In Chinese medicine, the Spleen is the engine of digestion. It produces Qi energy and blood from the food you eat, which are the fuel and building materials for the entire body.

Think of it as a boiler. A good boiler needs two things: quality fuel and a steady fire. When it has both, it produces heat and energy for the whole house.

But today, the Spleen usually has neither.

Instead of quality fuel, it receives processed foods, iced smoothies, yoghurts straight from the fridge, biscuits, and fast food. Instead of a steady fire, it gets food eaten in a rush, standing at a computer, with a phone to the ear. Sometimes we forget lunch entirely and stuff ourselves with pizza in the evening.

And on top of all that, there is the Liver pressure cooker we talked about. Stress and emotions directly weaken the Spleen.

In Chinese medicine, this is called "Wood attacks Earth" — the Liver (Wood) suppresses the Spleen (Earth).

In layman's terms — stress settles in our stomach.

Fatigue after eating. The feeling that you need to lie down after lunch. Bloating. Belching. Mushy stools. Teeth marks on the edges of the tongue. Cravings for sweets. Weight gain, even when eating little. Brain fog. Heaviness in the limbs. As if your whole body is pulling you towards the ground.

And there is one more thing. A weak Spleen cannot process fluids correctly. Instead, it lets them accumulate in the body. And this is called pathological dampness.

And dampness is the bridge to the third peak of our triad.

Do you remember the heat in the Liver pressure cooker? And the dampness that accumulates in the body due to a weak Spleen? What happens when you combine them? You get damp heat.

Imagine a compost heap in the garden. A wet pile of leaves, straw and old scraps. From the outside, it looks normal. But when you plunge your hand into it, it is warm, sometimes even hot.

What is happening there? The damp matter is decomposing from within, and that generates heat.

And that is exactly what happens inside your body when you have damp heat. Something is smouldering there. It is not an acute fire, but a chronic heating. Sticky. Heavy. Persistent.

And that is the worst pattern of all three. Because damp heat stays in the body for an extremely long time and is difficult to remove.

Inflammations that do not go away. Acne, especially around the chin and on the back. Eczema, psoriasis. Oily skin, greasy hair. A yellow-green or yellowish coating on the tongue. A bitter taste in the mouth. A tendency towards phlegm. Gynaecological discharge, often thick and yellow. Burning urine. Haemorrhoids. Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis. Fungal infections. A feeling of a heavy, swollen body.

All things that keep coming back, no matter what you do.

Here is the key thing you need to realise. These three images are not three separate problems. They are three vertices of one triangle.

Stress and emotions → clog the Liver (pressure cooker). Clogged Liver → suppresses the Spleen (the boiler goes out). Weak Spleen → creates dampness (wet compost). Pressure in the Liver → creates heat (heated pressure cooker). Heat + dampness → damp heat (smouldering compost). Damp heat → clogs the Liver even more. And we are back at the beginning.

And that is the reason why so many people today cannot get out of their problems.

They treat one side of the triangle and the other two bring them back.

Let us return to the beginning, to the tired and stressed manager. A gastroenterologist prescribed her medication for heartburn. Logical, she has heartburn. The medication suppresses acidity in the stomach.

But her heartburn did not arise from an excess of acid. It arose from heat caused by Liver stagnation, which suppresses the Spleen and Stomach and pushes their contents upwards.

The medication therefore suppresses the symptom. But the cause continues. And soon another problem will be added, e.g. reflux, or gastritis, or a deficiency of vitamin B12, which is poorly absorbed with reduced acidity.

A gynaecologist suggested hormonal contraception. Logical, she has painful PMS and an irregular cycle. Contraception will balance the hormones.

But her PMS does not arise from hormonal imbalance. It arises from Liver stagnation, which prevents the free flow of blood. Contraception will balance the hormones, but the Liver remains under pressure. And so headaches are added. Moodiness. Reduced libido. And finally a fibroid.

A dermatologist prescribed an ointment for acne. Logical, she has acne. The ointment dries out and suppresses inflammation.

But her acne does not arise on the surface of the skin. It arises from damp heat inside, which is pushed out through the skin via the Lungs and blood. The ointment suppresses the skin. But the damp heat remains in the body. And so it appears in another place, perhaps as a gynaecological discharge, or as thyroid inflammation.

Each of these treatment procedures was correct from the perspective of a partial specialisation.

And yet, together they did not work, because they treated the symptoms, not the whole circle.

And now, finally, something positive. Once you understand that these are not five or ten different problems, but one vicious circle, the solution is actually surprisingly simple. You must break the circle at all three points simultaneously. And that is exactly what Chinese medicine does and what Western specialised medicine cannot do.

In practice, this means three things that go hand in hand:

1. Release the Liver. Let the steam out of the pressure cooker. This is done with herbs, but also through lifestyle, exercise, breathing, and working with emotions. A classic formula is Xiao Yao San — 001 Breaking the Shackles. Probably the most used Chinese medicine formula in the world. It releases the Liver while simultaneously strengthening the Spleen. It works on two levels.

2. Strengthen the Spleen. Light the fire under the cauldron. This is done with warm, easily digestible food, regular meals, avoiding cold and raw foods, and herbs that strengthen Spleen Qi. Classic formulas are Si Jun Zi Tang - or Bu Zhong Yi Qi Tang - 006 Awakening Energy. Among mushrooms, Maitake is the main one that strengthens the Spleen.

3. Clear damp heat. Clear out the smouldering compost. This is done with herbs that cool and simultaneously drain dampness. A classic formula is Huang Lian Jie Du Tang.

And if you have all three peaks of roughly equal strength, there is one single formula that addresses everything at once: Xiao Chai Hu Tang 010 Opening the Doors. It is the Swiss Army knife of Chinese medicine for the Primary Pathological Triad.

But without a change in lifestyle, none of this will be maintained in the long term!

You can drink a thousand bottles of herbs. You can eat a hundred capsules of mushrooms a day. If you continue to live in stress, eat cold and raw foods, do not exercise, and swallow your emotions, you will return to your vicious circle.

I cannot write a personal treatment plan for you here. I do that in my practice. However, I can write down three things you can do this very evening to start breaking the cycle:

For the Liver: Find twenty minutes where you are not available to anyone. No phone, no television. Just you. A walk, breathing, silence. Anything. The liver needs space, and you usually do not give it any.

For the Spleen: Throw out the yoghurt for the morning from your fridge. Replace it with warm porridge or an egg. If you crave something cold, take it out of the fridge at least 20 minutes beforehand. And do not snack between meals. The spleen needs breaks, not 24/7 shifts.

For damp heat: Limit alcohol, fried foods, and sweets. At least for 14 days. You will see the difference. Not a dramatic one, but you will feel it.

And if it is too much for you, if you have more symptoms from the list above, and if it has been going on for years, do not try to solve it alone. Find a Chinese medicine therapist. Or contact the MycoMedica Advisory Centre.

This is not a condition that will be solved in a week, but there is a solution. Break the whole cycle, not just one part of it.