Traditional Chinese Medicine: How to Resolve the Pain of Rejection or a Breakup

A broken leaf heart.

Many people experience depression, insomnia, headache, abdominal distension, menstrual disorders, dysmenorrhea, and other symptoms after being rejected or falling out of love. (Image: Modman via Pixabay)

Traditional Chinese medicine, in its standard form, has been around for thousands of years. Therefore, there is hardly anything new under the sun regarding human emotions that have not already been diagnosed and remedied in the past, including going through a breakup. Over time, the sites and the actors change, but the themes and the motives remain the same.

In modern society, many people fall in and out of love and are lovelorn and injured. In many years of clinical practice, I often encountered some patients with gastric, liver, lung, breast, uterine, and ovarian cancer related to emotional stress or trauma. After tracing the root cause, many of the reasons I found were either lovelorn or suffering from the aftermath of a breakup in a relationship.

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Many people experience depression, insomnia, headache, abdominal distension, menstrual disorders, dysmenorrhea, and other symptoms after being rejected or going through a breakup with someone they love. It may lead to other serious diseases or death if not treated in time.

Traditional Chinese medicine and a broken heart

Unhappiness because of unrequited love is called lovelorn, while a relationship can end for numerous reasons. Why are lovelorn and the aftermath of a breakup so hurtful? Do many people think the pain of unrequited love or a broken relationship is psychological trauma? How can it cause physical damage?

Traditional Chinese medicine believes that emotions and viscera (internal organs in the central cavities of the body) are one. Therefore, emotional stress and depression are the emotional expressions of the functions of viscera, and viscera are the carriers of our feelings.

The seven emotions of “joy, anger, worry, thought, sadness, fear, and surprise” are the mental activities of our internal organs when external sources stimulate them. For example, surprise and joy enter the heart, anger enters the liver, sadness and worries enter the lungs, thoughts enter the spleen, and fear enters the kidneys.

When these viscera function well, they reflect a life full of happiness and purpose. Conversely, when there is a problem with the function of the viscera, it reflects emotional stress or trauma. When the emotional stress or trauma is intense, it will, in turn, it will lead to long-term damage to your viscera.

Traditional Chinese medicine believes that emotions and viscera (internal organs in the central cavities of the body) are one.
Traditional Chinese medicine believes that emotions and viscera (internal organs in the central cavities of the body) are one. (Image: Anton Skavronskiy via Dreamstime)

The 3 emotions and their impact

1. Sorrow hurts the lungs

When you fall into extreme sadness due to rejection or following a breakup, your lungs begin to suffer damage, your immunity begins to decline, external infections can quickly attack your body, harmful microorganisms hidden in your body are also ready to move, and the intestinal flora begins to become unbalanced.

2. Anger hurts the liver

When your heart is full of resentment and anger, the liver begins to be damaged. It gradually loses the function of purifying the blood, the flow of Qi and blood is not smooth, energy is blocked, and then nodules, masses, tumors, and cancers begin to grow.

3. Thinking hurts the spleen

If you have an unforgettable old love and think about it day and night, it will gradually damage the function of the spleen. One’s digestion system is out of balance and becomes susceptible to gastritis, gastric ulcer, and gastric cancer. The spleen’s process of transporting water and dampness will also decline; the body is like the rainy season, and the harmful microorganisms in the gut will wreak havoc.

Traditional Chinese medicine can provide you with three ways to resolve the pain of rejection or the breakup of a relationship.
Traditional Chinese medicine can provide you with three ways to resolve the pain of rejection or the breakup of a relationship. (Image: Studio Grand Web via Dreamstime)

3 ways to resolve the pain of rejection or the breakup of a relationship

Traditional Chinese medicine can provide us with three ways to resolve the pain of rejection or the breakup of a relationship.

1. Adjust your emotions

When you are in a bad mood, try to find ways to relax and divert your attention. For example, you can jog or walk in the park, listen to relaxing music, practice tai chi or qi gong, or talk or travel with a friend.

2. Adjust your diet

Proper nutrition and eating more fresh fruits and vegetables can help nourish the body and improve your mood.

3. Employ traditional Chinese medicine

Traditional Chinese medicine in the form of acupuncture, acupressure, moxibustion, tui na massage, cupping/scraping, and Chinese herbs can help to regulate the body’s qi and blood and restore the balance of the body.

Conclusion

The fallout of rejection or the end of a relationship when going through a breakup is too numerous to enumerate. However, Traditional Chinese medicine can help depressed people not to feel trapped, disturbed, or hurt by emotional stress or trauma.

Translated by Patty Zhang

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