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3 Post-Covid/Vaccine Cases with Chinese Medicine
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Post-COVID or long-COVID is a condition that has a wide range of different symptoms which make it very difficult in conventional medicine. Traditional Chinese Medicine(TCM) focuses on improving the body’s function and overall health by working on underlying health issues. I treat Covid related issues exactly the same ways as treating any other health conditions. You can read my post: Long Covid treatment with Chinese Medicine for detailed approach.
In this post, I use three real cases in my practice to demonstrate how Chinese medicine works on long-Covid conditions.
ContentCase #1: Chronic Cough, Constipation and disturbed sleep.
Patient name: C.M, female in mid 20s,
Main complaintsInitial consultation: Apr, 28 2022
Severe persistent cough, worse at night, result in difficult sleep.
Patient caught Covid in March, 2022. Recovered in a week with a negative test result. However the cough persisted. She was prescribed cough medication by her MD, which stopped the cough for two weeks and came back with the same severity.
General healthShe had two doses of Covid vaccine in late 2021. She is on birth control pills for several years to regulate period and acne. She is on ADHD medication for several years. She has interrupted sleep, wakeing up 3-4 times at night. She always has constipation with dry stool.
Chinese medicine assessmentShe has a rapid pulse, and red tongue. When I did the “Fukushin” palpation, she reported tenderness when I pressed on her sternum area.
Chinese herbal medicine works with patterns that indicate the underlying pathology, The patterns are the main basis for TCM practitioners to prescribe the treatment (acupuncture or herbs). In my assessment, “heat in upper jiao” was presented. This pattern is commonly seen in patients with coughing, sleep issues, acne and mental health issues.
I did acupuncture on her and prescribed a herbal formula for a week. I was also treating her mom for chronic migraine issues. A week later, M.C sent her mom a message ask her mom to pick up more herbs for her:
Case #2: Body ache and pain, digestive, skin and hormonal issues.
First consultation: March, 05 2022
Main complaintsPatient name: E.K, female in her early 30s
She was vaccinated and got Covid last December, since then, she has experienced an array of signs and symptoms cross the board, including Irregular bowel movement with urgent sensation sometimes with cramps, tightness in the chest, difficulty breathing, eczema, fatigue, headaches, phlegm in the throat. She also started to have a strange odor from the discharge during her period which is very unpleasant.
General health historyShe always has severe period cramps with heavy bleeding and abnormal discharge.
Chinese medicine assessmentShe has a food intolerance to dairy and gluten but she managed it by good dietary discipline.
Her thirst level is high.
She wakes up multiple times during the night, and feel tired in the morning.
Family history of asthma, her mom and sisters also have severe period cramps and heavy bleeding.
Something caught my attention, there are multiple painful spots in her abdomen area when I conduct “Fukushin”, a unique diagnostic method in Kampo tradition. This is a typical pattern called “Oketsu”, which indicates there is blood stagnation in the abdomen region. This pattern is likely related to her painful period and heavy bleeding.
In addition, her family history of asthma indicates that she may carry the predisposition for dysregulated histamine reaction. Eczema, food intolerance and abnormal discharge are often related to this phenotype* and may be aggravated by the Covid infection.
TreatmentBased on those findings and my analysis, I composed a big formula in an attempt to address all the underlying issues.I only made a week of herbs so I can keep a close eye on the development of the treatment. A weekly acupuncture treatment plan was also suggested to further address the immune, inflammation and digestive issues.
On March 12,the followup session, she reported:
Last week during her period, a lot of clots came out which has never happened before.
March 19 follow-up:Eczema has gotten 80% better.
Headaches, phlegmy throat, and sleep quality has improved.
She is not as thirsty as before.
She felt some UTI-like symptoms: burning and pain when she urinated, and the urine was dark.
She has mild wrist and ankle pain.
Her stool was a bit loose, she felt tired.
There were still painful spots when I performed “Fukushin”.
I did acupuncture and made another week of herbs with some adjustment in the ingredients in accordance to the changes in symptoms and new information.
She reported: Her digestion and skin continuously get better.
March 26 follow-up:She has more energy in the morning.
Her ankle has mild pain.
Tender spots on her abdomen are still active on pressure.
I gave her another week of herbs with minor tweaks.
The abnormal vaginal discharge is almost gone.
April 10 follow-up (the fifth week into treatment)Digestion is almost back to normal.
The strange odor is reduced.
Last week she had one sudden diarrhea with no obvious cause.
This time I made two weeks of herbs due to her schedule. And her next period is coming next week which would be a good time to see how the treatment has improved her condition and overall health.
Last period the cramp was a lot less than usual. The body odor was still there but at least 50% less. She has no problem with skin and digestion. She also wanted me to treat her acne.
So I made the new formula based on her progress and request on acne. I also added one herb “ku shen” specifically for body odor. This herb is known for its bitter taste.
May 1 follow-upShe said the formula did not taste bad at all.
The odor has been reduced 75%. Period cramp was much less. The acne on the chin was also better.
Up to that day, the original complaints from long-Covid were mostly gone. She was very pleased by the result. The future treatment would be continue to improve her overall health, regulate her period.
Case #3: Post Covid vaccine case, myocarditis, extreme fatigue.
Initial consultation: Apr 15, 2022
Main complaints:Patient’s name: C.H. Female in her mid 40s. Medium body build.
Irregular (mostly rapid) heart beats after receiving the second dose of mRNA Covid vaccine in Oct, 2021. The heart rate ranged from 32 – 150/mins, the resting heart rate almost never came below 82/mins.
Other complaints: Extreme fatigue, shortened menstrual cycle (from previous 28 days cycle to current 18-21 days cycle) with breast tenderness which is new to her; extreme cold sensation in the sole of right foot.
General health history:She has had 4 concussions in the last 20 years, since the last car accident a few years ago, she developed a strange symptom which is full body electric sensation at night that makes it very difficult to fall asleep. Oddly enough, this symptom disappears after the second shot of the vaccine so her sleep has been very good until recently she started to feel the electric sensation creeping back on her at night. That also worries her on top of the other ongoing issues.
She has IBS, and she gets bloated easily. Her stool tends to be loose.
She said her metabolic rate may be too high because she is always hungry and thirsty, and drinks tons of water.
Chinese medicine assessmentWe conducted a virtual consultation. Through the consultation, I found a few major issues that need to be addressed.
My first impression is her condition looks like myocarditis that may be related to the spike proteins in the vaccines. She has gone through many medical professionals and specialists, no one has yet figured out whys and hows for her condition, and she is still undergoing more examinations after 6 months of suffering from these debilitating symptoms.
In Chinese herbal medicine, there was a herbal formula in a 2000 years old book: “Shang han za bing lun”, the Bible of Kampo medicine, to treat myocarditis caused by viral infection.
Her hormones seem to be out of balance after the vaccine by the fact of changes in her menstrual cycle. This issue needs to be addressed.
Another interesting symptom is the cold sensation in the sole of the right foot. Chinese medicine also has an explanation about this unexplainable symptom by western medicine, more importantly, we have the herbs for it. The sole of the foot is where the Kidney meridian starts.The Kidney in Chinese medicine is related to the endocrine system, especially the adrenal gland’s function.
According to some western medicine experts, a major pathological impact from spike protein is vascular inflammation. This theory was hypothesized by a renowned immunologist Dr. Bruce Patterson, who has been treating thousands of Covid and Vaccine long haulers. (At the moment of this consultation, I didn’t know his work on this issue otherwise I would have more confidence in how to treat this condition. But I was fully aware that blood clotting is one of the major issues associated with Covid-19 infections and vaccines as I have closely followed the latest research and studies on Covid-19 and vaccine issues. And there is a close relationship between the inflammatory response and blood coagulation process from what I have learned in western medicine literature.
TreatmentAfter I collected all the history and complaints, I composed a quite complicated formula that contains the myocarditis formula that I mentioned earlier, with herbs that address the vascular inflammation and clots, and the herbs that regulate digestive and neurological functions. I also added two specific herbs for her electric sensation and coldness in the right sole. I made two weeks of the supplies and shipped it to C.H after and consulation.
This is what she reported after taking this formula for two weeks:
Even though it is too early to tell whether the treatment can regulate the menstrual cycle, it seems that we are on the right track. Based on Dr. Patterson’s experience with Covid and Vaccine long haul, successful treatment usually takes 6-12 weeks before patients can start to reduce or stop the treatment. In Chinese medicine, we use similar strategy.
After the first follow-up, we agreed to continue the treatment, so I made four weeks of herbs and shipped to her. For some reason, she didn’t continue the treatment afterward, and I couldn’t get feedback from her.
Summary
Chinese medicine is not a pathogen-specific medicine as opposed to western medicine developed on “Germ Theory”. As a natural medicine, Chinese medicine is not as slow in achieving results as people normally think, including many TCM herbalists.
That is also why I was able to help my first post-Covid patient in 2020 (read this case here), when there is no vaccine available.
Sources:Discussion of the similarity in symptoms and treatment between Covid and Vaccine long haulers by Dr. Bruce Patterson and DrBean.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JwjJs5ZHKJI&t=1210s