Autonomic Dysfunction — Tests Are Normal, but Your Body Hurts

You see one doctor after another and only hear, "Nothing is wrong"

Your heart races, you feel dizzy, your hands and feet tingle, and your digestion is off — yet your ECG, brain MRI, and blood tests all come back normal. In cases like this, autonomic dysfunction may be suspected. The balance of the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems has broken down, producing symptoms in many different parts of the body without any structural abnormality.

Korean medicine diagnosis: Liver qi stagnation (肝鬱氣滯)

Korean medicine views autonomic dysfunction as a decline in the dispersing-and-discharging function of the Liver (肝). The Liver is the organ that regulates the circulation of qi, and when stress causes Liver qi to stagnate, varied symptoms can appear all over the body.

• Heat above, cold below (上熱下寒): The face flushes hot while the hands and feet stay cold
• Fullness in the chest and flanks (胸脇苦滿): A heavy, stuffy feeling in the chest and ribcage
• Globus sensation (梅核氣): A feeling of something stuck in the throat

Treatment

• Soyo-san (逍遙散): A representative formula that releases Liver stagnation and restores qi circulation
• Banhahubak-tang (半夏厚朴湯): For cases with a globus sensation in the throat
• Acupuncture: Taichong (LR3) to release Liver qi, Neiguan (PC6) to ease chest tightness, Zusanli (ST36) to restore digestive function

Lifestyle measures for autonomic stability

• Practice diaphragmatic breathing (10 minutes a day) — the simplest way to activate the parasympathetic nervous system
• Limit caffeine and alcohol — they worsen autonomic disturbance
• Keep regular sleep and wake times — a stable circadian rhythm is the foundation of autonomic stability