Herbs that Release the Exterior
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A 24-year-old female presents with lower abdominal pain prior to menses. The pain is fixed and sharp. Upon palpation you notice that the abdomen is cold, and the patient reports that the pain is relieved by warmth. Her pulse is deep, weak, and choppy. You diagnose her with blood stagnation due to cold. What herb could you give her to warm and unblock the channels and promote the movement of blood?
Besides releasing the exterior, Gui Zhi also warms and unblocks; for bi syndrome, for chest pain and palpitation, for edema and urinary retention, or for stagnation due to cold (as in the formula Gui Zhi Fu Ling Wan).
Source: Bensky, D. (2004). Chinese Herbal Medicine: Materia Medica. Seattle, WA: Eastland Press. pp. 9 [Q524]