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Within seven days before or after childbirth, if fever, headache, and aversion to cold occur, do not simply attribute them to Taiyang disease (disease syndrome of the Taiyang meridian caused by external pathogenic factors); if fever, headache, and hypochondriac pain occur, do not simply attribute them to Shaoyang disease (disease syndrome of the Shaoyang meridian caused by external pathogenic factors). Both conditions arise from deficiency of both Qi and Blood, and disharmony of Yin and Yang, presenting as symptoms resembling external contraction. Practitioners often rashly adhere to biased approaches, using Mahuang Tang (Ephedra Decoction) to treat symptoms resembling Taiyang disease, or Chaihu Tang (Bupleurum Decoction) to treat symptoms resembling Shaoyang disease. Moreover, following postpartum blood loss, if sweating methods are applied again, the disaster of further depleting the deficient state is beyond description. Zhang Zhongjing stated: "Patients who have lost blood should not be treated with sweating methods." Zhu Danxi stated: "Postpartum patients absolutely must not be treated with exterior-releasing methods." These two masters did not mean that the concurrent symptoms of true Yuan Qi damage and wind-cold contraction in parturient women were incorrect, nor did they imply that Mahuang Tang and Chaihu Tang were inappropriate for their respective indications; rather, they feared that later practitioners, due to incomplete learning, would underestimate the postpartum condition, rigidly stick to established formulas, and indiscriminately use exterior-releasing drugs. One must clearly understand that if a postpartum woman truly contracts wind-cold, the Xiong (Ligusticum) and Gan Jiang (Dried Ginger) within Shenghua Tang (Decoction for Generating New Blood) can also disperse it. It is also said: "In the Northwest, the climate is dispersing and cold; treatment should involve dispersing and cooling. In the Southeast, the climate is contracting and warm; treatment should involve contracting and warming." This is what is meant by "treating the same disease differently." The underlying principle is that people in the South have delicate constitutions, while those in the Northwest have robust constitutions; therefore, disease treatment should differ accordingly. However, for postpartum exhaustion and deficiency, treatment cannot be divided by North or South regions. Generally, one must prioritize the postpartum state and use tonification, adding minor amounts of dispersing agents as adjuvants. Even if other symptoms exist, they should be treated as secondary concerns. This is also a point that must be clearly understood.

Muxiang Shenghua Tang: Treats postpartum abdominal mass pain that has not yet resolved; take this formula daily when affected by emotional stagnation.
Xiong (Rhizoma Chuanxiong) (2 qian) Danggui (Radix Angelicae Sinensis) (6 qian) Gan Jiang (Rhizoma Zingiberis Preparatum, roasted) (4 fen) Gancao (Radix Glycyrrhizae Preparata, roasted) (5 fen) Muxiang (Radix Aucklandiae) (3 fen, ground) Chenpi (Pericarpium Citri Reticulatae) (3 fen)
Decoct in water and take orally.

Jianpi Huashi Sanqi Tang: Treats postpartum qi stagnation and food injury; take when there is no mass pain upon inquiry.
Baizhu (Rhizoma Atractylodis Macrocephalae) (2 qian) Danggui (Radix Angelicae Sinensis) (2 qian) Chuanxiong (Rhizoma Chuanxiong) (1 qian) Gan Jiang (Rhizoma Zingiberis Preparatum, roasted) (4 fen) Gancao (Radix Glycyrrhizae Preparata, roasted) (4 fen) Renshen (Radix Ginseng) (1 qian) Maiya (Frumentum Germinatum Hordeum, fried) (5 fen) Shenqu (Massa Medicata Fermentata) (5 fen)
If injured by rice or wheat products, add these two ingredients: Chenpi (Pericarpium Citri Reticulatae) 3 fen, Shanzha (Fructus Crataegi) 4 fen; if injured by meat, add Sandaren (Semen Amomi Rotundus) 7 fen; if cold food stagnates under the hypochondrium causing pain, add Guizhi (Cortex Cinnamomi) 8 fen.
Generally, weak women after childbirth who contract cold and retain food will find that the more they use digestive methods, the more bloated and stifled they become. It is necessary to combine attacking (draining) and tonifying simultaneously to resolve stagnation and transport grain. However, contemporary physicians, knowing that digestion consumes Qi, doubt the tonifying effects of Renshen (Ginseng), which is a mistake. Therefore, skilled practitioners prioritize the postpartum constitution over anger and food retention, focusing primarily on tonifying Qi and Blood, supplemented by herbs that smooth and regulate Qi, so that anger and depression dissipate without damaging Yuan Qi; supplemented by herbs that strengthen the Spleen and aid digestion, so that retained food moves and the Stomach desires grain. This is the correct treatment for diseases caused by anger and food retention after childbirth. If one specializes only in regulating Qi and digesting food, not only will Qi distension fail to dissipate and retained food fail to move, but it will also damage Yuan Qi and reduce appetite, leading to many cases of refusing food and becoming incurable. What a pity!