🌿 Folk Prescriptions

?When it's time to sleep, lying in bed yet unable to fall asleep—this is truly tormenting. At night, how many people toss and turn restlessly.
Insomnia, known as "bù mèi" in Traditional Chinese Medicine, means inability to sleep. TCM holds that when the spirit is calm, one sleeps; when restless, one cannot sleep. The cause of restlessness stems from either pathogenic factors disturbing the body or deficiency of nutritive qi. Excess conditions are mostly due to stagnation of Qi transforming into fire, disturbing the heart spirit, disharmony in the stomach, or internal phlegm-heat disturbance. Deficiency conditions mostly arise from yin deficiency with hyperactivity of fire, imbalance between heart and kidney, excessive thinking, internal injury to heart and spleen, or deficiency of heart and gallbladder qi leading to agitation and fear—all of which affect the heart spirit and result in insomnia. Modern medicine attributes insomnia to mental and cognitive factors such as emotional tension, excitement, unexpected shocks, unresolved mental conflicts, excessive sorrow, annoying anxiety, extreme excitement, etc. Internal bodily disturbances like overeating, pain, itching, etc., can also trigger insomnia.
Regular use of sedatives or sleeping pills is not ideal for treating insomnia. Not only do they lead to drug dependence, but may also cause liver damage and impair cognitive function. Using herbal porridge therapy to regulate insomnia has proven effective; patients with insomnia might consider trying this approach.
Two-Nut Porridge: Take 15 grams of Platycladi seed, 20 grams of sour jujube seed (roasted), and 100 grams of glutinous rice. First crush the platycladi and jujube seeds, then boil them together with rice. Add honey when the porridge is nearly ready, cook for another 1–2 boils, and consume before bedtime. Platycladi seed nourishes the heart and calms the spirit; sour jujube seed tonifies the liver and gallbladder, nourishes the heart and spleen. Modern pharmacological studies confirm that sour jujube seed exerts sedative and hypnotic effects by inhibiting the central nervous system. This porridge suits those with insomnia accompanied by frequent dreams, easy awakening, timidity, palpitations, and deficiency of heart and gallbladder qi.
Cyclocarpus and Lotus Seed Porridge: Take 20 grams of longan flesh (dragon eye meat), 30 grams of lotus seeds, and 100 grams of rice. Crush the lotus seeds, then boil with longan and rice to make porridge. Consume two hours before bedtime. Longan nourishes the heart and spleen, enriches blood, and calms the spirit; lotus seeds tonify the spleen, nourish the heart, and benefit the kidneys. This porridge is especially suitable for those with insomnia due to deficiency of both heart and spleen, accompanied by palpitations, forgetfulness, fatigue, weak limbs, loose stools, and pale complexion.
Lily and Red Date Porridge: 20 grams of lily, 20 red dates, 50 grams of mung beans, and 50 grams of rice. First boil mung beans until half-cooked, then add lily, red dates, and rice, and continue boiling into porridge. Eat twice daily, morning and evening.
Lily clears the heart and calms the spirit; red dates nourish the stomach and strengthen the spleen; mung beans clear heat and relieve irritability. Suitable for summer insomnia and menopausal insomnia with palpitations, irritability, hot flashes, and spontaneous sweating.
Raw Rehmannia Porridge: 30 grams of raw Rehmannia, 30 grams of roasted sour jujube seed, and 50 grams of rice. First decoct raw Rehmannia and sour jujube seed, extract juice, remove residue, then add rice to cook into porridge. Consume as breakfast in the morning. Raw Rehmannia clears heat and nourishes yin; sour jujube seed calms the heart and soothes the spirit. Suitable for insomnia with irritability, palpitations, dizziness, tinnitus, lower back soreness, nocturnal emission, and five-palm heat—indicating yin deficiency with hyperactive fire.
Bamboo Juice Porridge: 20 grams of bamboo juice (available at pharmacies), and 100 grams of millet. First cook millet into porridge, then add bamboo juice just before serving, stir well, and consume on an empty stomach in the morning. Bamboo juice clears phlegm and relieves irritability, calms shock. Suitable for insomnia with heavy head, chest tightness, abundant phlegm, indicating internal phlegm-heat disturbance.
Gentiana Porridge: 10 grams of Gentiana, 20 grams of bamboo leaf, and 100 grams of white rice. First decoct Gentiana and bamboo leaf, extract juice, add rice to cook into porridge, and consume as breakfast. Gentiana clears liver fire; bamboo leaf clears heart fire and relieves irritability. Suitable for insomnia with irritability, red eyes, bitter mouth, yellow urine, constipation—indicating liver stagnation transforming into fire.
<Herbal Porridge for Insomnia>