If you ever find yourself rubbing your hands when you’re anxious or achy, you’re onto something that practitioners of traditional Chinese medicine have know for centuries: Pressure point on the hands can be the gateway to feeling better.
By applying pressure to specific points on your fingers, hands, and wrists, you can alleviate a variety of symptoms, from headaches and back pain to nausea and anxiety, says Kim Peirano, DACM, LAC, a licensed acupuncturist and owner of Lion’s Heart Wellness in San Rafael, CA. Related to acupuncture (but without the needles!) acupressure involves pressing on points that lie along the body’s energy channels, or meridians, to relieve muscle tension and release energy. “The hands and feet are the beginnings and ends of most of the channels,” Peirano explains. “There are also extra points that aren’t on the meridians that have very specific functions.”
Peirano explains that to get maximum relief, you need to to a little more than just a gentle pat—the pressure should actually feel uncomfortable. “If acupressure is done correctly, it should hurt a lot more than acupuncture, which is done with fine needles that we can place very precisely,” she explains. “You have to be really firm with the pressure.” She suggests pressing down and massaging in small circles for at least one minute, though not so hard that you bruise or injure yourself. “It should feel like a dull ache,” she explains.
