TCM for inattention and hyperactivity

According to Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) a healthy mind requires a balance of two energies: Yin and Yang. Yin represents stillness, coolness and calmness while Yang represents movement, heat and motivation.

When you're struggling with brain health and have poor focus, or find you’re unable to sit still, your Yin and Yang energies are out of balance. This imbalance affects our whole- body-mind ecosystem and ultimately affects our mind (Shen).

Shen is your mind and spirit - focus, concentration, thoughts and emotions. In TCM, it’s housed in your Heart – which is responsible for much more than pumping blood around the body.

When the Heart is disrupted, which might occur due to other interrelated organ networks like the Liver or Spleen, it can no longer carry out its function of anchoring our mind and spirit. This leads to a sense of overwhelm, poor focus, impaired concentration and hyperactivity.  These patterns of imbalance can be expressed in three main ways.

A Yin deficiency - poor focus

Yin is responsible for maintaining calmness, sustained focus and impulse control. When this grounding Yin energy, which supplies nutrients and neurotransmitters, is insufficient, the Heart cannot anchor the mind, so it scatters and floats away.

People with a Yin deficiency might ‘run hot’. They might have a dry mouth, warm hands, experience night sweats when they’re in bed, or feel hotter in the afternoon or evening.

This imbalance can be triggered by too much excitement, not making enough space for rest, irregular sleep and emotions like anger, worry and fear.

A Yang excess - hyperactivity

Yang is responsible for action, motivation and heat but when it operates without limits a person may become hyperactive, impulsive, or easily angered.

In TCM the Liver regulates a smooth flow of energy and emotions and has a close relationship with the Heart. When a person is under stress or is genetically predisposed this energy can bottleneck and create a pattern of Liver Fire which shoots upward to agitate the Heart causing restlessness, fidgeting and impulsive outbursts.

This state of hyperactivity is akin to a fight or flight response that won’t turn off.

Other symptoms of excess Liver fire include throbbing headaches, sleeping problems, being quick to anger, having a flushed, red face and a bitter taste in the mouth.

‘Phlegm misting the Heart’ - brain fog

According to TCM the Spleen is the digestive organ, which is important for breaking down food and fuelling the body. But when its function is impaired or ‘insulted’ it forms a heavy, metabolic by-product called ‘Phlegm’ which travels upward and ‘mists’ the mind leading to brain fog, word block, task paralysis and brain lock.

Overeating (particularly fatty, sweet or dairy heavy foods), strong emotions like shock, worry and sadness can insult the Spleen. An imbalance of mental and physical activity – overthinking and a heavy cognitive load, along with too much time spent sitting down and not enough time moving can also impair spleen function.

This relationship between Spleen (digestion) and the Heart (mind) mirrors the gut-brain axis acknowledged in medicine.

TCM and acupuncture for hyperactivity and focus

In TCM, a healthy cognitive function and behavioural control rely on dynamic equilibrium between Yin and Yang energies. Problems with focus and hyperactivity are seen as an imbalance between these opposing but interdependent energies. In TCM, these imbalances are corrected and addressed through highly individualised modalities using acupuncture and herbal medicine. The aim is not to replace Western medicine but to offer alternative or supportive therapies.

Acupuncture involves the insertion of fine needles into specific parts of the body to regulate Yin and Yang energy and remove blockages that can lead to hyperactivity or impaired focus or concentration.

Herbal medicine involves prescribing a variety of herbs in a formula, which are selected on an individual basis to balance the body’s Yin and Yang energies and promote a mind-body equilibrium. Herbs such as Ziziphus and Ophiopogon nourish Yin and calm the mind, White Peony cools liver heat and nourishes Yin, while Pinellia is a common gut-phlegm herb with mind-opening properties.