Ancient solutions for unprecedented(?) times.
The post-lockdown world is moving too fast. The post-lockdown world is moving too slow. Millions of people like you are trying to restart their lives on new terms decided by somebody else. And yet, you may be feeling all alone.
Chinese Medical doctors have been dealing with pandemics for at least 2,200 years. When the plague struck China during the late Ming Dynasty (1551-1644 C.E.) it prompted countermeasures that contributed to the development of its medicine.
For example, innovations such as tongue diagnosis were created so that a doctor could check a patient’s internal health while adhering to social distancing rules.
If the COVID-19 pandemic is your first one then you may have ended up worried sick, or at least exhausted from working in uncertainty or living in isolation. Worry is a feeling, but your body feels too and it has a way of telling you this through certain symptoms.
Mind Your Body
What are your symptoms of lockdown worry? They may seem unrelated to what you have been going through in recent weeks. You may not have connected all the dots yet but Chinese medicine has been working with this mind-body connection since ancient times. A time when the slower pace of life made it easier to spot how your environment affects your health.
So what happens when drastic changes strike around you? When an indefinite quarantine literally distances you from everybody else, disrupts your important routines and cancels your plans?
Your world has suddenly changed. It’s impossible to remain indifferent in such uncertainty and panic. What should you do to get back the person you used to be before the lockdown?
Check if the worry you have felt during the recent weeks has led to one of these three of the most common mental health conditions which surged during the COVID-19 pandemic. You may have struggled with one of these or a combination of all three. The worry is justified but help is available in the form natural and non-invasive Chinese Medicine.
1. Lockdown Stress
Stress is the feeling you get when you are faced with a combination of high demands and low control. This universal experience ranges from niggling to debilitating. But the COVID-19 version is something else.
During the lockdown you might have felt hemmed in and locked out. You might have been asked to do more in less time, with fewer resources or in some homebound makeshift arrangement that uprooted the routines, people and plans which kept you grounded and productive. None of that might have been your decision.
If you ever felt that the Coronavirus has put your life on hold or turned it upside down then you are feeling the lockdown stress.
It is exhausting, and today you might not have enough energy to calmly get on with the post-lockdown world that’s frustratingly slow in some parts and overwhelmingly fast in others. When the time comes to seize all your pre—lockdown freedoms, you might feel unprepared and lethargic.
In Chinese Medicine, stress – and its negative side effects on your energy, digestion, sleep, mood and libido – can be naturally reduced in severity and frequency by using certain herbs and acupuncture points.
To achieve the most sustained relaxation and recovery, your Chinese Medical doctor should give you a combination of acupuncture therapy and herbs that can work to help you relax your mind and body, strengthen your defenses against the inevitable triggers of stress and minimise its harmful effects on your health.
Since your reactions to the lockdown stress are probably different from the experiences of your friends and family, the contents of your Chinese herbal prescription and the selection of acupuncture points should be tailored to precisely meet your health needs and wellness goals.
2. Lockdown Loneliness
When you can’t see or hug your friends and family, an important source of unique energy is cut off from your body. In Chinese Medicine we call this mysterious energy ‘Qi’.
People are gaining an unexpected appreciation of the undeniable bond between health and relationships. 7.4 million of them in the UK have admitted that their well-being is affected by the feeling of loneliness caused by the COVID-19 lockdown, according to a news report.
Over 50% of those people are aged 16 to 24, which proves to you that digital connectivity cannot replace a human touch shared during face-to-face experiences.
Loneliness can lead to depression, which in turn brings challenges to your health as you attempt to resume your previous life in the uncertainty of the post-lockdown world. If the self-isolation and social distancing has slowed down your life and your health then you may be feeling a stagnation setting in that manifests as physical tiredness and ennui.
Disturbed sleep or appetite, low energy, and poor concentration are common symptoms of depression. If left untreated, these problems can seriously interfere with your ability to lead an active and fulfilling life. Ultimately, they can make you withdraw yourself from spending time with people and cause you to suffer even worse loneliness.
Chinese Medicine has been studying depression as an ’emotional stagnation’ since at least 1600s. This stagnation would appear to your Chinese Medical doctor as lassitude, characterised by weakened blood circulation.
Certain Chinese herbs should be used to re-energise, strengthen and nourish your body’s internal systems to improve the circulation of blood and Qi energy.
Acupuncture should also be used to stimulate the flow of energy throughout your body and release endorphins which can naturally bring you a good mood. Indeed, acupuncture can provide crucial support to the therapeutic effects of herbs by resetting the circulation in your body and thus helping you to assimilate the required herbal nutrients more efficiently.
The combined herbal and acupuncture treatment should make it easier for you to overcome the often depressing side-effects of loneliness and cope with the restrictions caused by social distancing.
3. Lockdown Anxiety
Are you worried that the post-lockdown world will be stressful and overwhelming? Do you worry about catching the COVID-19 virus when you begin commuting again or visit your usual public spaces?
If either of those is ‘yes’ then you are experiencing the lockdown anxiety.
The Coronavirus pandemic is not only exacerbating the worries of people who are dealing with anxiety but adding new ones for us to treat.
If you have never suffered from anxiety about public places before then we would understand if the thought of commuting and shopping on the post-lockdown high street can fill you with worry.
Lockdown anxiety and severe worrying can cause depression because worry tightly ‘knots’ the body’s essential Qi energy (and even the blood flow) and causes it to stagnate (see above) rather than flow smoothly and evenly throughout the body to help you remain calm.
You may have become exhausted by worry to the point where the tiredness has become both physical and mental, making it difficult for you to stay energised and optimistic. When the energy flows are tied into ‘knots’ and thoughts are trapped into tight loops, your body and mind end up underpowered due to a weakened circulation.
Worry also affects the body’s internal systems by depleting its essential Qi energy reserves. The function of Qi is to support a positive mental outlook and to help your body maintain a smooth circulation of oxygen. Hence the breathing difficulties typical during episodes of anxiety.
Your Chinese Medical doctor should find herbs which can work to resolve the unbalanced movement of your Qi energy and blood. This should help your mind to find a firmer footing as you step outside self-isolation.
Acupuncture should also be used to help the body reach and maintain a calmer state. The effect of acupuncture can be deeply relaxing and it can relieve the anxiety while helping the body to strengthen itself against the triggers of anxiety.
The gentle stimulation and energy boosts from acupuncture and Chinese herbs can help you to replenish your health and release your energy from the lockdown.
Are you ready for a new life?
Use Chinese herbs and acupuncture to bounce back from the lockdown and seize your freedom. Ask our doctors.
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