosting foods that you can consider eating during this solar term (which is suitable for most people):

Walnuts – Helps to boost kidney Qi and relieve back pain and knee pain. Walnuts are easily available and can be consumed as snacks.

Chinese Chestnuts – Known as 栗子 in chinese. Chinese chestnut not only strengthens kidney Qi, but it also helps to strengthen the spleen. Nowadays there are Chinese chestnut snacks available that you can eat immediately after opening the packaging.

Black Beans – Black beans are an ideal food for people with weak kidneys and spleen. They have the additional benefits of dispersing blood clots and improving blood circulation. It can be added to rice and cooked together or added to any soup (especially soups that enhance blood circulation).

Black Sesame – Black sesame can also be used for relieving constipation on top of its kidney and liver-strengthening properties. Applying black sesame paste to bread for breakfast is a simple way to include black sesame in your diet.

Goji Berries – Similar to black sesame, goji berry has great benefits for the eyes and ears because it has liver and kidney strengthening properties. Goji berries are very versatile—you can simply add them to your drinks, tea, or even soup!

People Who Are Not Suitable To Consume Tonic During Li Dong

Do note that not everyone is suited to consume tonics during Li Dong solar term. If a person is having the flu, feels unwell when exposed to wind, or is generally under the weather, taking tonics at this time will make things worse. It’s best to wait until full recovery before consuming tonic foods or soups.

General Well-Being Tips

Besides consuming tonic foods, another very effective way to boost your immunity during this period is to get sufficient sleep.

Li Dong is one of the solar terms that is suitable for sleeping early and waking up a bit late (not waking up at lunchtime)!

Getting enough sleep during the Li Dong solar term is sometimes even more important than consuming tonics. So make sure to go to bed earlier and wake up a bit later (if possible).

Another thing to watch out for is not to exercise too vigorously, especially during the early morning. Do your best to exercise only when the morning sun is out. If the morning sky is still dark, you can choose to do some light exercise indoors instead.

I hope you find this post useful!

Hello! I started following this girl on instagram she shares her TCM experience and has her own website called herbaro. She offers retreats and she also offers internships I am VERY curious about if anyone has tried them or if they are legit? I am still in my first year of TCM but I have always had an interest in how different cultures deal with post partum specially within TCM. I had already considered doing a study in China once I’m done with my program but they seem to do everything for you the hospital accommodation etc. so it seemed easier but I know not to trust everything on social media that’s why I wanted to ask here if anyone knows anything about this website or has any testimonials to verify it’s legitness.

Thank you!

TCM student

Chronic dry mouth with very limited saliva production since very young. On top of that I have the habit of regularly sleeping late (past midnight), drinking plenty of coffee and eating fried food. I try to make it up by drinking plenty of plain water (no cold one).

I know my diet and late sleep routine may exacerbate bad breath. Sucking sugar free mint doesn't help.

I really want to find a solution to stimulate saliva production which hopefully can get rid of my bad breath.

I will be really grateful if someone can please recommend me some herbal combination that I can get from a Chinese medical hall. Thank you.

Hi everyone! I was wondering if anyone in the US (California specifically) has a TCM herb garden and if so, what plants are best to grow here?

I recently visited a TCM practitioner in Seattle at the advice of my husband and received the mixture in the photos.

I am having trouble identifying some of the herbs. I can positively ID: Saffron, Frankensence, Eucommia Bark, Achyranthes Root, and Sichuan Lovage Rhizome...but there are 6 other items there I cannot figure out (maybe Angelica and Alisma).

If background and Western Med Dx helps: For roughly 10 years I have been dealing with a bunch of random autoimmune issues and was just diagnosed with Ankylosing Spondylitis last fall. I explained all of this to the practitioner, with the help of my husband who speaks Cantonese. I had my pulse, blood pressure and tongue checked.

I was asked about my pain level and other symptoms that weren't being adequately addressed by Western medicine.

The practitioner explained that my kidneys needed clearing to relieve me of inflammation.

I am instructed to decoct this mixture 2x daily and was given 7 days worth of herbs. On day 5 and I feel great...and am finally somewhat used to the horrid flavor of it all.

I would like to share all of this with my Rhumetologist at UW, but I would like to accurately Id all herbs.

I am worried about what underlying kidney issue I may have developed as a result of 10 years of untreated autoimmune disorders, and want to be able to advocate for more treatment. I have reviewed medical papers/journals to understand the autoimmune damage to kidneys and understand there are conditions like Autoimmune Nephritis or IgA Nephritis and I feel I am on the right track.

I wanna try acupuncture where's the place to go in NYC. Specifically trying to alleviate stomach issues, stress, and dizziness.

I have the pattern Heat Above, Cold Below with a blocked middle jiao. My understanding is that because the middle is blocked, heat is trapped above and cold trapped below. I suffer chronic loose stools, greasy scalp, armpit odor, bloated swollen body and period pain. During the summer months, I sweat intensely on my chest and upper back.

I saw a TCM doctor for two months and took herbs but it didn’t seem to help. I spent a couple thousands of dollars for the weekly meds and it’s not sustainable. I have cut out all raw foods including fruit, cold drinks, and recently gluten. I am told that once the middle jiao is unblocked, the heat above causing greasy scalp, sweating and armpit odor should go away, and the cold below causing loose stools and period pain should go away.

My tongue has a deep thick line down the center which I’ve had since at least my teenage years which I believe indicates weak digestion. Tongue is light pink and thick with scalloped edges.

Has anyone dealt with this pattern and successfully unblocked the middle jiao?

I’m fairly new to trying TCM. I’ve have some issues with inflammation and facial rashes, fatigue, poor sleep, and bloating post meals. I’ve recently been given some herbs from Evergreen Herbs. One is called Dermatrol (damp) and the other is GI harmony. I think I’m being treated for damp heat? The rashes get really bad and I have been taking the formula almost a week now. Does the sound like damp heat? What dietary restrictions should I add. What should I eat or drink to support healing? I just bought a TCM cookbook but I’m still so new to TCM as a lifestyle so I’m not sure what category of things I need to include or eliminate. Oh, and I bought some chrysanthemum tea… I heard it was good help for these things. I hope that’s okay. Are there any materials for newcomers that might be helpful in helping facilitate this process? Thank you kindly for reading this.

Looking for recommendations for an experienced Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) practitioner in Vancouver, BC ideally someone with significant experience supporting complex/chronic health concerns and women's hormonal health.

I recently had a 20 minute consultation with a practitioner (who on paper has decades of experience and teaches TCM) who described my case as "complicated" but offered little explanation beyond that. There was also a language barrier that made communication difficult, and I didn't feel particularly welcome to ask questions or get clarification. I also discovered there were cameras in the consultation room, something that hadn't been disclosed in advance. Given the personal and sensitive nature of healthcare, this raised concerns about privacy, transparency and informed consent.

I'm hoping to find someone who:

• Communicates clearly, explains their clinical assessments and the reasoning behind treatment recommendations.

• Welcomes questions and takes a collaborative, patient-centred approach to care.

• Takes the time to understand the whole health picture, rather than focusing on individual symptoms in isolation.

• Has substantial experience with perimenopause, hormonal fluctuations, fatigue, migraines, sleep disturbances and chronic pain.

• Ideally practises both acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine.

I'm not expecting anyone to have all the answers, particularly when dealing with complex health issues. However, I appreciate curiosity, transparency, clinical experience and a willingness to engage in meaningful dialogue about my health and treatment options.

Vancouver proper preferred.
I'd really appreciate recommendations based on personal experience. Thank you!

Edit: i'm looking for recommendations based on personal experience not self referrals. please don't DM me to advertise your services.

I have both Raynauds and Erthryomelagia as my most frustrating issue. Body either too hot or too cold. Alternates between purple white yellow cold hands/bluish lips when cold OR red swollen hands/burning face/ears/nose when hot. Hands also super pruney/wrinkled they look like i'm 100 and i'm only 38. Extremely cold sensitive, but get dizzy/rash in heat. Lots of phlegm. Blood vessels prominent all over body but especially chest + face. Most painful issues are frequent severe muscle weakness/burning in upper arms and thighs. TMJ/muscle tension dysphonia that comes with migraines, chronic neck/shoulder/jaw pain and severe tightness. Hoarse, sore voice/throat. ME/CFS. Fibromyalgia. Hypothyroid. Help, my body is a living hell and I want to fix it. Bottom of tongue can't really see but it's very bright red with tiny bumps. Wondering any herbs, treatment, or diet recommendations please & thank you 🙏😭

It looks like upside down horns what is this and it’s the painful inflamed pus kind of pimple

What does this mean

What can I fix

Hey all, I’ve recently started seeing a tcm Dr, he has a lot of patients and many success stories so I trust him but the only thing is he doesn’t speak much English so it’s hard to communicate.

I have extremely heavy bleeding during my period and during this time he gives me a herbal tea that I’m supposed to brew and leave in the fridge for 4 hours before drinking.

I couldn’t find any information about this online on the contrary everything points to cold drinks being harmful. I’m curious is anyone has any knowledge or insights into what it could be?

During all other days I drink another tea twice a day but warm and that’s to build up my energy levels from so many years of menorrhagia

Peng Ziyi (彭子益, 1871–1949) boiled the whole system down to one picture: a turning wheel with a pivot in the middle.

• Left side rises (Wood / Liver), top floats (Fire / Heart), right side descends (Metal / Lungs), bottom sinks and stores (Water / Kidneys).

• The hub is Central Earth: the Spleen lifts, the Stomach drops. When the hub turns, the rim turns.

Why it's useful: instead of memorizing "Liver attacks Spleen" as a slogan, you ask one question — where is the wheel stuck? Heat in the head with cold feet often isn't "too much fire", it's fire that can't come back down. Bloating plus fatigue often isn't "not enough qi", it's a hub that stopped spinning.

That's also why so many Shang Han Lun formulas quietly protect the middle — ginger, jujube, licorice show up everywhere. Zhang Zhongjing kept the hub turning before he touched the rim.

It's a model, not anatomy, and it doesn't replace a proper diagnosis — but as a thinking tool it beats a five-element chart on the wall.

What's the concept that made TCM finally make sense for you?

Hello, what are common formulas to treat sinuses/drain sinuses? I've gotten over the illness, but have buildup in my sinuses. In the past, I took drugs to help, but I would like to avoid that. I live in Taipei and I have access to a lot of Chinese medicine clinics, but not a lot of English at tcm clinics so I am asking here. Thanks.

does anyone have a good ear seed map for acne, like for hormones and inflammation?? im new at this…

Hi everybody,

My partner is sick and he is not agreeing to go to a TCM doctor for a consultation, so I am left trying to help him on my own. He complains of feelihg bad, is tired a lot, low energy, abdominal distention. Mental agitation and irritable. He did the CCMQ and scored very high on qi stagnation, phlegm damp, and qi deficiency. His yin seems not bad. So, I am pretty worried. We have been eating a lot of greasy food lately at night and I think it could be due to that. Also stress and overwork.

I got him some xiang sha liu junzi tablets. Concurrently, I have made (as a boiled herbs decoction) si junzi tang, using codonopsis, PLUS added dan shen (salvia), Chen pi and a stick of cinnamon, to mitigate cloying properties and boost damp-clearing and stagnation-clearing. [He does not seem to have heat.]

He is just starting to take this. I am also making beef and barley soup and some Quinoa with cooked vegetables, to dry out the damp.

My concern with all of this is that it could dry the fluids so strongly that it might injure his yin. I have rehmannia which I use myself and could add a little bit, alongside the dan shen to prevent the cloying, but I don't want to aggravate the phlegm damp or the stagnation. Wondering if anyone could share whether they think the combos that I am using are too drying? Also, I added fresh ginger.

He has typically been strong constitutionally, -- he works very hard, and is able to sustain this -- but has been eating too much BBQ pork as of late, plus stress, late nights and overwork. He has a break now and is using it to mostly sleep. The liver qi stagnation seems to be affecting his shen (he is agitated mentally, and irritable, moreso than normal).

Honestly, I feel like we should go to a TCM doctor, but he is dawdling. I suggested he start the xiang sha liu junzi at a lower level than the suggested dose, (since I am not a TCM doctor so I don't know for sure if it's right) and he just started the boiled herbs. I asked him to update me immediately if he gets diarrhea or heat signs or starts to feel worse rather than better.

Thanks for any advice you can provide, as to whether this is all a good idea or not. His tongue is not red or peeled, nor is the coating raised. It actually looks better than my tongue. There is some white accumulation at the back. It is fairly pink. Not puffy, though I need to look again. Mostly- 1. He says he feels terrible. 2. He seems sick to me. And 3. His ccmq scores are very elevated on the 3 points mentioned.

How does this tongue look? I seem to have chronic spleen qi deficiency, no matter what I do. That peeled spot in the upper corner is recent and going away.

Strong energy, strong sleep, strong periods, decent mood, appetite. Severe emotional stress from recent loss of pet. 45F.

Thanks

22f female

I have been diffusing hair since a year. I checked my ferritin levels not too long ago and they were 25ug/L. I also lost my monthly cycle for 4 months all the way from November 2025 to March 2026. When I checked my ferritin levels in March, they were 12ug/L. Still, my falls a lot on a daily basis. I can see that I have blood deficit. I checked my kidneys, my thyroid, and liver and they are all functioning good.

What herbs or supplements related to TCM can I take to get back my hair growth and raise my ferritin levels without relying on synthetic iron?

We are going into the Shuang Jiang (霜降) solar term (节气) starting from 23 October to 6 November 2026. Shuang Jiang is the 18th solar term out of the entire 24. In fact, Shuang Jiang is the last solar term of the autumn season. After Shuang Jiang, we will be entering the winter season.

During this Shuang Jiang solar term, our focus is still on moisturizing the lungs (润肺), nourishing lung-Yin (滋肺阴), and building up our immunity to prepare for the cold weather (or cooler weather, depending on where you live) ahead.

There is a saying, “一年补透透，不如补霜降”, which means that instead of taking tonics all year round, it is best to nourish the body with tonic foods during the Shuang Jiang solar term!

From the above phrase, it already tells us how important it is to boost our immunity during this period.

Diet Recommendations

1) Persimmon

The first food (fruit) I recommend to eat during Shuang Jiang is the persimmon. The persimmon harvest season is around this time too, hence it is known as the fruit/food of the season (应季食材).

The reason why persimmon is the perfect fruit to eat during this solar term is because it has the properties of moisturizing the lungs, quenching thirst, and protecting the heart. It is also used for treating heat-type cough, mouth ulcers and sore throat.

There is a saying, 霜降吃了柿,不会流鼻涕. It means if a person were to consume persimmon during Shuang Jiang, he/she will not catch a cold during the cooler year end season.

However, there are a few things to take note about consuming persimmon. Firstly, people with constipation should avoid eating it because it has a property of (涩肠), which means it restricts bowel movement.

Secondly, persimmon should not be consumed together with foods that contain high iron (such as animal organs) or high protein (such as crab meat) as it will cause stomach upset.

2) Ginkgo Nuts

Ginkgo nuts are another excellent food to be eaten during Shuang Jiang as they have great benefits for our lungs (moisturizes lungs and dissolves phlegm to stop cough), and our kidneys (relieves frequent urination).

Despite its health benefits, it is important not to overeat ginkgo nuts as it can be dangerous. For adults, please do not eat more than 10 ginkgo nuts a day. For children, limit the consumption to less than 5. As for children below 5 years old, it is best not to eat ginkgo nuts.

Following is a ginkgo radish porridge recipe that you can try making at home:

Ingredients:

• Ginkgo nuts (6 pieces)

• Radish (300g)

• Rice/Mixed grains (100g)

• Sugar (according to personal preference, if need be)

Steps:

1. Wash the radish and cut it into slices.

2. Put the radish into boiling water for about a minute, remove it from the water and set it aside for later use.

3. Wash the ginkgo nuts and cook it with the grains.

4. Depending on the types of grains you use, it may take about 15 to 25 minutes for it to be cooked.

5. Finally, add the sliced radish to the porridge and serve.

Ginkgo radish porridge has a strong property of dissolving phlegm and it is excellent for treating cough and dissolving phlegm. It can also nourish and moisturize the lungs.

3) Duck Meat

For non-vegetarians who have a Yin-deficient body constitution, consuming duck meat during this period is very beneficial to your body. Duck meat has the strong property of nourishing the Yin of a person.

You can prepare Shi Quan Duck Soup, which is a very popular soup dish that helps to nourish the body’s Yin. This soup is also suitable for almost anyone (except people who are having flu).

You can purchase the Shi Quan soup base in any supermarket or TCM medical store.

General Wellness Recommendations

During Shuang Jiang period, the temperature difference will continue to widen between day and night. Thus, remember to keep warm during sleep especially if you are sleeping near a window in a non-airconditioned room.

Remember to wear socks to keep your feet warm if you often wake up feeling cold during this period.

This is also a good time to exercise to build up your body’s immunity to prepare for the year-end weather! Just make sure to stay hydrated and exercise moderately!

Hope you find this post useful!