Have you been struggling with back pain? Many people get relief from pain by using acupressure on themselves.
Acupuncture was first discovered in the West when a delegation from the US Government watched an operation taking place in a Chinese hospital using only acupuncture for anaesthesia.
Acupuncture has a long history helping people overcome pain. It stimulates the production of the body’s own opioids (natural pain killers) as well as hormones that are important for pain suppression (Serotonin).
Many points help with back pain but one point reigns supreme: Bladder 40. Its easy to find as it is situated in the middle of the back of the knee – see the picture below. It is termed the master back pain point because it helps to move Blood and Qi in the back, allowing for muscles to relax and pain to subside. It is useful for easing pain in the lower back (lumbar region) knees and tendons generally.
From a psychological perspective its good for moving stuck, repressed emotions, particularly to do with being in control.
To use it when you are in pain try to get yourself in a comfortable position and have someone hold the point or rub it, or you can hold it yourself. Usually the pain will start to diminish after about 5 minutes but the full effect of the point wont be felt until its been held for around 30 minutes. Acupressure continues to have an effect for hours afterwards, as it takes time for the hormonal effects to peak. It has been shown that the peak effect is around 36 hours after points are held.
This is one of the points we commonly use in Mind Body Medicine, Kinesiology and Integrative Complementary Medicine courses to help clients with pain.
Written by David Corby. David is CEO of CCM, teacher of holistic kinesiology and mind body medicine and published author of ‘Finding Joy Within’, ‘Energetic Protection’, ‘Neuropressure’ and numerous accredited courses. David is a registered Acupuncturist, a mind body practitioner and holistic kinesiologist. A world renowned lecturer who teaches in Australia and overseas.
