
TCM for Fatigue

Feeling like caffeine is essential just to make it through your day? Experiencing that afternoon dip? Or just plain waking up tired?
Fatigue can arise from a myriad of reasons. Maybe you get most of your work done at night. Maybe that’s the only time you get to watch those new shows. Maybe rough sleep is causing a groggy day. Maybe it’s a symptom of a condition you have. Maybe your mind won’t stop running. Maybe you had a rough bout of Covid or the flu and never shook off the fatigue. Maybe there’s an aspect of long-term stress. Or maybe you have no idea!
Here’s where my support with acupuncture and herbal medicine for fatigue comes in. I’m here to prod and poke into every aspect of your life to see what underlying imbalances are causing either your disturbed sleep or fatigued days. Because I know that not only might you feel sleepy during the day, but also how it may affect your career, social endeavours, and other aspects of your health.
What can Chinese medicine do for fatigue?
First, I will venture to understand where your fatigue arises from via pulse-taking, tongue observation, channel palpation, and many many questions. Next, I’ll form a TCM diagnosis which might include words like stagnation or Cold or deficiency. Then, I’ll have you lay down on a warm and comfy treatment table, receive a few gentle pins, potentially a session of cupping or warm moxibustion (burning dried mugwort over specific acupuncture points), and allow you to drift off for 20-30 minutes. Finally, I’ll prescribe and prepare a herbal formula for you to take daily as additional support for your body. I will probably include some lifestyle recommendations to prompt deeper sleep, effective caffeine intake, and healthy metabolism.
The acupuncture points and herbal formulas I choose for your fatigue will be personalised to your body and pattern. Some patients require more moving, some more support, while others require deep internal warmth. Common approaches to my practice include:
supporting digestion and metabolism – energy comes from food!
regulating nervous system – more calm evenings and energised mornings
stimulating blood flow and fluid circulation – more O₂ to the brain, less fluid retention
expelling lingering pathogens – target any lingering mucus, inflammation, dormant viruses
warming internal Cold – Cold slows processes down, blood flow decreases
I’m aiming to work with you to bring your body to a state of balance, in which it can efficiently self-regulate its hormones, circulation, digestion, and immunity.
What does chronic fatigue mean?
Chronic fatigue is a syndrome characterised by intense and prolonged tiredness, which cannot be explained by an underlying condition, blood tests, etc. I would consider it to be chronic if it exists for at least 3-6months.
Often chronic fatigue can arise when the body is under a prolonged state of stress. As a protective mechanism, your body reduces it’s function levels to save energy and prevent over-exertion. Stress factors can include: environmental emotional infections dietary physical Acupuncture for chronic fatigue may focus on communicating to your body that it is no longer under said stress.