Feng Chi: TCM Acupoint Guide

Name

Feng Chi (GB-20)

Location

In the depression between the upper portion of the sternocleidomastoid and the trapezius, on the same level as DU-16 Fengfu, midway between DU-16 Fengfu and GB-12 Wangu.

Below the occiput, close to the base of the skull. The point is normally located at the most tender spot in the hollow.

Between the hollow below the tuberosity of the occipital bone at the back of the head and the mastoid process, between the trapezius and sternocleidomastoid muscles.

Needling

• Straight insertion, level with the earlobe and directed slightly downward, 1 to 1.5 cun. Sensation: local distention and soreness, possibly extending to the top of the head, temple, forehead or eyes.
• Slightly oblique inferior insertion in the direction of the channel, 1 to 1.5 cun.
• Directed toward the tip of the nose, the contralateral eyeball or M-HN-3 Yintang, 0.5 to 1 cun.
• Puncture 0.5 to 0.8 cun toward the tip of the nose.
• Joined by through-needling to the contralateral GB-20 Fengchi, 2 to 3 cun. Sensation: local distention and soreness, sometimes extending throughout the back of the neck.

Caution: do not insert the needle too deeply, to avoid puncturing the medulla oblongata. Deeper needling may damage the spinal cord. Moxibustion is applicable.

Command functions

• Major point for Wind
• Point of the Yang Wei channel
• Point of intersection of the Yang Wei and San Jiao vessels on the Gallbladder channel
• Meeting point of the Gallbladder and San Jiao channels with the Yang Qiao and Yang Wei vessels

Actions

• Eliminates Wind and releases the exterior
• Disperses Cold, Wind-Cold and Wind-Heat
• Soothes the Liver and subdues Liver Yang
• Extinguishes Liver Wind and clears Liver Fire and Heat
• Relaxes the sinews and facilitates qi flow
• Activates the channel and alleviates pain
• Opens and brightens the eyes, benefiting the head and eyes
• Clears the sensory orifices and clears the brain
• Benefits hearing
• Regulates Yang Wei channel conditions

Indications

Head, brain and Wind

• Headache: frontal, lateral, midline, occipital and whole-head neuralgia
• Head Wind, dizziness and visual dizziness
• Migraines
• Heaviness of the head
• Vertigo
• Closed-type windstroke and apoplexy due to Wind
• Hemiplegia, facial deviation
• Loss of speech following windstroke
• Convulsions, epilepsy, infantile convulsions, seizures
• Muscular tetany
• Lockjaw
• Tidal fever, warm febrile disease with absence of sweat
• Chills and fever

Eyes and vision

• All eye disorders
• Blurred vision, weak vision and dimness of vision
• Vision problems
• Red and painful eyes, redness of the inner canthus, pain of the inner canthus
• Eye soreness and redness
• Excessive tearing and lacrimation on exposure to wind
• Conjunctivitis, iritis and inflammation of the eyeball
• Cataract, glaucoma, optic nerve atrophy
• Myopia, color blindness, night blindness, sudden blindness
• Strabismus

Head and face

• Whole-head neuralgia, occipital headache
• Head Wind
• Facial pain and deviation of the mouth and eye
• Swelling of the neck and tumors on the neck
• Goiter and hypertrophy of the thyroid
• Hyperthyroidism with flushed face; hypertension due to yang excess
• Weakness of the lumbar tendons, weakness in the elbow and legs

Nose, throat and ear

• Nasal obstruction, rhinorrhea and nasal discharge
• Common cold, injury by Cold with absence of sweat
• Nasosinusitis and sinusitis
• Epistaxis
• Sore throat, throat bi and loss of speech
• Deafness, tinnitus, impaired hearing and blocked ears

Internal medicine and miscellaneous

• Insomnia, poor memory
• Bi syndrome with generalized body aches
• Urticaria and upper-body erysipelas due to Wind-Heat
• Weakness of the lumbar spine leading to flaccidity and lack of strength in the sinews and neck; curvature of the lumbar spine
• Terrible pain in the neck which radiates to the back with torticollis
• Pain and stiffness of the neck and shoulders with inability to turn the head
• Spasms in the renal region making the patient double over; back pain
• Malarial disorders
• Neurasthenia due to Liver Yang rising; likes to stretch
• Qi rising to the upper body
• Brain diseases

Combinations

Notes

Feng Chi is the single most important point for headache and dizziness, whatever the etiology or the channels involved, and it is one of the major points for Wind. On a mental and emotional level it helps people see more clearly and form judgments.

Used with the reinforcing method it tonifies the Marrow. It is one of the pre-eminent points for treating disorders of the head, brain and sensory organs, especially the eyes, and it is a major point with many varied functions.