How Stress Can Affect Your Body and Chinese Medicine for Stress

Everyone experiences stress from time to time in their life. In fact, stress is a normal psychological and physical reaction to events that take place in life. When your body experiences stress it responds by releasing hormones called cortisol.  These are the same hormone which triggers the ‘fight or flight’ response. In Traditional Chinese Medicine it is believed that when a body experiences stress, it affects the Qi ( energy flow ) and causes an imbalance of Qi.  

Chronic stress puts your health at risk and is often linked with heart diseases, sleeping disorder,  headaches and migraines, low energy. In some cases, it can also lead to problems around weight loss.

Traditional Chinese Medicine has been successfully used for over 2000 years, it works as a great alternative to combat stress and helps you ease the burden of the stressful day to day life. The main aim of Chinese Medicine when treating stress is to keep the flow of Qi in order to keep the body in balance. 

How Stress Affects Your Health and Body

In Traditional Chinese Medicine, each emotion is related to a specific organ in your body. 

How To Manage Your Stress With Chinese Medicine

The aim of Chinese Medicine is to restore the balance of energy in the body. Here are a few ways on how you can restore the balance. 

• Acupuncture for Stress 

Acupuncture stimulates the nervous system, increases the blood circulation. Acupuncture has been shown to lower stress hormones by reducing cortisol levels. Other benefits of acupuncture include relieving pain, reducing stress, it also helps relax muscles so your body feels less stressed. 

• Simple Lifestyle Changes 

The goal here is to nourish your organs. There are small lifestyle changes you can make to strengthen your organs to help reduce stress. 

Liver: Exercising has a positive effect on the liver. There are many studies that have show exercising help release Endorphins which trigger a positive feeling in your body. Exercising also improves blood circulation and strengthens muscles. 

Kidneys: In Traditional Chinese Medicine Kidneys are considered to be the root of life, they are the foundation for a healthy life so it is important to look after them. Avoid consumption of items such as alcohol and caffeine that can have a damaging effect on the kidneys. 

Spleen: Keep your spleen nourished by consuming more warm and cooked foods. Cold and raw food is not easily digested by the spleen which results in Qi deficiency. 

• Consider Chinese Herbal Medicine

Chinese Herbal Medicine can be extremely useful when chronic stress has affected your organs. Some Chinese Medicine has been specifically formulated to help reduce stress by reducing the level of cortisol, it also helps to relax nerves and muscles helping eliminate stress and anxiety.