TCM View on Difficulty Falling Asleep & Waking During the Night

This is how TCM understands sleep patterns and how important it is to get the right diagnosis. I hope the below makes it a little clearer and how involved it is when our sleep goes heywire. Which one are you and also you could be a mixture of a few???

Organ System Imbalance (Zang-Fu Theory)

TCM attributes specific functions—physical, emotional, and spiritual—to each organ. Interrupted sleep often relates to dysfunction in one or more of the following organs:

• Heart: The Heart "houses the Shen" (spirit/mind). If Heart Qi or Blood is deficient, or if there's excess Heat in the Heart, it can disturb the Shen, leading to frequent waking or restless sleep.

• Liver: If Liver Qi is stagnant or Liver Blood is deficient, it may cause waking between 1-3 a.m.—the Liver's active time—often with irritability or vivid dreams.

• Kidneys: Deficient Kidney Yin can lead to an internal Heat that disrupts sleep, especially if one wakes in the early morning hours (around 3-5 a.m.), feeling hot or anxious.

• Spleen: Weak Spleen Qi may fail to produce enough Blood to nourish the Heart, leading to a restless mind.

Disharmony of Yin and Yang

In TCM, Yin represents stillness, coolness, and rest, while Yang represents activity, heat, and movement. Healthy sleep requires the Yang to return to Yin at night.

• Yin Deficiency (especially of the Heart, Liver, or Kidneys): Not enough cooling, nourishing energy to anchor the Yang at night, resulting in light sleep, frequent waking, night sweats, or feeling hot at night.

• Yang Excess or Internal Heat: Too much Yang energy at night overstimulates the mind, preventing deep sleep and causing restlessness or dream-disturbed sleep.

See you in the clinic if your sleep is evading you.

Tabitha