Shenjing shuairuo, also known as Chinese neurasthenia, is defined in the Chinese Classification of Mental Disease, Third Edition (CCMD-3), by any three of the five groups of symptoms: (1) persistent mental and physical fatigue or weakness, (2) mood disturbances such as irritability or worry, (3) mental excitability (e.g., overactive thoughts) or restlessness, (4) nervous pain or tension, and (5) sleep disturbances (including excessive dreaming). Symptoms must persist for at least 3 months and must not be explained by organic disease processes (e.g., hyperthyroidism, hypertension, traumatic brain injury). The exclusion criteria also include other mental health disorders that may share symptoms of shenjing shuairuo, including all anxiety and mood disorders, substance-induced mental health disorders, and psychotic disorders.

The term neurasthenia was introduced in the late 1860s by ...