Such a liver-spleen disharmony gives rise to irritability, taciturnity, frustration, and a depressed affect on the one hand, and fatigue, weakness, sorrow, anxiety, and restlessness on the other. Therefore, any medicinal capable of treating the core mechanisms of depression must either course the liver and rectify the qi or supplement the spleen and transform phlegm, dampness, and turbidity. If St. Johnswort shares the same Chinese medical characteristics and functions as Tian Ji Huang and Yuan Bao Cao , it should be categorized as a heat-clearing medicinal. These are basically the same functions ascribed to Tian Ji Huang and Yuan Bao Cao . As stated above, Fructus Gardeniae Jasminoidis clears heat and eliminates vexation.
Vexation is a subjective sensation of an irritating heat in the center of the chest.
Although this sensation may accompanying a number of different kinds of evil heat in Chinese medicine, it commonly accompanies depressive heat ascending to harass the heart spirit. It is my opinion that St. Johnswort works in the treatment of depression in essentially the same way as Fructus Gardeniae Jasminoidis. By clearing depressive heat, it eliminates vexatious heat harassing the heart spirit. I believe these regional names recognize this medicinal s effect on the heart spirit even though this effect has not been recognized by the compilers of the materia medicas cited in the Zhong Yao Da Ci Dian . The clinical implications of this description There are several clinical implications if this Chinese medical description of St. Johnswort is correct.