According to Traditional Chinese Medicine, the liver governs the free flow of qi and is responsible for regulating the body's energy. If you stay up late every night, eat and drink excessively, or constantly hold onto feelings of frustration and anger, the liver qi can become stagnant. If this stagnation persists, it can transform into fire—a condition commonly referred to as "liver fire." In reality, your body has already been sending you signals. How many of these do you recognize in yourself?

First: Dry mouth and bitter taste

When liver fire flares up, it affects the normal secretion of bile, causing bile to reverse upward—meaning bile doesn’t stay where it should and instead surges upward. This is why you often wake up with a bitter taste in your mouth. Additionally, this fire has a strong tendency to deplete body fluids. When the fluids in your mouth are reduced, you may feel intense dryness and a constant desire to drink something.

Second: Dry, itchy eyes

If your eyes are frequently bloodshot, dry and itchy, or even blurry, be cautious—these could also be signs of liver fire flaring up. In Traditional Chinese Medicine, it is believed that the liver opens into the eyes. When liver fire rises, the eyes are easily affected.

Third: Insomnia and frequent dreams

When liver fire flares up, it agitates the mind and prevents it from settling, leading to restlessness in bed, tossing and turning, and an inability to quiet a mind that feels like it’s running on reels of a movie. Even after a tiring day, sleep remains elusive. When you do manage to doze off, you’re plagued by chaotic dreams and easily awakened by the slightest disturbance, waking up in the morning feeling more exhausted than before you slept.

Fourth: Tinnitus and muffled hearing

If you often experience a buzzing or ringing in your ears, or feel that your hearing is unclear, it may also be a sign of liver fire at work. When liver fire surges upward and reaches the ears, it disrupts their normal functioning. Many people experience ear discomfort during times of high stress, which can actually be liver fire with nowhere to go, relentlessly rushing upward to the head.

Fifth: Irritability and quick temper

People with liver fire excess have a temper like a gas stove that hasn't been turned off properly—it flares up at the slightest spark. One moment they're perfectly fine, the next they might explode over a single word. After the outburst, they often regret it, but in the heat of the moment, they just can't control themselves. This is because the liver governs emotions. When liver fire is too intense, emotions run wild like an untamed horse—how could anyone rein them in?

Sixth Sign: Headache

You may often feel headaches, especially around the temples. In severe cases, dizziness might also occur, making everything seem unsteady. From the perspective of traditional Chinese medicine, this is also a result of liver fire surging upward. With nowhere else to vent, it rushes straight to the head.

This article is intended for educational purposes only. These minor discomforts in our bodies are actually reminders that we need to soothe our liver and reduce internal heat. If you experience several of these symptoms, don’t tough it out. Seek medical advice promptly, undergo syndrome differentiation and treatment, regulate liver qi, and let the fire subside—you’ll feel much more at ease.