↑ reinforcing ↓ reducing ⊥ even method.
1. Spleen Deficiency with Dampness
Clinical manifestations: Heaviness worsening after eating; fatigue; loose or unformed stools; bloating after meals; poor appetite; a pale complexion.
Tongue: Pale, swollen, teeth-marked, white greasy coating, moist surface. Pulse: Soggy and slow, weak at the right middle position, may feel slightly slippery.
Treatment principle: Tonifies Spleen Qi and drains Dampness to restore the organ's fluid-transforming function.
Note: moxa is appropriate. No standalone Spleen-Deficiency-with-Dampness slide exists on this site's decks — no pattern link is given here.
Clinical manifestations: A heavy body and limbs; a sticky, greasy mouth taste; thirst without a desire to drink; a low-grade, persistent fever; loose, sticky, incomplete stools; an oppressive sensation.
Tongue: Red with yellow greasy coating, thickest at the centre and root, may be swollen with teeth marks. Pulse: Soggy-rapid or slippery-rapid.
Treatment principle: Clears Heat and drains Dampness while regulating Middle Burner Qi flow.
Note: no moxa.
Clinical manifestations: A heavy feeling with a cold sensation in the limbs; upper abdominal bloating; loose, watery stools; a head that feels wrapped in cloth; dull, cold abdominal pain; no thirst.
Tongue: Pale, swollen, teeth-marked, thick white greasy excessively moist coating. Pulse: Soggy or slippery and slow.
Treatment principle: Warms the interior, dispels Cold, dries Dampness and restores the Spleen's digestive fire.
Note: moxa is strongly indicated.
4. Phlegm in the Channels, Joints and Muscles
Clinical manifestations: Fixed, stabbing pain in the muscles or joints; heavy limbs; hard joint swelling; purplish discoloration around the joints; numbness; subcutaneous nodules; fewer digestive symptoms.
Tongue: Purple with stasis spots, white greasy coating, distended sublingual veins. Pulse: Wiry and choppy, or wiry and slippery if Phlegm predominates.
Treatment principle: Dries Dampness, transforms Phlegm, invigorates Blood and dispels stasis to unblock the channels.
Note: no moxa. This site's decks have no Phlegm-in-the-channels slide, confirmed absent again — no pattern link is given here.
Clinical manifestations: Abdominal bloating and fullness after eating; sticky, incomplete stools; emotional frustration or low mood; distending rib discomfort; heaviness of the body and limbs; a trapped sensation.
Tongue: Pale, swollen, teeth-marked, white greasy excessively moist coating. Pulse: Slippery and wiry overall, soggy at the right middle position, distinctly wiry at the left middle position.
Treatment principle: Moves stagnant Liver Qi while simultaneously drying Dampness and strengthening Spleen function.
Note: no moxa.