Bruxa said:
The surgery definitely complicates things. Endometriosis and fibroids have a few causes based around the idea that they develop due to blood or qi stagnation in that part of the body.
This can be the result of kidney and/or spleen deficiency, for example, and there would be other symptoms that would aid this diagnosis.
Just because you had the surgery, that doesn't mean the root cause was fixed, unfortunately. The uterus wasn't the cause of the problems, rather it was imbalances elsewhere in the body that led to those issues.
Given what you describe about heat, and from the other post: mood swings/irritability, it definitely sounds like yin deficiency. I am betting the kidney yin is deficient and the yang as well, given the lack of libido. The mental state and physical state are connected, and this is shown here.
You won't need hormone replacement, because TCM treatments will aid your body in producing and regulating its hormones properly again.
A TCM clinician will aid you with acupuncture, herbs, and lifestyle coaching to correct these imbalances. I would expect to take herbal formulas for some time to have complete healing of these deficiencies.
You should look up any clinicians in your area, however even if you cannot find any, there are many online clinics that can properly diagnose and treat you based on your full symptom list. In other words, be diligent about finding TCM/holistic assistance, because this will be the key to your recovery.
How is your digestion? Does it seem "clean burning" and do you have solid waste? Alternatively, do you hear lots of gurgling, and is the waste watery or not solid? Furthermore, if you have an issue with whitehead acne, this can point to digestive troubles.
If the above digestion symptoms are the case, this can influence the advice below. These are signs of dampness accumulation in the body and means you want to definitely cut out all processed sugars, stop fruit consumption, involve more exercise.
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As far as things you can do now, you will need to focus on your diet, sleep, and exercise. In addition, you can push some acupoints that should give some relief.
Exercise: Hatha yoga is great for the yin of the body and you should do this daily or even twice daily.
While boosting yang does eventually help yin, go easy on any yang-style yoga. Also go easy on cardio, preferring walking or light cycling. All exercise should make you feel better, not more stressed or hot.
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Based on correcting yin deficiencies, in the diet you will want to focus on nourishing and building foods.
Specifically for the kidneys: You should eat more asparagus, beans, duck, egg, kelp, string bean, potato, oyster/clam, pork.
For the yin in general, you should eat more: peas, rice, honey, turkey, white fish, sardine, crab.
Beef and chicken are ok, but beef can be warming. Go easy on fruit, especially since it is winter. You actually don't need any when it is not seasonally available.
Avoid anything hot or spicy, such as peppers, curry, lots of garlic/onion, etc. These will inflame your symptoms.
In general, don't eat raw foods, nor cold foods. Make sure your food is warm. You might think a raw salad would be good for the yin, but it is very light and the raw/cold of it hurts the digestion. Animal products are best for the yin of the body, since they most closely mimic it. Don't be afraid to eat lots of the foods that would help you here.
Drink lots of water as well. Avoid pop or carbonated drinks or whatever.
Cut out all processed items, as these will do you no good. Try your best to eat whole foods, especially those that build the yin and the kidneys.
If you are skinny/lighter person (Vata dosha), then you can tolerate more yin foods. If you are a more heavyset person (Kapha dosha), then you will need to be careful to avoid stagnation, such as doing more exercise. However, your current symptoms point towards yin deficiency, so just worry about that for now.
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For sleep:
Go to bed before 11pm. Avoid blue light (from modern lights and screens), and avoid eating minimum 2 hours before bed if you can help it. If you have insomnia or hot flashes, or any other symptoms, push the acupoints shown below.
Sleeping at this actually makes a big difference in the healing process.
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For acupressure,
please read this great article on points for menopause-like symptoms. A lot of these points will fix both the mental and physical symptoms that you feel. Push with moderate pressure and hold for at least a few minutes.
When you have symptoms, push them for at least 5 minutes or longer. Otherwise, try to make a habit of pushing them regularly, such as when you are watching TV or listening to music or something. Not only do these most of these points correct some symptoms nearly immediately, but they will also heal the organs associated with them as well.
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You should see some relief from these tips,
but definitely follow through with a TCM clinician. They will be much more able to guide your healing process, such as prescribing the right herbs for you. Make an effort on the lifestyle factors, as these are the true causes behind your problems.