While what’s going on may seem like a simple bladder infection, in Chinese medicine they’re anything but simple.  Like headaches, colds, or back pain, bladder infections (or UTI’s) have a distinct personality.  Symptoms can run the gamut from urinary urgency, frequency, difficulty, dribbling, sharp urethral pain, spasms in the lower abdomen, and pain radiating to your lower back.

In Chinese medicine, UTI’s generally fall into a pattern of excess or depletion.  Excess patterns are due to an accumulation or too much of something.  Bladder infections that are excess tend to be a combination of dampness (an accumulation of fluids) and heat.  The most notable symptom of this kind of pattern is a burning pain during urination.  A damp heat UTI can be the result of too much alcohol, hot spicy food, sweets, or poor hygiene.

UTI’s that are caused by depletion are usually the result of being run down from aging, not sleeping well, poor diet, and…um, too much sex.  Living life a little too fully can wear down your Chinese Kidney and/or Spleen to the point that you’re unable to metabolize water or control the mechanism of the bladder very well.  The end result can be incontinence or dribbling, dull and achy pain, and a sore lower back.

To further complicate the diagnosis, in Chinese medicine, bladder infections are grouped into six different types:

Heat.  This is the typical bladder infection, with sharp, burning pain.  You may also run a fever; have constipation, thirst, or a bitter taste in your mouth.

Stony.  This one really hurts with the kind of pain that can bring you to your knees.  This is essentially kidney stones, and the symptoms include severe low back or abdominal pain, cramping, difficulty urinating, urinating blood, and passing stones in the urine.

Qi.  This is all about your energy, or Qi, and can be either excess or deficient.  An excess pattern means that your energy is stagnating and causing symptoms, which include difficult urination, a feeling of fullness or pain in your lower abdomen, and possibly chest tightness or rib pain.  A depleted Qi pattern is caused by not having enough energy for your bladder to metabolize water.  Symptoms in this case may include a feeling of heaviness in your lower abdomen, dripping or incontinence, possibly a pale complexion, feeling tired, shortness of breath, and an achy lower back.

Bloody.  This pattern can also be from either an excess or depletion, but either way, there will be blood in your urine.  An excess pattern is essentially heat causing you to bleed, with symptoms such as urinary frequency, urgency, sharp burning pain, and of course, blood in your urine–usually a fair amount.  Being depleted can also cause blood in your urine, but there typically won’t be as much blood, or the bleeding will occur over a long period of time.  Also, if this pattern is from being depleted, it won’t generally be as sharply painful, but you may feel tired and you may have a weak, achy low back and/or knees.

Cloudy.  Like the bloody pattern, this one can come from either an excess or a depletion.  The common denominator however, is cloudy or milky looking urine.  If caused by an excess, this type will have very cloudy urine with urethral pain and burning.  If from a depletion, your symptoms may include dribbling of cloudy looking urine, mild urethral pain, dizziness, ringing ears, and again, a weak or achy lower back and knees.  This pattern tends to affect people who have a thin, weak, or depleted body type.

Taxation.  This is a total depletion pattern, and comes from overdoing it or being totally wiped out.  The symptoms include periodic dribbling of urine, stress incontinence (leaking after jumping or sneezing), fatigue, and an achy, weak low back or knees.

Each type of UTI has a specific method of treatment in Chinese medicine.  However, in general, an excess pattern will involve clearing heat and resolving the dampness. This may be done through a combination of acupuncture, Chinese herbs, and food therapy.  A common herbal formula for bladder infections is Ba Zheng San, (also called Eight Herb Powder for Rectification). This particular formula works to clear heat and drain out dampness, and in some cases can be used for UTI’s where there is some blood in the urine.

For UTI’s that are caused by being depleted, the first line of treatment may involve Chinese herbs to supplement Spleen or Kidney Qi (energy).  Acupuncture and foods chosen to build up your strength may also become part of your treatment.  It’s important to remember that it usually takes longer to treat a depletion pattern than an excess pattern.  That’s because when you’re depleted, the treatment involves nourishing or rebuilding your body, and this can take time.  However, with the proper treatment and time, you can rebuild your body and prevent your symptoms from recurring.

The news the next day told of the carnage brought about by the high temperatures. The First Aid tent was overflowing with overheated and dehydrated runners, some of whom ended up in the hospital. However, the runners in the worst condition were those who had drunk too much. It’s true—there were some runners that day who followed commonsense advice of drinking lots but got into real trouble because they were grossly over hydrated.

How could that happen? Well, drinking too much water can cause an electrolyte imbalance in which the dilution of sodium in your body becomes life threatening. Marathon runners sweat heavily over the course of a 26-mile race, and lose both water and electrolytes. When a dehydrated runner drinks too much water without supplementing the necessary electrolytes, water intoxication, or hyponatremia, can occur. The symptoms of water intoxication aren’t pretty. The electrolyte imbalance causes tissue swelling, which in serious cases can lead to an irregular heartbeat, fluid in the lungs, pressure on the brain, seizures, coma, and death. The good news is, if it’s treated before the swelling causes too much damage, a water intoxicated athlete can fully recover within a couple of days.

So what does this story have to do with Chinese medicine? Well, in the past year or so, I’ve seen several patients in my clinic who in one way or another have been over hydrating. While they weren’t dangerously ill, their water consumption was enough to have a negative impact on their health.

In one instance, a woman in her early 40’s, named Jane, had what felt like a chronic bladder infection that was not responding to Western or Chinese medical treatments. Finally, she went to a clinic specializing in bladder health, and the doctor determined that her bladder was healthy, but inordinately large. Now if you’re a regular beer drinker, that may be a good problem to have, but in Jane’s case, it was causing her discomfort. On questioning, Jane reported that she drinks several 32 oz bottles of water every day. Essentially, the doctor said that drinking so much water had enlarged her bladder to the point of discomfort. Her course of treatment is to drink a lot less.

A second example of so-called water damage has occurred in a number of patients I’ve seen who struggle with chronic diarrhea—the kind that’s life-altering. Most of these patients are having episodes several times a day and can’t eat a meal without having to hit the bathroom shortly afterward. In almost every case, when I ask about water consumption, I find that these patients are drinking a lot–sometimes several liters a day. This causes their digestion to be so waterlogged that it almost completely shuts down. The course of treatment is to drink less, especially with meals, and to switch to room temperature or warm drinks. Through acupuncture, herbal medicine, and dialing back the water, these patients have seen their diarrhea go away completly or be greatly reduced.

In Chinese medicine, these are both cases of something called dampness, in which your body is unable to metabolize water effectively. In both of these instances the dampness was brought about by drinking too much water. Dampness is almost always a digestive issue, in which your Chinese Spleen gets bogged down and can’t make good use of the fluids in your body. Dampness can be the cause of a number of symptoms including diarrhea, bladder infections, yeast, poor energy, joint pain, headaches, and a feeling of heaviness. In addition, that excess roll of fat around your middle or on your thighs is also considered to be damp tissue—it’s moist and heavy—a little bit like wet sand.

There are a number of reasons you become damp. The most common include drinking too much, eating too much, eating the wrong foods (sweet, rich, greasy), stress, and living in a damp place, like England or a basement. Dampness is a drag, because like wet sand, it tends to take a long time to dry out.

The best way to deal with dampness is to not become damp in the first place. This means eating good food in moderation; getting a little exercise; saying hydrated, but not over drinking; and maintaining your weight. Being proactive against dampness also means paying attention to your digestion. Some simple ways to improve the digestive process include sitting at the table when you eat, chewing your food well, and drinking small amounts of room temperature water or hot tea with your meals.

While symptoms caused by dampness, and dampness itself can be a challenge in the acupuncture clinic, it can be resolved. Through the use of acupuncture, drying or draining herbs, Chinese food therapy, and some lifestyle tweaks, dampness can be something you talk about in the past tense.

It’s hard to understand how a weather condition could be causing such misery. But it’s true, in Chinese medicine wind can be the evil force behind tremors, dizziness, numbness, and twitches.  It can also cause seasonal allergies,  colds or even the current flu that’s going around.

Let me explain.

First of all, wind is considered a pathogen, or something that makes you sick.  Many of the concepts of Chinese medicine are based on the natural world, and what makes you sick is no exception.  Pathogens are a little bit like bad weather in your body.  When you have a fever or inflammation, you have heat; when your arthritis flares up during the cold weather, you have a cold pathogen; and when you retain lots of water, you have dampness. (This is a very simplified explanation.)

Wind is considered movement where there should be stillness.  As a pathogen, wind is dry, light and active.  It tends to be Yang in nature—like the sunny side of the hill—it’s slightly warm, and it generally moves upward and outward. 

There are actually two kinds of wind—internal and external.  Internal wind tends to affect your body on a deeper level.  It’s frequently associated with a malfunction of the Liver system to control the smooth flow of energy in your body, and can cause symptoms associated with movement—vertigo, tremors, twitches, and seizures.  Wind is usually the dark cocktail behind illnesses such as Meniere’s and Parkinson’s.

While frequently related to a Liver system malfunction, internal wind can also be caused by systemic dryness or malnourishment.  Much like a dry tree, the brittle leaves at the top rattle in the wind.

Wind can also be external, affecting the outer layers of your body, which is the pathogen behind everyday colds, flu, allergies, and viral infections.  In addition, the cause comes from your inability to fight off outside “influences”, such as viruses, bacteria, and pollen. True to its nature, the wind associated with a cold tends to affect the upper part of your body and move around—first you have a sore throat, then your nose is stuffed up, and then your cold sinks into your chest.  External wind can also cause itching, hives, and rashes.

External wind tends to be associated with your Lungs, which encompasses your respiratory system and skin.  In Chinese medicine, your Lungs are considered the most external of your organs, because with every breath, you come into contact with the outside world.  So, external wind tends to affect the outermost part of your body—your Lungs and skin.

External wind usually teams up with other pathogens, such as heat, cold, or dampness.  For example, if you have the flu with an extremely sore throat and a high temperature, you have external wind plus heat.  If you get a cold that makes you feel achy and chilled, you likely have external wind plus cold.

Treatment for wind conditions depends entirely on the circumstances.  Is it internal or external wind?  Has it paired with other pathogens?  What’s causing the wind in the first place?  Your acupuncturist needs to take all of these factors into consideration before developing a treatment.

Because internal wind conditions tend to be caused by depletion, a treatment plan would entail building up the depleted substance(s), such as Yin, Blood, or Qi (energy), which would ideally relieve the symptoms of wind.  This would likely be done using acupuncture, Chinese herbs, choosing the right foods, and getting adequate rest.

If you’re suffering from external wind, acupuncture combined with herbs would be a likely treatment protocol.  For early stage external wind, when you feel like you’re coming down with something, you can sometimes head it off with herbs you have at home.  Boil grated ginger and chopped scallions in a cup of water.  You can add a little broth or flavoring if you like.  Drink it down, wrap yourself up, and go to bed.  The idea is that these warm herbs open your pores, causing you to sweat, which expels external wind.

Memory loss can the result of a number of factors, the most common of which is your age.  However, hormonal changes, diet, stress, and simply trying to do too many things at once can also mess with your memory.

There are a couple of organ systems in Chinese medicine that are related to memory.  The first (that I can remember) is your Heart.  The Chinese Heart is home to your consciousness, spirit, feelings, thoughts, and…yes, your memory.  Memory loss is one of the hallmark signs of a Heart disharmony.

Your Chinese Spleen is the organ closely related to digestion.  Good digestion helps something called clear Yang to rise upward allowing for mental clarity.  When your digestion is funky, you may experience fuzzy thinking and memory problems, along with digestive symptoms, such as heartburn, stomachaches, low blood sugar, gas, bloating, poor absorption of foods, and diarrhea or constipation.

The Kidney system is also a player in memory.  One of the important functions of your Chinese Kidney system is how well and healthfully you will age.  As you get older, your Kidney gets weaker as a matter of course, affecting everything from your hearing to the strength of your bones, and your mental function/memory.  Along with aging, your Kidney also controls things like growth, sexuality, and reproduction.  When women go through menopause, their Kidney system is affected, which is why memory seems to take an additional hit during this time.

So the question is:  Can Chinese medicine and acupuncture help with memory loss?  There is no simple yes or no, depending on the source of the problem.  However, in many instances, Chinese medicine can help.  For some people, memory problems are directly related to the amount of stress they’re experiencing, and in others, the memory issues began as part of menopause.  For older adults who are beginning to show the signs of senile dementia, it may be too late to reverse their memory loss.

According to Chinese medicine, there are some things that you can do to safeguard your memory.  This includes:

 -Simplify your life.  If you’re feeling overwhelmed, your brain is full.  At a certain point, you just can’t hold onto any more details, so you start to forget them.

-Jettison the stress.  Stressful situations cause you to be preoccupied, making it difficult for you to remember anything except details about what’s stressing you out.  Do whatever it takes, whether it’s steps to resolve the stressful situation, or a Yoga class, meditation, taking up a hobby, or carving out quiet time to yourself.

-Eat good food.  It sounds simple, but it’s not always so easy when you’re running from meeting to meeting or getting your kids from one activity to another.  Sometimes the only solution seems to be something quick—and not so good for you.  Take the time to plan what you’ll eat, and bring it with you if necessary.  Good food is whole food, unprocessed, whole grains, lots of vegetables, and a little protein, with very small amounts of red meat, if any.  Ditch the sugar, as it messes with your blood sugar levels and can be a direct contributor to fuzzy thinking.  Remember the Twinkie defense?

-Digest that good food you’ve eaten.  Take the time to sit down and eat.  Chew your food and sit up straight.  In addition, cooked foods tend to be easier to digest, and ice cold foods and drinks bring your digestion to a halt.

-Protect your Chinese Kidney.  How?  Well, slow down, for one.  Overwork can be a direct cause of illness and depletion in Chinese medicine.  Also, excessive partying, while fun, weakens your Kidney system and sends you into your senior years in less than optimal health.

In addition to Chinese medicine, Western doctors and scientists are looking for ways to protect memory as we age.  They have been conducting research on memory and the various factors that may help slow memory loss.  Among them:

-Get moving.  Data from a study that began in the 1930’s shows that moderate exercise (as little as two times a week!) can lower your chances of being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s.

-If you’re a smoker, quit now.  While you can’t completely undo the damage in terms of degeneration to your brain, the sooner you quit the better.

-Drink green tea.  Results from a 2006 study indicate that as little as a cup or two a day of green tea, which is packed full of antioxidants, can cut your risk of cognitive problems by 50 percent.

-Make lists.  Memory lapses can be the by-product of simply trying to do too many things at once.  At a certain point, your brain just can’t hold any more details.  Make lists of the things you want to do or remember to get rid of some of that brain clutter.

-Play mind games.  Crossword puzzles, soduku, trivia quizzes, or even learning a new skill or language can keep your brain exercised and can slow memory loss.

The good news here is that small changes can be enough to yield big results as long as you keep them up.  A few cups of green tea, acupuncture to relieve stress, exercising a couple days a week, and moderate changes in your diet can be enough to lower your risk of age related memory problems.

My brush with butt pain happened about three days into a week long kayaking trip in the middle of nowhere.  I woke up one morning and tried to walk down to the beach to wash my face, but my leg, or more accurately, my butt wouldn’t cooperate.  I could walk, but just barely, because a nagging pain on the right side of my low back and butt was causing my leg to fold up like a card table.

I managed to get through the kayaking trip—surprisingly; I was able to paddle without much pain, but once I got out of my kayak, I was pretty well hobbled.  It wasn’t until a week or two later that I learned that I had something called Piriformis syndrome. 

Since then, I have made it my business to know as much as possible about sciatic nerve pain.  If you suffer from this kind of pain, here are some things you should know:

1. Not all pain that begins in your butt and radiates down your leg is sciatica.  True sciatica is due pressure on your sciatic nerve from compressed lumbar disks, trauma, or degeneration in your lower back.
2. Piriformis syndrome often feels just like sciatica, but the cause is from a spasm in the Piriformis muscle.  Your Piriformis is a core stabilizing muscle that runs deep from your sacrum (at the base of your spine) to your hip (the bone on the outside top of your thigh.)  Your sciatic nerve runs under, and for some people, through the Piriformis muscle.  When your Piriformis is injured, it can compress the sciatic nerve where it passes through the pelvis.  Beyond pain deep in your butt, Piriformis syndrome usually causes pain that radiates down the back or side of your leg, and can travel through your knee and into your foot.  The pain can be achy and dull, sharp, nagging, and even cause numbness and tingling.
3. It can be tough to tell the difference between true sciatica and Piriformis syndrome, because the symptoms tend to mimic each other, but there are a few clues.  With sciatica, you will usually have pain radiating all the way into your lower leg and foot, but with Piriformis syndrome, the pain often radiates only as far as your knee.  Areas of complete numbness along the pathway of the nerve indicate sciatica.  Also, Piriformis syndrome is associated with some very tender trigger points in your butt.  For a definitive diagnosis, your doc will need to rule in or out disk problems as the source of your pain.
4. Overuse is a common cause of Piriformis syndrome, and it can be a common injury that sidelines athletes.  Prolonged sitting and trauma can also aggravate the Piriformis muscle, causing it to swell or go into spasms, which causes the sciatic nerve to be pinched. 
5. I have found in my acupuncture practice that Piriformis syndrome is frequently caused by cold.  It seems to be more prevalent in the winter or after a patient has been outdoors in the cold.  I believe that my kayaking debacle was caused by sitting in a cold, wet kayak for hours on end.  (No pun intended.)
6. In my experience, Piriformis syndrome is far more common than true sciatica.  The good news is that I find that my patients with Piriformis syndrome respond far more quickly to treatment than those with sciatica.
7. Treatment for butt pain in Chinese medicine would include acupuncture, heat, body work, stretching, and at home care. Acupuncture speeds healing by promoting circulation to the area of injury.  In addition, research has documented that acupuncture works by increasing the release of pain-relieving chemicals in the brain.
8. I have found that electro acupuncture, in which the inserted needles are hooked up to a small machine that painlessly contracts or “vibrates” the muscle is especially effective in relieving pain and speeds up the healing process.  Electro acupuncture works by relaxing the muscles that are tight or in spasm.
9. Western treatments for butt pain may include rest, physical therapy, injections of local anesthetics or steroids, and prescription medications for pain or to relax the muscles.  For difficult or chronic cases, your doctor may recommend surgery.
10. At home treatments include heating the painful area, rolling on a tennis ball to release trigger points (points that are especially tender), and gentle stretching.  A simple stretch for the Piriformis muscle:  Sit in a chair with both feet on the floor.  To stretch the right side, place your right ankle across the top of your left knee.  Then gently lean forward until you feel the stretch in your butt. Repeat on the other side by reversing the action.

As for my own butt injury, once I was out of the wilderness, I enlisted the help of an acupuncturist to relieve my pain.  I was lucky; it took about a week before I stopped limping, and a few more before I was completely pain-free.  Combined with some daily stretching and strengthening exercises from a physical therapist, I haven’t had a recurrence.  My butt’s just fine, thank you.