My entire family is prone to headaches and migraines. If we smell something strong, look at too bright of a light, or have something planned for the day- we are definitely going to end up with a migraine. I’m not talking about any ol’ headache. These migraines take us down. Needless to say, I know pain and suffering. And these migraines used to mean spending the rest of the day in a dark, cool, quiet room and almost overdosing on ibuprofen. At least, until I found the sweetest spot: Gall Bladder 41.
I like to say I have a bag of magic acupuncture points. They’re the quick and easy points that give a patient instant relief. They’re the ‘Aha! This works!’ of Chinese medicine. Gall Bladder 41 is in my bag of tricks. A patient will come to me when they currently have a headache and I stick this little puppy in their foot and they’re headache free by the time they get off of my table. To anyone who has had a severe headache or a migraine, that’s pure magic.
Why does Gall Bladder 41 work so well? Migraines are typically a combination of Liver Qi stagnation as well as stuck Qi and ‘Blood’. (Please keep in mind this is Chinese medicine speak- you don’t have a literal embolism every time you have a headache). GB 41 is aces at moving stuck Qi, especially in the Liver meridian. The Gall Bladder channel traverses all over the head- temples, side of the head, forehead right above the eyebrow, and surrounding your ear. Migraines are typically right in these areas and they usually wrap around the entire head.
The Gall Bladder channel on the head. Photo courtesy of: naturecuresclinic.com
Speaking of wrapping! Anytime you have a ‘wrapping’ pain in your body, it’s best to treat the Dai channel as it’s the only channel that wraps around the body. Guess what point is used to open up the Dai channel? Mhm. Gall Bladder 41.
But why would you stick a needle in the foot when the pain is in the head?! Qi follows the needle wherever it is inserted. If you already have a blockage and excess of Qi in your head, you don’t want to call attention to more Qi in that area. Gall Bladder 41 gets that excess Qi to drain down the channel and flow properly. When I sit with the needles in my feet I literally feel a draining of the pressure from the top of my head, to behind my eye sockets, even in my dang earlobes. All the pain and pressure simply drains. Heaven.
Next time you have a headache or a migraine, press on your Gall Bladder 41, most likely it’s really tender. It’s the sweet spot between the tendon and the bone of your fifth metatarsal.
Photo courtesy of Chinese Acupuncture and Moxibustion
Now the very best thing to rid yourself of migraines is regular acupuncture treatments. The best kind of medicine is prevention! And there is even an article about the efficacy of acupuncture on migraines and longer relief, even better than migraine meds (spoiler alert Gall Bladder 41 is mentioned): http://www.healthcmi.com/Acupuncture-Continuing-Education-News/1332-migraine-vanishes-with-acupuncture-and-tuina
And for even more science-y western medical research: http://www.healthcmi.com/Acupuncture-Continuing-Education-News/1422-acupuncture-migraine-relief-achievement
