Ask the Expert Series

Wearing heels too often and for too long can cause the calf muscle and Achilles’ tendon to shorten and stiffen. This will result in the obstruction of the flow of Qi and blood which will lead to pain in the area. To help relieve the pain, you can try to soak your feet in warm water with small amount of vinegar added, every night before sleep for 15-30min. If you wish to increase the effectiveness，you may add some TCM herbs such as 透骨草，鸡血藤，乳香，没药，川牛膝，白芍，赤芍。 However, it is still important to reduce the amount of time on heels and to seek help from TCM physician as prolonged frequent wearing of heels can also cause problem in knees and lower back.

To determine the TCM drinks that are suitable, would actually depend on individual’s body condition, rather than the trimester of pregnancy. So if you wish to drink any TCM herbal drinks on a regular basis, do seek advice from a TCM physician with regards to your body condition and the herbal drink suitable for you. For the second trimester of pregnancy, one possible issue that could start to arise is water retention, especially at the lower limbs. In TCM, we would view this as excess dampness in the body, and one possible cause is a weak Spleen. In this case, a herbal tea consisting of 黄芪（Astragali Radix）and 白术（Atractylodes macrocephala Koidz）would be recommended. As mentioned, do seek advice if you wish to drink any TCM drinks regularly, for the optimum result.

You have to first determine whether your dampness，湿气，belongs to the heat dampness type，湿热型 or the cold dampness type，寒湿型. For heat dampness individuals, they tend to red/flushed face complexion and their stool will tend to be sticky or hard, and bad smelling. For cold dampness individuals, they tend to have a pale face complexion and their stool will tend to be soft or even watery. Do note that it is possible that it may be just a slight deviation to either type, so the symptoms may not be very typical like those mentioned above. In general, people who dampness should try avoid fried food and beer, which is very potent in creating dampness. For heat dampness individuals, you may want to try drinking barley drink regularly. For cold dampness individuals, you may want to try to orange peel and Poria tea, 陈皮茯苓茶, regularly. Considering that your dampness is quite bad, and digestive problem can present itself in different ways which will affect treatment method, I would recommend th

In accordance to TCM principle of syndrome differentiated treatment, 辨证论治, the safest and best exercise would be one tailored for the individual. Which is basically about doing exercise that is suitable for your current body status. So other than seeking professional help to tailor a exercise plan for you, you can also listen to your own body and work within your ability. For example, if your body is weak, do start with gentle exercise before moving to more strenuous ones. One of the safer and better exercise, pregnant ladies, or anyone, can do is actually walking. Walking is one of the basis form of locomotion of the human body and is one of the first few abilities we develop as a baby. Therefore, the strain it places on our body is minimum, while involving the whole body, allowing the Qi and blood flow through the body better. However, depending on your needs and goals, walking alone may not be enough. This is when you should approach a TCM physician for more advice.

You can consider doing acupuncture along with some TCM herbal medication. In TCM, we believe sleep occurs when the Ying in our body enters into the Yang of our body. And that sleep is also very much related to the function of our heart and spleen. Therefore, we would aim to regulate these through acupuncture and herbal medication, which would eventually help with the process and quality of sleep.

You can press the following acupuncture point for 1-2 minutes on both left and right hands, up to 2-3times in a day. While pressing the acupuncture point, do try to involve some neck movement within your comfortable range of motion. Wai Lao Gong（外劳宫）: On the back of the hand, between the second and third metacarpal bones, 0.5 finger width behind the joint at the base of the second and third finger. Do note that if these kind of situations occur more than a few times in a year, please seek help as this would signify a possibility of a chronic neck problem.

In TCM, we believe that the function of our Lungs play a big factor in our immunity, or in TCM terms, our ability to ward off evil pathogenic wind. So typically we would try to improve the Qi of the Lungs through acupuncture and herbal medication. For kids, we would recommend doing pediatric tuina on a regular basis as a prevention from falling sick. Moderate intake of 黄芪 or 冬虫夏草 regularly can also help improve Qi of the Lungs. Do seek advice from a TCM physician if you are unsure whether this is suitable for you or not.

In TCM, there is a group of food which we categorize as stimulating food, 发物。We believe that these food will trigger the attack of some condition or aggravate the current condition, especially allergy reactions and skin conditions. In your case, these food may increase the frequency and worsen the sensitivity of your child’s skin. Therefore, should be avoided if possible. The common stimulating food include: seafood, beef, mutton, eggs, mushroom, chive, ginger, chili, pepper, spices and glutinous rice. Do also take note of your child’s overall nutrition while avoiding these food when possible.

TCM treatment for any condition needs to be specific to the syndrome type of the condition. Therefore, without additional details regarding your child’s condition, we would not be able to advise on any TCM self-help treatment methods. Instead, I would suggest doing scraping for the Bladder Meridian along the back of your child, as a prevention for cough and cold, rather than as a remedy. Hence, you should only do this while he/she is not ill. Do take note not to do this too hard, only do it within the acceptable pain threshold of the child and until the skin is slightly red with red dots. If the child is too young, or if you wish for a less intensive method, do use your palm instead of a scraping plate, and rub along the Bladder meridian until the skin is just slightly red or hot.

You can consider bringing the baby for paediatric tuina which is quite useful for digestion, respiratory and immune system related issues. For bloating issue, one commonly used point in paediatric tuina, and also in acupuncture, is 足三里 穴/ Zu San Li Point. You can help the baby massage this point lightly for 2-3min for both left and right leg. If done regularly over a period of time, it will help improve the baby’s digestion. ST36 Zu San Li 足三里 - 4 fingers (of the baby in this case) width below the knee cap, on the lateral/outer side of the tibia bone.