Mr. Hao’s second daughter, living next door, developed poor appetite and low energy several months after childbirth, accompanied by chest tightness, sallow complexion, and progressive weight loss. Initial doctors diagnosed her with consumptive disease (a traditional term similar to tuberculosis), prescribing Bazhen Tang (Eight-Gem Decoction) which brought temporary improvement but quick relapse.
Subsequent practitioners attributed her condition to postpartum blood deficiency, administering large doses of Siwu Tang (Four-Substance Decoction) combined with Shenghua Tang (Postpartum Recovery Decoction). This (used in traditional contexts) paradoxically intensified her abdominal pain.
An incompetent physician then misdiagnosed it as cold-induced yin syndrome (a severe cold pattern in伤寒 Shanghan classification), leading to worsened symptoms. After exhausting all options, they sought my consultation.
Diagnosis & Treatment
Palpation revealed six pulses floating and weak (a pulse diagnosis pattern indicating general deficiency), particularly evident at the right guan pulse (corresponding to spleen-stomach system). I concluded: “This is qi deficiency (energy depletion), not blood deficiency. We must nourish qi to generate blood. Previous blood-tonifying formulas containing heavy, sinking herbs further weakened middle-jiao energy.”
I prescribed Buzhong Yiqi Tang (Center-Supplementing Qi-Boosting Decoction). Her father, knowledgeable in acupuncture, challenged: “Won’t qi-tonics aggravate her existing chest congestion?”
I explained: “Your daughter’s stomach qi has collapsed (wei qi xia xian), preventing clear yang (vital energy) from ascending while turbid yin (metabolic waste) fails to descend. Food stagnation in middle-jiao causes chest discomfort. Restoring upward yang movement will naturally resolve congestion.”
Outcome
After three doses, her energy improved with regained appetite. We then converted the decoction into pills. Complete recovery followed consumption of one jin (approximately 500g) of prepared pills.
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