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Hiatus hernia treatment strategy

By Archived User | Updated: Dec 31, 2021 | Published: Dec 31, 2021

Can acupuncture alone treat hiatus hernia or are herbs required? Diagnosis of hernia not confirmed yet. Client feeling pressure from below ribs along St channel to St 25 which can get inflamed and is uncomfortable and affecting sleep. No acid but bloating,indigestion, reflux, feeling of food caught in throat. Also affecting ear on left side where she is feeling vibration and slight blockage. Her diet is good but has been stressed during the last few years. Tongue is spleen qi deficient. She is awaiting blood test results and further hospital tests. She wants treatment in the interim.

Archived Comments

Comment by Archived User

Yes acupuncture can help hiatal hernia. Herbs can help but most of the time are not absolutely necessary for hiatal hernia. Pressure below the ribs is often due to liver qi stagnation, same with the feeling of food stuck in the throat - which is plum pit qi. A commonly seen condition is known as liver invading the spleen, which often manifests with symptoms similar to what you’ve posted here. There is no need to wait for blood test results, again western diagnosis are usually not all that important when developing a treatment protocol from the TCM perspective.

Comment by Archived User

Herbs are a great way to treat hiatal hernia. Where one has liver stagnation and/or wood invading earth there is quite commonly an additional issue with spleen-stomach disharmony. Check her pulses. With weak spleens there is all too common the occurrence of rebellious yang which need anchoring–yang rises, and commonly kinks up the esophageal tract when the spleen is too weak to transform properly. What is her diet like? There are many formulas suitable for her (Ban Xia Jia Wei comes to mind first), but you will need to disclose more information to be more effective.

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