What should I do if I experience side effects after taking herbal medicine?
Please do not panic if you experience a sudden reaction. Check for symptoms such as insomnia, heart palpitations, severe dry mouth, indigestion, or skin breakouts. Most of these are temporary adjustment reactions or can be resolved by adjusting the potency of the medicine; simply note when the symptoms occurred and let us know.
Even experienced practitioners remember the disorientation of an imprecise prescription during their training; similarly, reactions to herbal medicine vary greatly depending on an individual's constitution. While some may generalize these as 'healing crises' (Myeonghyeon), it is more accurate to view them as signals that the prescription may need fine-tuning. In Traditional Korean Medicine, these are often seen as issues of 'stagnant Qi.'
Specific symptoms may indicate different states:
- Heart palpitations or insomnia: Qi may be rising too aggressively.
- Indigestion and bloating: This may be 'Spleen Deficiency' (Bi-heo), where the spleen's function is too weak to handle the absorption of the medicine.
- Skin breakouts or itching: This could be the process of expelling 'Phlegm-fluid' (Dameum) or 'Blood Stasis' (Eohyeol), or it could be a hypersensitivity to a specific herb.
The best approach is to 'pause and record.' Rather than enduring the discomfort, please provide specific details, such as 'my heart started racing 30 minutes after ingestion.' Most issues are easily resolved by slightly modifying the formula or changing the dosage instructions. Please contact us immediately via phone or messenger if you feel anything is unusual, and we will adjust the treatment to fit your body.
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