Last week I was over the in laws’ place in Queens for dinner. It was hot and humid. After we cleared the plates, when the thunder and lighting started booming, my nephew, Jacob, suddenly got a headache.
The pain was dull throughout the right side of his head, with an intense pain in the middle of his right forehead. He had nausea, and sensitivity to light and sound. Jacob is nine, and generally a healthy kid. He has never had a headache like this before. Judging from the weather that day, it was most likely heat related. But it was stubborn and not going away by just drinking water.
I thought acupressure would help.
Acupressure for a Kid with a Headache
Because the headaches was only on one side, the right side, I chose to start with the gallbladder channel. This channel is very effective for one sided headaches. I rubbed GB 34 and GB 31, both on the left side, in a circle. GB 34 is just below and inside the head of the fibula. GB 31 is located on the outside of the thigh, half way in between the hip and the knee on the Iliotibial band.
His entire GB channel below GB 34 was very tight. He was sensitive when I rubbed it, so I began very softly. Soon, it relaxed a little and he started to feel a little better. I continued down the GB channel to relax the muscles on the lower leg. I massaged this area for about 5 minutes until it relaxed.
I then gently rubbed Heart 7 and LI 4 on the left hand. His nausea started to go away. I rubbed these points for about 2 minutes until his nausea stopped.
Now, Jacob was feeling less of the general pain. But the sharp pain on the right side remained.
I rubbed Spleen 10 on the right side, which is just above the knee. This point is great for relieving sharp pain because it moves blood stagnation. The point was very sensitive so I started very gently. Gradually, as the point relaxed I pressed with more force. I rubbed this point for about 2 minutes. The intense pressure in his head began to relax.
The last thing I did was gently rub his neck. I used a pinching technique on the base of his neck. Don’t pinch so that is causes pain, simply to relax the muscles and reduce some of the heat. This relieved the last of the headache. Jacob was back to his old self again, just a little tired. He went to bed and woke up feeling fine. In the end, the headache was from the heat, and it did not come back again. If you have recurring headaches, then you should see a physician.
Listen to the body
These points can help anyone with a headache, from children to adults. The key is to be gentle and listen to the body during the acupressure. You have to gently relieve the stagnation in order to provide relief for the headache.
In my next post, I will discuss the areas on the head which are effected by different channels.
