TCM- Internal Causes of Disease (Test 5)

The causes of disease are divided into three major categories:

Internal emotions	External weather, climate	Miscellaneous ‘other’
Anger	Wind	Diet
Joy	Cold	Overwork
Sadness	Summer-Heat	Excessive sexual activity
Worry	Dampness	Trauma
Pensiveness	Dryness	Poisons
Fear	Fire
Shock

The internal causes of disease are those due to emotional strain. Internal, emotional causes of disease injure the Internal Organs, where External, or climatic causes of disease, affect the Exterior of the body first.

Interaction of Body and Mind:
Since the body and mind form an integrated and inseparable unit, the emotions not only can cause a disharmony, but they can also be caused by it.

The Seven emotions and the Internal Organs:

• Anger affects the Liver
• Joy affects the Heart
• Sadness affects the Lungs and the Heart
• Worry affects the Spleen and Lungs
• Pensiveness affects the Spleen
• Fear affects the Kidneys
• Shock affects the Heart and Kidneys

All Emotions affect the Heart:
All emotions, besides affecting the relevant organ directly, affect the Heart indirectly because the Heart houses the Mind and acts to integrate the various emotions in the body. It is responsible for consciousness and cognition, and recognition, and recognizes and feels the effect of emotional tension.

Effects of Emotional Stress on the Body:
The first effect of emotional stress on the body is to affect the proper circulation and direction of Qi.
Qi is non-substantial and the Mind with its mental and emotional energies is the most non-material type of Qi. In this respect, it is natural that emotional stress affecting the Mind impairs the Qi mechanism first of all.
When Qi stagnates, it may in time lead to Blood stasis, especially in women. Blood statis affects particularly the Heart, Liver and Uterus.
Qi stagnation may also lead to Heat, and most of the emotions can give rise over a long period of time to Heat or Fire. This is because most of the emotions can cause stagnation of Qi and when Qi is compressed in this way over a period of time it creates Heat.
The disruption of Qi caused by the emotions may, in time, also lead to the formation of Phlegm. The proper movement of Qi in the right direction in the Qi mechanism is essential to transform, transport and excrete fluids. In this respect, the disruption in the movement of Qi may result in the formation of Phlegm. Phlegm in turn obstructs the Mind's orifices and becomes a further cause of emotional and mental disturbance.

Anger:
Anger makes Qi rise and many of the symptoms and sign will manifest in the head and neck:

• Headaches
• Dizziness
• Tinnitus
• Neck stiffness
• Red blotches on the from part of the neck
• Red face

Joy:
It is said that Joy makes the Heart larger. This leads to excessive stimulation of the Heart, which in time may lead to Heart related symptoms.

• Palpitations
  
• Over excitability
• Insomnia
• Restlessness
• Talking a lot
• Red tip of the Tongue

Sadness:
Sadness leads to a deficiency of Lung-Qi and may manifest in a variety of symptoms.

• Breathlessness
• Tiredness
• Feeling of discomfort in chest
• Depression
• Crying

Worry:
Worry knots the Qi, causing stagnation and it affects both Lungs and Spleen. Worry is the pathological counterpart of the Spleen's mental activity in generating ideas.
Lungs:

• Discomfort in chest
• breathlessness
• tense shoulders
• sometimes dry cough
• weak voice
• sighing

Spleen:

• Epigastric discomfort
• abdominal distention
• poor appetite
• fatigue
• pale complexion

Fear:
Fear includes both a chronic state of fear and anxiety and a sudden freight. Fear depletes Kidney Qi and it makes Qi descend.

• Nocturnal enuresis
• incontinence of urine
• diarrhea

In adults, fear and chronic anxiety more often cause deficiency of Kidney Yin and rising of Empty Heat within the Heart, with a feeling of heat in the face, night sweating, palpitations and a dru mouth and throat.
If the Heart is weak, it will cause Qi to rise in the form of Empty Heat. Fear and anxiety weaken Kidney-Yin and give rise to Empty Heat of the Heart with symptoms:

• Palpitations
• Insomnia
• Night sweats
• Dry mouth
• Malar flush
• Rapid pulse
•