This is an empirical formula that has been designed to address the main pathodynamics that lead to depressed mood: Heart Qi and Blood deficiency with Phlegm clouding the mind and senses, together with Liver Qi constraint. Clinically there is a growing body of evidence that supports the use of non-drug therapies in the treatment of minor depression. This includes herbal medicines, acupuncture, nutritional supplements and cognitive therapy.

The main problem is in differentiating patients with major depression from those with milder mood disorders and also from those who are simply reacting to life situations, which generally involve a loss of some kind (e.g. loss of a job, relationship break up, inability to achieve an important goal, etc.). In the latter scenario the experience of sadness and loss of interest is normal and expected, and it may last for a period that varies from one person to another, until the situation has been satisfactorily resolved. These different types of patients are often misdiagnosed by general practitioners, who do not have specialized training in psychiatry, and who have been unduly influenced by the marketing practices of multinational pharmaceutical companies.

Patients with major depression generally respond poorly to the various non-drug therapies mentioned above. However, the diagnosis should be made by a professional psychiatrist, who should then manage the patient appropriately. Recent evidence suggests that the majority of patients who present to their healthcare practitioner with a depressed mood do not suffer from major (a.k.a. 'clinical') depression.