Feeling Dizzy and Always Struggling to Fall Asleep? TCM Explains Liver-Kidney Yin Deficiency — and How Goji Berry Chrysanthemum Tea (枞杞菊花茶) + the Taiji Sleep Way Can Finally Fix It

The dizziness comes first — not the spinning dizziness of vertigo, but a lighter, more diffuse sensation: a slight unsteadiness when you stand too quickly, a floating quality to the head that worsens as the day progresses and the body’s reserves deplete. By evening, the eyes are dry and aching. The head feels full and slightly pressured. And when you finally lie down, the sleep that should come easily does not — because the body that is tired is also, paradoxically, too activated to rest. The mind circles. The eyes, even closed, feel restless. The pillow is never quite right.

This is not anxiety in the conventional sense. It is not caffeine or screen time, though both worsen it. It is a deeper physiological imbalance that TCM has been recognising and treating for millennia: Liver-Kidney Yin Deficiency with Liver Yang Rising (肝肾阴虚、肝阳上亢, gān shèn yīn xū, gān yáng shàng kàng) — a pattern in which the depletion of the body’s deepest Yin reserves allows the Liver’s Yang energy to rise unchecked, producing the characteristic constellation of dizziness, dry eyes, headache, tinnitus, and sleep-onset insomnia that so many people in the modern world have normalised as simply “stress.”

The remedy is a tea so simple it seems almost too modest for the complexity of the pattern it addresses: goji berries and chrysanthemum flowers, steeped together in hot water, consumed in the evening with intention and consistency. And yet this combination — refined over centuries of TCM clinical practice — addresses Liver-Kidney Yin Deficiency with a precision that belies its simplicity.

The Liver-Kidney Axis: Why Two Organs Share One Deficiency

In TCM, the Liver (肝, gān) and Kidneys (肾, shèn) are understood to share a common root — a relationship so intimate that classical texts describe them as “of the same source” (肝肾同源, gān shèn tóng yuán). Both organs are associated with the Water and Wood elements respectively, and both depend on the same fundamental substance — Yin — for their proper function. Kidney Yin is the root of all Yin in the body; Liver Yin is nourished and sustained by Kidney Yin. When Kidney Yin depletes, Liver Yin follows — and when Liver Yin is insufficient, the Liver’s Yang energy — which is normally anchored and cooled by Yin — rises upward like steam from a pot with too little water.

This rising Yang (阳上亢, yáng shàng kàng) is the mechanism behind the dizziness, the headaches, the tinnitus, the flushed face, and — most relevant to sleep — the inability to settle at night. Yang is the activating, upward-moving energy of the body. When it rises unchecked into the head and chest in the evening, it creates precisely the opposite of the conditions required for sleep: instead of the downward, inward, Yin-dominant state that sleep requires, the body is in an upward, outward, Yang-dominant state that keeps the mind alert and the body restless.

Recognising the Pattern

Liver-Kidney Yin Deficiency with Liver Yang Rising presents with a characteristic combination of deficiency signs (from the Yin depletion) and excess signs (from the rising Yang): dizziness and lightheadedness (especially on standing or when fatigued), dry and aching eyes (worse in the evening), tinnitus (often high-pitched, like a cicada), headaches that are typically located at the vertex or temples, a flushed face or sensation of heat in the head and face (especially in the afternoon and evening), irritability and emotional sensitivity, difficulty falling asleep despite physical tiredness, vivid or disturbing dreams when sleep does come, lower back and knee weakness or aching (from the Kidney Yin depletion), and a tongue that is red with little coating, often with red edges (the Liver’s zone). The pulse is wiry and thin, or wiry and slightly rapid.

This pattern is particularly prevalent in people who have experienced prolonged stress, overwork, insufficient sleep over extended periods, or the hormonal transitions of perimenopause and andropause. It is also common in people who spend long hours looking at screens — since the eyes are the sense organ of the Liver in TCM, and prolonged visual strain directly depletes Liver Blood and Yin.

Goji Berry Chrysanthemum Tea: Nourishing the Root, Calming the Rising

Goji berry chrysanthemum tea — 枞杞菊花茶 (gǒu qǐ jú huā chá) — is one of TCM’s most beloved and widely consumed therapeutic teas, and for good reason: its two primary ingredients address the Liver-Kidney Yin Deficiency pattern from complementary directions simultaneously. The goji berry nourishes the Yin from below — replenishing the Liver and Kidney Yin that deficiency has depleted. The chrysanthemum calms the Yang from above — clearing the Liver heat and descending the rising Yang that the deficiency has unleashed. Together, they create a complete treatment of the pattern in a single, elegant cup.

Goji Berry (枞杞, Gǒu Qǐ)

Goji berries — the fruit of Lycium barbarum — are classified in TCM as sweet and neutral, entering the Liver, Kidney, and Lung meridians. Their primary actions are to nourish Liver and Kidney Yin and Blood, brighten the eyes, and supplement Essence — making them one of the most direct food-based treatments for the Liver-Kidney Yin Deficiency pattern.

Modern research has confirmed goji berry’s exceptional therapeutic profile with remarkable specificity. The primary active compounds — Lycium barbarum polysaccharides (LBPs) — have been the subject of over 200 published studies in the past two decades. A 2017 randomised controlled trial published in Nutrients found that LBP supplementation significantly improved sleep quality, reduced fatigue, and improved wellbeing scores in healthy adults, with the researchers noting particular efficacy in subjects with stress-related sleep disturbance — the population most likely to present with Liver-Kidney Yin Deficiency.

LBPs have also demonstrated significant neuroprotective effects, including protection of retinal ganglion cells (directly relevant to the dry, aching eyes of Liver Yin deficiency), enhancement of BDNF (brain-derived neurotrophic factor) synthesis, and modulation of the HPA axis stress response. A 2019 study in the Journal of Ethnopharmacology found that LBPs significantly reduced corticosterone levels and improved sleep architecture in stressed animal models, with particular efficacy in increasing REM sleep — the sleep stage most associated with emotional processing and the resolution of the irritability and emotional sensitivity that characterise Liver Yang Rising.

Goji berries are also rich in zeaxanthin and lutein — carotenoids that protect the retina and reduce the oxidative stress that prolonged screen use generates in the eyes. For the modern person whose Liver Yin is depleted by hours of screen exposure, goji berry tea is both a systemic Yin tonic and a targeted ocular remedy.

Chrysanthemum (菊花, Jú Huā)

Chrysanthemum flowers — Chrysanthemum morifolium — are classified in TCM as sweet, bitter, and slightly cold, entering the Liver and Lung meridians. Their primary actions are to disperse Wind-Heat, calm Liver Yang, clear Liver Heat, and brighten the eyes — making them the ideal complement to goji berry’s Yin-nourishing action. Where goji berry builds the Yin from below, chrysanthemum clears the heat and descends the Yang from above.

The classical TCM pairing of goji berry and chrysanthemum — known as Qǐ Jú Dì Huáng Wán in its full herbal formula version — has been used for over a thousand years specifically for the pattern of Liver-Kidney Yin Deficiency with Liver Yang Rising. The tea version is a simplified but effective adaptation of this classical formula, appropriate for daily preventive and therapeutic use.

Modern research has identified chrysanthemum’s active compounds as luteolin, apigenin, and chlorogenic acid — flavonoids and phenolic acids that demonstrate significant anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and neuroprotective effects. A 2020 study in Food & Chemical Toxicology found that chrysanthemum extract significantly reduced blood pressure and improved endothelial function — the vascular mechanism behind the headaches and dizziness of Liver Yang Rising. A 2021 study in Phytomedicine demonstrated that luteolin (chrysanthemum’s primary flavonoid) significantly reduced anxiety-related behaviour and improved sleep quality through modulation of the GABA-A receptor — the same receptor targeted by benzodiazepines, but through a gentler, non-dependency-forming mechanism.

How to Make Goji Berry Chrysanthemum Tea

Ingredients

15–20 dried goji berries (枞杞, gǒu qǐ)
8–10 dried chrysanthemum flowers (菊花, jú huā) — use white chrysanthemum (bái jú, 白菊) for stronger Liver-calming action, or yellow chrysanthemum (huáng jú, 黄菊) for stronger heat-clearing action
3–5 red dates (红枣), pitted and sliced — optional, adds Blood nourishment and gentle sweetness
300–400ml hot water (approximately 85°C — not boiling, to preserve the delicate flavonoids)
Rock sugar or honey to taste

Method

Place the goji berries, chrysanthemum flowers, and red dates (if using) in a teapot or large cup. Pour the hot water over them and steep for 5–7 minutes — long enough for the active compounds to fully infuse, but not so long that the chrysanthemum becomes bitter. The finished tea should be a beautiful amber-gold, faintly floral, with the goji berries plump and soft at the bottom. Sweeten lightly if desired. The goji berries can be eaten after drinking the tea — they retain their nutritional value after steeping and eating them provides additional LBP benefit.

This tea can be brewed two to three times from the same ingredients — the second steeping is often considered the most therapeutically potent, as the active compounds continue to release with successive infusions.

When to Drink It

Consume the tea 60–90 minutes before sleep, during the Pericardium hour (9–11PM). For Liver-Kidney Yin Deficiency with Liver Yang Rising, daily consumption for four to six weeks is recommended for noticeable improvement in sleep onset and the associated symptoms (dizziness, dry eyes, headaches). Many people notice a reduction in evening dizziness and eye discomfort within the first week — the chrysanthemum’s Yang-descending action is relatively rapid — with the deeper Yin-nourishing effects of the goji berry accumulating over subsequent weeks.

The chrysanthemum does not fight the rising Yang. It simply reminds it, gently and persistently, that its proper place is below — and the Yang, given enough Yin to return to, eventually agrees.

The Taiji Sleep Way: Descending Into Sleep

Liver Yang Rising creates a specific challenge for the sleep transition: the body that is physiologically oriented upward and outward when it needs to move downward and inward. The sleep environment and pre-sleep practice must actively support this descent — creating the conditions in which the rising Yang can settle and the Yin can take its proper place as the dominant energy of the night.

The Descending Pre-Sleep Practice

In the 20 minutes before sleep, after drinking the tea, practice a simple Yang-descending sequence. Sit comfortably with the spine long and the feet flat on the floor. Begin with three slow, deep breaths, directing each exhale downward through the body — from the head, through the chest, through the abdomen, and down through the legs into the feet and the floor. With each exhale, consciously release the tension held in the temples, the jaw, and the back of the neck — the sites where rising Yang most commonly accumulates.

Then practice foot soaking (踏水, pào jiǎo) — one of TCM’s most effective Yang-descending practices: soak both feet in warm water (approximately 40°C) for 15–20 minutes before sleep. The warmth draws the Yang energy downward from the head into the feet, directly counteracting the upward movement that is preventing sleep. Add a handful of Epsom salt (magnesium sulphate) to the foot bath for additional muscle relaxation and magnesium absorption through the skin.

The Silk Environment for Liver Yang Rising

Liver Yang Rising creates sensitivity to light, sound, and temperature — the sensory environment of sleep matters more for this pattern than for almost any other. The bedroom must be dark, quiet, and cool. Mulberry silk bedding supports all three requirements: its natural sheen does not reflect light in the way that synthetic fabrics do, its smooth surface produces no friction noise, and its temperature-regulating properties maintain the cool sleep environment that descending Yang requires.

Silk’s cool-to-the-touch quality is particularly relevant for Liver Yang Rising: the sensation of cool silk against the skin of the face, neck, and hands — the areas where rising Yang most concentrates — provides a direct sensory signal of cooling and descent that supports the physiological process the tea and the foot bath have initiated.

Sleep, for the body with rising Yang, is not a falling. It is a returning — a coming back down to the earth, to the body, to the Yin that has been waiting all day to receive what the Yang has been carrying. The tea, the foot bath, the cool silk: all of them saying the same thing. It is safe to come down now.

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