How external pathogens make you sick?

Our body is the microcosm of the universe.

How external pathogens make you sick?

The external pathogens can make you sick. There are effective acupuncture points that deal with the condition. In east Asian medicine, our body is the microcosm. It resembles the universe, which has six energies. They are wind, cold, heat, dampness, dryness, and fire. We experience the six energies in the body in our daily life. The six energies can become pathogenic.

We have seen abnormal climate change nowadays. This is why the six energies became more excessive and extreme, becoming external pathogens that can lead to illness.

In normal conditions, the six energies do not cause any problems. As the body has weak beneficial qi or energy, they cause illnesses.  With the beneficial qi being strong, none of the six pathogens would invade and affect the body. We have a robust immune system, and no pathogens can plague us.

How do external pathogens transfer to the following levels?

Wind, cold, and dampness become the primary cause of external diseases among the six pathogens.

In east Asian medicine, our body has several layers or stages. The layers can protect us against exogenous pathogens. The outer layer is the body’s exterior surface, the skin. This is the area in which pathogens first invade the body.

Protective energy

The pathogens try to penetrate the body, and the defensive qi or energy fights against them to defend our body. The protective energy runs in the first layer twenty-five times in the daytime around our body. After the daytime cycle, the nourishing qi or energy circulates in the body at night another twenty-five times.

Stages or layers against external pathogens

How external pathogens make you sick?

There are many layers or stages to get deeper into the body. They are the Taiyang stage – Yangming stage – Shaoyang – Taiyin stage – Shaoyin stage – Juyeyin stage. The deeper it gets into the body, the more serious the condition becomes. Diseases move out of deeper layers or stages towards the outer layer or stage. It means that our body gets better.

Standard symptoms of external pathogens

Taiyang stage

This is the first stage in which exogenous pathogens attack the body. This is how exogenous pathogens make you sick. Patients suffer from fever and aversion to cold, headache, and stiff neck and back for the first or second days after the invasion of exogenous pathogens.

Yangming stage

Diseases in the Taiyang stage develop into this stage if they are not resolved in the stage.

Patients experience symptoms such as high fever in the body, painful eyes, dry nose, and difficulty sleeping for the second and third days after the invasion. 

Shaoyang stage

Patients suffer from painful chest and hypochondriac regions, difficulty hearing, bitter taste in the mouth, dry tongue, alternating heat and cold, and vomiting for the third and fourth days after the invasion.

Taiyin stage

We experience abdominal fullness, dry throat, feeling wet in hands and feet, diarrhea, thirst, and abdominal pain, for the fourth and fifth days after the invasion.

Shaoyin stage

We have dry mouths and tongues, and an aversion to cold for the fifth and sixth days after the invasion.

Jueyin stage

We feel irritable and full inside and have contracting feeling in the testicles

Treatments

With the pathogens first invading us, the disease transfers in the leg meridians alone. It does not transfer in the hand meridians. You will recover when the disease moves in the order of the generating cycle. With transfer in the opposite process, exogenous pathogens will make you sick. 

Five elements

In the five elements or movements, metal generates water.; water generates wood.; wood generates fire.; five generates earth.; and earth generates metal. This is the generating cycle.

The opposite will be the controlling cycle.: metal controls wood.; wood controls the earth.; earth controls water.; water controls fire.; and fire controls metal.

Acupuncture points in Acupuncture and moxibustion experience by Huh Im

According to Huh Im, we should use the following acupuncture points:

Day 1: Du16

Day 2: LI3

Day 3: SJ3, GB41

Day 4: LU11, SP1

Day 5: HT7, KI3

Day 6: HT4, LV4, PC5

Fu organs are responsible for the exterior part of the body. For the disease on the outer surface, you will want to use acupuncture points, such as SI5, SJ6, LI5, and GB38. 

Zang organs are responsible for the interior part of the body.  For the disease in the interior, you will want to use acupuncture points, such as SP5, KI7, LU7, HT4, and PC5.

Acupuncture points in Saam Korean four-needle system

Saam acupuncture system
Korean acupuncture treatment

According to Saam, you will want to use acupuncture points as follows, even though diseases do not transfer precisely as per day:

Day 1: The Badder meridian receives the disease, and the meridian is deficient. You should tonify acupuncture points LI1 and sedate ST36. 

Day 2: The Stomach meridian receives it. You should tonify acupuncture points ST36 and sedate GB41.

Day 3: The Gallbladder meridian receives it. You should tonify acupuncture points GB43 and sedate LI1.

Day 4: The Spleen meridian receives it. You should tonify acupuncture points LU8 and SP9 and sedate BL1.

Day 5: The Kidney meridian receives it. You should tonify acupuncture points LU8 and KI10 and sedate SP3.

Day 6: The Liver meridian receives it. You should tonify acupuncture points KI10 and LV1 and sedate LU8.

Day 7: The Bladder meridian becomes weak, and the Small intestine meridian receives it.

Day 8: The Stomach meridian becomes weak, and the Large intestine meridian receives it.  You should tonify acupuncture points ST36 and sedate GB41 and ST43.

Day 9: The Gallbladder meridian becomes weak, and the Triple burner meridian receives it. You should tonify acupuncture points BL66 and GB43 and sedate GB44 and BL67. 

Day 10: The Spleen meridian becomes weak, and The Lung meridian receives it. You should tonify acupuncture points SP4 and HT7 and sedate LV1 and SP1. 

Day 11: The Kidney meridian becomes weak, and The Heart meridian receives it.  You should tonify acupuncture points LU5 and KI10 and sedate SP4 and KI3.

Day 12: The Liver meridian becomes weak, and The Pericaridium meridian receives it.  You should tonify acupuncture points KI10 and LV8 and sedate LI1 and LV1.   

Conclusion

How exogenous pathogens make you sick?

In east Asian medicine, our body is a microcosm of the universe. We experience six energies in our bodies, just as we can see in the universe. They are wind, cold, heat, dampness, dryness, and fire. The six energies become pathogenic and become exogenous pathogens that make you sick. There are certain stages or layers in which the pathogens develop in our body. The deeper they enter, the more serious the condition becomes.

I reviewed two of the Korean acupuncture books. They show different acupuncture points for each stage. In practice, the days of disease transfer do not mean much. Patients present with various symptoms. This can tell us a particular stage they may be in. Consider using the above acupuncture points accordingly.