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Depressed mood acupoints

Here are the points to use

Click through the slideshow to learn the sequence at your own pace, then watch the video.

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    GV 20
    GV 20

    This point is located on the top of the head, where the head comes to a point, in the small depression. 

    Draw imaginary lines from the bottom of your earlobes all the way up to the top of your head. The point is located just slightly behind this line in a small, shallow depression in the bones of the skull. 

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    LI 4
    LI 4

    This point is located on hand, in the web between the thumb and index finger. 

    Place the hand palm down. When the thumb and pointer finger are pressed together, the point is located at the highest point of the muscle between the first and second metacarpal bones. 

  • Title
    Ht 7
    Ht 7

    It is located on the under side of the wrist (palm side) at the crease along the pinky finger side, just inside the little tendon you can feel on that side. 

    Using the tip of the index finger, feel for a small depression located on or near the wrist crease, just inside the tendon. Stimulate with the tip of the index finger or thumb.

  • Title
    Pc 6
    Pc 6

    This point is located on the arm, three finger breadths from the wrist crease on the inner forearm in between the two tendons. 

    Position the hand palm up. Measure three of the patient’s fingers up from the crease of the wrist. This can be done by placing the fingers of the opposite hand across the wrist, with the edge of the ring finger at the wrist crease. The point is located at the level where the index finger is resting, between the two tendons that run from the wrist up the center of the arm. Stimulate with the tip of the index finger or a thumb. A Sea-Band, or other acupressure band, can also be worn at this point for constant stimulation. 

  • Title
    Sp 6
    Sp 6

    This point is located on the inside of the lower leg, four finger widths up from the ankle bone. 

    Find the highest point of the inner ankle bone. Measure four of the patient’s finger widths up from that high point. The point is located at that level, in line with the ankle bone. 

  • Title
    Liv 3
    Liv 3

    This point is located on the top of the foot in the space between the bones leading up to the first and second toe. 

    Place your finger between the first and second toe. Slide your finger toward the top of the foot, staying between the two bones. The point is located in the space between the two bones, roughly one third of the way between the base of the toes and the ankle.

Video

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Disclosure

The acupoint protocols shared in these materials are general in nature, intended to provide complementary therapeutic support to patients in an easily reproducible format. In contrast, licensed acupuncturists and healthcare providers trained in Chinese Medicine develop individualized acupoint prescriptions through patient assessment, diagnosis, and treatment planning based on Chinese Medicine theory. The acupoints used by licensed acupuncturists and Chinese Medicine providers to treat specific symptoms and address the root causes of illness may vary widely from the following protocols, based on the individual.

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