Using the "Gates of Consciousness" acupressure points underneath the base of the skull for relief.
For pain relief and common complaints such as headaches, including migraines, vision zigzangs, ringing in the ear, insomnia, fibromyalgia, tiredness, stiff neck, neck pain, eyestrain, uptightness, irritability, judgmental attitudes, nervousness, hypertension, and mental stress – or any combination of these symptoms – these two acupressure points underneath the base of the skull are a lifesaver.
I’ll describe in detail how to press these acupressure points for yourself and its benefits.
These acupressure points (referred to as GB 20) regulate the circulation into the brain, they are called the Gates of the Mind, and are also known as the Gates of Consciousness. When these Acupressure points are blocked, you may feel uptight, have pressure in your head, short sightedness, and it may be difficult to cope and make wise decisions.
These Acupressure points relieve pain by releasing the body’s natural pain relievers known as endorphins. By opening the healing energy through these Acupressure points you can relieve stiffness, especially stiff necks, arthritic pains, fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue. There are many acupressure points for these problems, but GB 20 is one of the most potent points for obtaining relief.
Do you know anyone with any of these common complaints? If so, pay special attention to the following detailed directions for releasing blockages in these acupressure points. First, learn to apply the pressure on yourself. This will not only help you, but also support you in feeling the right amount of pressure needed and the most optimum angle for applying pressure. Please share this information and guidance so we can collectively uplift humanity, making this a better world to live in, enjoying nature’s bounty.
Acupressure Point Location of GB 20: Below the base of the skull, in the hollows on both sides of the neck, between the two vertical neck muscles. You will feel these large hollows underneath the skull bone, below the occipital ridge between the “traps” (trapezius) and other neck (sternocleidomastoid) muscles.
Self-Acupressure Treatment Application: Take a few full, deep breaths, as you press underneath the base of your skull on both sides, about four finger widths – or three inches – apart. Use your thumbs, fingers, or knuckles to gradually apply pressure into the hollows of your skull. Close your eyes as you tilt your head back slowly. Take long, slow deep breaths as you hold for two to three minutes. Direct the pressure slowly and firmly into the center of your head.
These acupressure points relax the nervous system, the brain, and release stiff necks and headaches. Inhale deeply as you bring your head back slightly more, and exhale as you release the pressure, allowing your hands to glide into your lap. Let your head come downward to relax your neck. Continue to take slow, smooth, deep breaths as you discover the benefits. If you’re interested, I’ll write another article to describe skillful ways to apply Asian Bodywork Therapy techniques to these Gates of Consciousness acupressure points on someone else.
Acupressure Point Benefits: As these Acupressure points release, you’ll find that instead of all the uptight symptoms I mentioned in the beginning of this article, you will be more peaceful and have more mental clarity. What a difference it would be to have most people alert, calm, clear, awake, and inspired to obtain great achievements. This natural happiness is overwhelmingly contagious. When you continue to use these precious points you’ll find that the benefits lead to more grace and wonder.
Open the Gates of Consciousness, with slow, deep breaths, until you experience the vast oneness of creation. Peace of mind is available to all – for free. These acupressure points are sacred, precious keys for obtaining a balance between our mind and body, enabling us to heal each other, and ourselves. When world leaders, politicians, business leaders, as well as mothers and fathers have energy flowing freely through these points – we’ll be living more harmoniously. Can you think of anything more important? Well, then – ‘keep on pressing on’ – on yourself and everyone you know; together we’ll make this a better world.
GOING FURTHER WITH THESE ACUPRESSURE POINTS:
• SELF-TREATMENT – For self-healing guidance on how to relieve shoulder and neck tension, aches and pains, headaches, and open these Gates of Consciousness points, practice the Acupressure Stress Relief DVD daily.
• ACUPRESSURE FOR OTHERS – Point formulas, illustrations and instructions for healing others is available in the Basic Acupressure booklet. To actually see how to use this point under the skull for relieving pain and emotional distress, see the Touching Emotions DVD (for trained, experienced and emotionally stable practitioners).
{ 56 comments… read them below or add one }
Thank you for these and your other self-therapeutic points, Michael.
Could you please clarify the location of these points? Your description refers to them being “between the two vertical neck muscles” but the diagram seems to show them on either side of those muscles.
The location of these points are in the hollow below the base of the skull, three finger-widths out from the midline. The hollow is created by the indentation at the base of the skull, and due to being in between two muscles. Focus on feeling for the hollow, and press underneath your skull, with your head slightly tilted back, while you relax, and breathe slowly and deeply.
Thank God! Someone with brains speaks!
I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW MORE ABOUT THE HEAD ACHE HEALING ACCUPREASSURE TREAT MENTS. I AM FROM INDIA .
pls give me more detail about the head ache healing points and treatments
Thank you for your request; i will try to write more about the different types of headaches and the acupressure points for each type. By the way, acupressure points illustrated in this blog post is good for all the types of headaches. In the meantime, you can get more info in headaches and migraines in my self-care for common complaints book entitles Acupressure’s Potent Points.
Great thinking! That rellay breaks the mold!
That’s really shwred! Good to see the logic set out so well.
dear sir,
i am eagerly waiting for your article every day
because
i am much interested in acupressure and acupuncture
please tell me the points for artheritis knee pain
my sister is suffering a lot with artheritis knee pain
she could not walk even few steps because of pain
any anaethesia point for getting relief from knee pain
thanking you sir
meenakshisundaram
I feel inspired to write a special blog on Knee Pain in the near future. Please stay tuned. In the meantime, if you want to see all the acupressure points for knee pain and photos of the most effective self-acupressure massage methods step-by-step for relieving knee pain, check-out the Knee Pain chapter in Acupressure’s Point Points, which will also cover 40 other common ailments.
What a joy to find someone else who thinks this way.
Hi Dr Gach, Can you please tell me what points i can show a freind who has really bad Shingles in Hands, Forarms and Cheast area. Thank you, and keep up the great work.
Regards Ben.
I do not have experience with Shingles. Please see how acupuncture handles shingles:
http://www.acupuncture-services.com/health-az/shingles/acupuncture-treatment-for-shingles.php
http://www.acupuncture-services.com/health-az/shingles/acupuncture-treatment-for-shingles.php
I hope this gives you good input for finding alternatives.
Hey, that’s the greeatst! So with ll this brain power AWHFY?
Dear Michael,
First of all, I wana thank you personally for your service. For the past three months, I practiced your simple and effective healing methods. I found it easy to capture those Acupressure points because of your keen description. I have started to heal my Mom and my Friends with these Acupressure Pressure Points. They are appericiating me, but the real credit goes to you. Just keep on writing for the goodness of mankind.
Thank You,
By,
GOWRI SHANKAR. N
Hello – I have been using accuprressure on myself for many years, & somewhere read that holding a finger onthe pain site is what to do – is this correct? I have had good results with this method = holding for 6 seconds on the trigger point. Pat
Great to hear you have been doing acupressure on yourself with good results. There are so many points, plus acupressure techniques to stimulate the healing energy – that there is no one right answer, just more to learn about the wonders of the body. I hold the points much longer than 6 seconds. Holding the fingers is very powerful for bring down a fever and I am glad you found it effective for headaches too.
Slam dunkin like Shaquille O’Neal, if he wrote infomratvie articles.
Thank you, Michael, for your excellent and descriptive articles on acupressure.
It really is a holistic healing art in so many splendid ways, as I also have been using this practice for decades.
However, you bring out so many details and fine tune the explanations that make it so motivating and encouraging to self heal and serve others as well.
With appreciation and best regards, Pat
Thank You, Dr. Gach. This GB 20 pressure point really will be very useful for me. I’m going to practice it on my Son and also wife, because they frequently face the problem of headache,
stiff neck etc. I will surely get back to you with my experience in this regard.
Thank You.
I received the following email that I have permission to post:
Dear Michael Reed Gach,
Thanks a lot for your Article on Acupressure Point for Headaches, Stiff Neck & Pain Relief.
The other day my wife was suffering from severe headache, so much so, that she tide a
Scarf on her forehead and was about to take Pain Killer when I stopped her to do so and
applied the Acupressure Point on her GB-20 points and it did wonders after a few minutes.She felt relaxed and light on her head and the pain was gone. I shall apply this
technique for healing others too.
Thank you very much for your great help. You are doing a marvellous job, Sir.
With Warm Regards,
KUMARJEE VARMA,
Essays like this are so important to broadening people’s hiorznos.
Are there any acupressure points to deal with attention deficit disorder or lack of focus?
I plan to write on acupressure points for Attention Deficit Disorder, so stay tuned. This condition requires much, much more information and detail than what I can offer on this blog, but you’ll get a couple of good points. To learn and see illustrations for all 20 acupressure points I recommend for Attention Deficit Disorder, see the chapters on Memory & Concentration and Immune System Boosting in my best selling book called Acupressure’s Potent Points
At last, someone comes up with the “right” answer!
That’s a mold-brkeaer. Great thinking!
Thanks for sharing. Always good to find a real expert.
You’ve hit the ball out the park! Inecrdible!
i have leg cramps while walking i limp slighly how to correct it by accupressure.
thanks
There are acupressure points for leg cramps. Please see my book entitled Acupressure’s Potent Points to see illustrations and photos for what to do.
I’ve been having serious upper back and neck pain with stiffness radiating towards my throat area. I think it’s due to daily tasks in front of computer. without any massage services near our area, I found your article to be a great help in relieving my problem. Thanks so much.
By the way, what can you suggest for numb wrists and fingers? I still had some residual pain due to an accident.
For Shoulder & Neck Pain as well as Numbness in your Fingers I am recommend you try doing the self-healing routine called Acupressure Stress Relief. Its also good for poor circulation, general stress, and relieving headaches.
Articles like this really grease the shafts of knoedwlge.
Thank you.
Stay with this guys, you’re helping a lot of ppeole.
I think that’s absolutely good stuff.
Sir,
I have been having pain in my left upper arm since the last three months with reduced mobility. Movement in one particular direction is very painful and despite all the physiotherapy i do not see much improvement. The pain is worse when i am lying down in bed. The shoulder aches and I feel a bone chilling sort of pain in the shoulder joint. Sleep is very disturbed due to the pain. The allopathic doctor terms this as a frozen shoulder. Is there any cure or pressurepoints for this….?
Nalini
The main point for your shoulder pain is SI 10, although SI 9 and SI 11 and many other points on your arm and back may also help. I encourage you to get sessions from an ABT practitioner or go see an acupuncturist several times. Pick up the phone and make an appointment to get some help. With healing wishes. . .
Thanks! Magic! My neck was hurting so much for 2 days i was about to make an appointment with a practitioner, then I saw this, and 5 minutes after doing it, neck pain is COMPLETELY GONE! Thanks!!!!
This generally works because it release the sinuses, relieving pressure on the face. You can also try pressing right behind your lower earlobes, by the jaw, and running your fingers with constant pressure along the underside of the jaw/down the neck
Thanks for your suggestions.
Thanks so much.. great points … head has been aching for days with cold/ flu… this is instant relief.. the frozen peas were melting!!!
Again thank you
Hello Michael
I am interested in acupressure to relief/educe pain during childbirth. I have found some information by Betts on ths topic but the studies that are published have used different points but mainly SP6. Yet Betts suggests this point for dilating the cervix and there is no mentionof reducing pain.
Waht are you thoughts on that?
Thanks Karin
For LABOR PAIN RELIEF: There are many acupressure points for reducing pain during childbirth. From personal experience – assisting my wife, we found that the WOMB & VITALS acupressure points (B 48) was most effective. For other points, please see my chapter on “Labor, Delievery, and Nursing in my POTENT POINTS BOOK, available here:
http://acupressure.com/books/Acupressures_Potent_Points.htm
Great information. I’ve bookmarked your website to browse this weekend. Thanks for providing this information.
It’s an amazing article for all the online users; they will get advantage from it I am sure.
What a nice discussion regarding the issue on your
site, I’ve looked at every post I could get, and will be coming back for more.
I really enjoyed your site, lots of informative information and graphically well-done.
Hi!
This post is appreciated for me because my mother’ knee pain a lot every time she felling not good and angry on me and family members pl. tell me about the reduce the knee pain. thanks.
KNEE PAIN is often not a quick fix and I recommend your mother sees a knee specialist. I have 3 blog posts for the knees that I hope will help her here: http://www.acupressure.com/blog/?cat=24
Michael,
With regards to Acupressure Points for Headaches. What exactly is happning when I apply pressure to those areas? Is this a temporary cure or is this something I need to do when I feel headache coming on? And are there any stretching that prevents tension headaches? Anyway, I just did exactly what you have illustrated and my headache is substantially reduced the pain and for a moment I felt a little pain behind my eyes but now that is gone. I was on my way to take Advil instead I applied pressure on those two points and now I will wait on taking them. This is amazing and thank you for your help.
Marc
I am happy you got some good results already. The more you apply the pressure, the better it works. Yes, you need to apply pressure to these acupressure points when you feel a headache starting to come on, but also do it preventatively, when you do not have a headache. I think you’ll find that acupressure works even better to relax you and make you feel lighter, clearer, and more open to being positive and creative. It surely beats Advil – most the time.
I really liked your blog, thanks for sharing this useful information……
Thank you, amazing job! This was the information I required.
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Thank you! I used this technique as instructed, and the stiffness in my neck is greatly reduced! I know about the benefits of accupressure and accupunture because I have tried both in the past, but currently office visits are cost-prohibitive for me. I have shared the link to your site on Facebook and via e-mail. I plan to visit often, and buy your book when funds are available. Again, thank you for your considerable service to humanity.
Thank you! Have your book Acupressure’s Pontent Points. Love it! Always recommend to others. Great to have this online reference, too, though!