At home acupressure for stress and tension headaches using point gallbladder 21

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Why would you want to look after your gallbladder?
 
If we look at the wisdom of traditional Chinese medicine we see that the organs work in pairs. One organ has a more yin quality and the other more yang. This reciprocal relationship means you can use acupuncture or acupressure on one of the organ points and it will also have an effect on it’s paired organ.
 
The liver and gallbladder organs work closely together. You can see here the link with modern medicine because the liver produces bile and the gallbladder stores bile to be secreted to help you break down fats. So, both organs have an important role to play in digestion. It also nourishes your tendons and connective tissue, so is important for your musculo-skeletal health. As well as it’s physiological function, the gallbladder is also thought to help us with decision-making, courage and flexible thinking.
 
What knocks the gallbladder out of balance?

• Diet: We know that the gallbladder helps us to break down fat, so if we give our body too much fatty food then it will become sluggish or overworked. Aim for the healthier fats - coconut oil, avocado oil or olive oil. Add more green food to your diet, like avocado, green leafy vegetables or broccoli. Try more tart foods like a slice of lemon in warm water, or adding a splash of apple cider vinegar and sauerkraut to your salad. And the obvious one - avoid too much alcohol (sorry).
• Movement: The gallbladder energy helps to nourish your tendons. Excessive exercise will prevent the tendons from recovering. Not enough exercise means the tendons become stagnant. Finding that goldilocks point of moving your body without overdoing it will support your connective tissue.
• Feelings: We have learnt from Chinese medicine that the liver and gallbladder prefer a smooth flow of qi - and this includes the smooth flow of emotional energy. Unexpressed, unresolved or repressed anger in particular has a negative impact on the liver and gallbladder. We should have access to a full range of emotions and anger is no different. We need anger to protect us or our cubs. But anger should be like fire, we should feel it, express it then it is released. When we feel it and repress it it becomes held in the tissues of  our body. Explore your relationship with anger, in my practice I especially think this is important if you are a woman. How did your caregivers express anger. What happened when you were young and you expressed anger. There are different ways to connect to and express your anger. Not every way will work for everyone, but some examples are journaling, dancing it out, or talking it through with a trusted friend or therapist.
• Sleep: Burning the candle at both ends also upsets the gallbladder energy. According to the ancient Chinese body clock, 11pm is the time when the gallbladder is most active. If you can be in bed by 11pm - you don’t need to be asleep, but being horizontal will help - your gallbladder can get on with its repairs. In general, if you improve the quality of your sleep you will make better choices. I certainly don’t crave healthy food when I'm tired.  
• Play: As well as a time of day, all of the organs have a time of year when they are more active. The energy of the liver and gallbladder rises during spring. This helps to lift us out of our winter hibernation. But spring also refers to the spring time of your life - that time of no responsibilities and wild abandonment. Forgetting to play, or not knowing how to play because we were made to grow up too soon, can dampen our liver and gallbladder energy. Be playful, whatever that means to you. Maybe jump in the waves or puddles, take your shoes off on the beach or dance in the kitchen.

 

​Whereabouts is GB21?
 
Your actual gallbladder organ sits on the right hand side of your body, roughly if you were to draw a line from your nipple to your belly button it would sit at the bottom of your ribcage. The gallbladder meridian has 44 acupuncture points along its channel. These wrap themselves back and forth around the side of your head (which is why we use this point for migraines), then travel down the side of your body to your 4th toe. We are going to look at a point called gallbladder 21, GB21 for short, or more poetically known as ‘Shoulder well’.
 
You know that point that you intuitively massage at the top of your shoulders? Well that is GB21. You don’t need pinpoint accuracy, you can intuitively feel for a tightness or tension around that area. If you work at a desk keep a pot of a natural oil at your workstation - coconut oil is perfect because it doesn't contain any other ingredients and you can use it for so many things. Use the oil to massage around GB21 or into any other tight spot at the top of your shoulders. Of course, it is much nicer if someone else will massage it for you, but self-care is just as nourishing.
 
 Why is GB21 related to stress?
 
The gallbladder channel is there to help with the smooth flow of qi (energy) from the head and neck down the body. If we are stressed, over thinking or spending too much time on a screen we can get stagnation in the gallbladder channel as it is unable to descend the qi. That tension headache, eye strain, or emotional tension may be a blocked gallbladder meridian.

What other symptoms can you use GB21 for?

It is particularly good for:

• Tension headaches
• Sore neck
• Upper back pain
• Stress relief
• Indecision
• Low mood
• Anger or frustration
• Promotes labour
• Supports breastfeeding
• Shoulder pain after liver or gallbladder surgery

 
Pregnancy precaution
 
As you can see from the list, you must not use this point if you are pregnant or trying to get pregnant. This is one of the points that we use if the baby is full term but mama may need a little oxytocin or relaxation to promote labour. But definitely use it if baby is earth-side and mama needs some support with breastfeeding as it relaxes the muscles of the back and chest and relaxes mama which can help promote breastfeeding.
 
Leave a comment below if you already intuitively massage this point, or if you have thought of trying acupressure but were worried about getting it wrong.
 
Alison is a registered acupuncturist and co-owner of Blossom Natural Health in Chelmsford. She has been specialising in fertility and women's health for the last 20 years, and is the fertility acupuncturist for Bourn Hall fertility clinic in Wickford. She loves combining acupuncture, cranio-sacral therapy and somato-emotional release to help her clients with stress, digestive issue and pain relief.
 
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