Press Pause On Spring Allergies With These 3 Acupressure Points

It's springtime! And just as you are ready to reemerge into the world, so, too, is the local flora—and for many, that means allergies.

Acupressure is a time-tested Chinese medicine practice that massages specific points on the body to lead to the desired effects.

Points are located in patterns on the surface of your body, and when you connect all these points (like a road map with stops along the way), you will see that they follow specific pathways that we can think of as energy channels. Each point is thought to connect to particular organs and body parts—including those activated in the allergy response.

This is a go-to point for many acupuncturists, used to help tonify your chi (life force energy), warm up your stomach and lungs, and strengthen a particular type of chi known as defensive chi. It can help your body move through stuck energy and the stagnation of allergy season.

This point is commonly used to help ease pressure in the head and face. (You might have tried it for a headache before.) Practitioners also refer to it to help alleviate red, itchy eyes; heat in the face; sinus troubles; and neck tension. Like ST 36, LI-4 is also credited with boosting your body's defensive chi. It's popular for its ability to clean and to move chi in a way that helps to release stagnation.

Find it on the back of your hand, in the V crease that forms between your thumb and index finger.

This point can be great for short-term relief from allergy symptoms. Also known as the "Welcome Fragrance" point, it helps to open your nasal passage and immediately relieve some sinus pressure.

Acupressure is a great way to check in with the stops on your body's road map, and active stretching can help you go even deeper. Follow along with these stretches to further activate the muscle groups running along the acupressure points you just pressed: ST 36 pumps and LI fascia flossing on the ground.