How to Use Acupressure for OCD

If you have OCD you already know how exhausting it is. The intrusive unwanted thoughts that will not stop. The compulsive behaviors and rituals that consume hours of the day. The anxiety that spikes when you try to resist a compulsion. The mental exhaustion of managing symptoms while trying to maintain work, relationships, and daily functioning. OCD affects roughly 2.3 percent of adults in the United States, and standard Western care often falls short of providing the relief patients actually want and need.

Standard care with ERP therapy and SSRIs helps a lot of people, but many are still left dealing with symptoms that get in the way of daily life. Acupressure offers a supportive practice you can use to calm the nervous system between therapy sessions, during difficult moments, and as ongoing daily maintenance.

An important note before starting. Acupressure does not treat OCD as a primary intervention. It cannot replace therapy, medications when appropriate, or the mental health care that OCD often requires. What acupressure can do is address the physical and nervous system patterns while you continue the deeper work of managing OCD through appropriate care.

For patients wanting to include acupuncture in their healing regimen, Can Acupuncture Treat OCD? covers the Traditional Chinese Medicine perspective on this condition and how to treat it naturally, including the important connection between inflammation and OCD symptom severity.

Here are nine acupressure points that help.

What Acupressure Points to Press and Why

Each acupressure point addresses a different aspect of the OCD pattern. You can use them individually during acute symptom spikes or work through the full protocol daily as maintenance.

1. Press on Yintang between your eyebrows for calming the mind. Yintang sits in the small hollow directly between the eyebrows, above the bridge of the nose. Press gently with your fingertip for one to two minutes. Yintang is often called the “third eye” point and is one of the fastest ways to actually activate the parasympathetic nervous system. The point calms the mind and decreases the mental restlessness that intrusive thoughts and OCD anxiety produce.

Yintang works particularly well in the moments when intrusive thoughts are peaking or when the urge to perform a compulsion is intense. Even one minute of pressure can shift the nervous system state.

2. Press on HT7 at the pinky-side wrist crease for calming the spirit. HT7 sits at the wrist crease on the pinky side, in the small depression just above the wrist bone. Press gently with your thumb for one to two minutes on each hand. HT7 is called “Shenmen” or “Spirit Gate” in Chinese medicine and directly calms the Shen, which refers to the mind and spirit.

The point works particularly well for the mental restlessness and emotional intensity of chronic OCD. HT7 can be pressed discreetly during difficult moments by simply holding one wrist with the opposite hand.

3. Press on PC6 on the inner forearm for calming the heart. PC6 sits about three finger-widths above the inner wrist crease, between the two tendons in the center of the forearm. Press firmly with your thumb for one to two minutes on each arm. PC6 is called “Neiguan” or “Inner Pass” and directly calms the Heart.

The chest tightness, racing heart, and physical anxiety that OCD produces respond directly to PC6. This is one of the strongest points for immediate relief when the physical symptoms of anxiety are peaking during compulsion resistance or intrusive thought episodes.

4. Press on GV20 at the crown of your head for mental clarity. GV20 sits at the crown of the head, in the small hollow at the top of the head roughly midway between the ears. Press gently with your fingertips for one to two minutes. GV20 is called “Baihui” or “Hundred Meetings” and is where many meridians converge.

The point clears the mind, decreases the mental fog that OCD rumination produces, and grounds the nervous system. GV20 works well for the mental spiral patterns that intrusive thoughts create.

5. Press on GV24 on your forehead for the Spirit Court. GV24 sits about half an inch above the front hairline in the midline of the forehead. Press gently with your fingertip for one to two minutes. GV24 is called “Shenting” or “Spirit Court” in Chinese medicine and is one of the classical points for calming the Shen and clearing the mind.

The point directly addresses the mental restlessness, intrusive thoughts, and disturbed patterns that OCD produces. GV24 works particularly well for the racing thoughts and mental spiral patterns that characterize acute OCD episodes. The point pairs well with Yintang and GV20 for comprehensive nervous system calming from three different head positions.

6. Press on KI3 behind your inner ankle for supporting Kidney energy. KI3 sits in the depression behind the inner ankle bone, between the ankle bone and the Achilles tendon. Press firmly with your thumb for one to two minutes on each leg. KI3 tonifies Kidney essence.

In Chinese medicine, chronic anxiety and worry actually deplete the Kidneys over time. KI3 addresses the constitutional pattern that separates patients who have long dealt with OCD from those experiencing more recent onset. Regular use supports the deep reserves that chronic anxiety depletes.

7. Press on ST36 below your knee for Spleen and gut-brain support. ST36 sits about four finger-widths below the kneecap, one finger-width to the outside of the shinbone in the muscular depression there. Press firmly with your thumb for one to two minutes on each leg. ST36 supports the Spleen function that governs thinking and rumination in Chinese medicine, and directly supports the gut-brain connection.

Given the inflammation connection to OCD and the role of the gut in mental health, ST36 is one of the most important points for OCD patients. The point supports digestive function, immune regulation, and the constitutional strength that OCD patients need to maintain over time.

8. Press on LR3 on top of your foot for smoothing Liver Qi energy. LR3 sits on the top of the foot in the webbing between the first and second toes, about two finger-widths back from the web. Press firmly with your thumb for one to two minutes on each foot. LR3 is called “Great Rushing” and moves Liver Qi.

The Liver in Chinese medicine governs the smooth flow of Qi and Blood and the emotional patterns of frustration and stagnation. OCD often produces Liver Qi Stagnation from the chronic emotional constriction and frustration of managing symptoms. LR3 addresses this pattern directly.

9. Press on KI1 on the sole of your foot for grounding the Spirit. KI1 sits on the sole of the foot in the depression that appears when you curl your toes downward, about one-third of the way from the base of the toes to the heel. Press firmly with your thumb for one to two minutes on each foot. KI1 is called “Yongquan” or “Bubbling Spring” and is the first point on the Kidney meridian.

The point directly grounds the nervous system and pulls energy downward from the head, which is where OCD lives most intensely. The mental spiral patterns, intrusive thoughts, and disconnection from the body that OCD produces respond directly to the grounding effect of KI1. Ending the acupressure protocol with KI1 provides a natural anchoring effect that reinforces all the calming and constitutional work of the previous points.

Why These Acupressure Points Work

OCD involves several overlapping patterns. The nervous system stays in a sustained stress response from the constant anxiety. The Heart carries the physical intensity of intrusive thoughts and compulsion urges. The chronic worry and rumination deplete the Spleen and Kidneys. The inflammation that contributes to OCD symptoms responds to the parasympathetic activation and gut-brain support. The emotional constriction creates Liver Qi Stagnation. The mental spiral patterns produce an ungroundedness that pulls patients out of their bodies.

Acupressure works on several of these patterns at once:

• The calming points (Yintang, GV20, GV24) activate the parasympathetic nervous system directly and clear the mental patterns of intrusive thoughts. GV24 as the Spirit Court is particularly relevant for the mental restlessness and disturbed thoughts characteristic of OCD.
• The Spirit and Heart points (HT7, PC6) address the emotional and cardiac symptoms of chronic OCD.
• The constitutional and grounding points (KI3, ST36, KI1) support the deep patterns that chronic OCD has depleted over time. ST36 specifically addresses the gut-brain connection that is central to the inflammation-OCD relationship. KI1 grounds the nervous system and pulls energy downward from the head where OCD lives most intensely.
• The Liver Qi moving point (LR3) addresses the emotional constriction and stagnation patterns.

How to Use These Acupressure Points

For acute symptom spikes with intrusive thoughts or compulsion urges, Yintang, GV24, HT7, and PC6 pressed together produce the fastest response. Even a few minutes of practice during difficult moments produces meaningful shifts in the nervous system state.

• For daily maintenance, working through the full nine-point protocol once a day supports the underlying patterns over time. Ending with KI1 provides the natural grounding effect that anchors the whole protocol. Consistency matters more than intensity. Even a few minutes daily produces meaningful changes.
• For pre-therapy support, Yintang, GV24, and PC6 pressed before ERP sessions support the nervous system regulation needed to work through the exposure work.
• For post-therapy recovery, HT7, KI3, and KI1 after difficult ERP sessions support the recovery from the intensity of exposure work.
• For sleep support, GV20, GV24, HT7, and KI1 before bed support the sleep patterns that OCD rumination disrupts. KI1 specifically supports the grounding needed for deep sleep.
• Firm sustained pressure works well for the wrist, forearm, hand, ankle, leg, and foot points. Gentle pressure works better for the head and face points.

Pairing acupressure with foundational OCD practices amplifies the results. Consistent ERP therapy. Regular movement. IgG food sensitivity testing to identify inflammatory triggers. Anti-inflammatory nutrition. Reduced caffeine. Direct nervous system practices including breath work and meditation. Community and support.

When to Get Professional Help

The tools above support the physical patterns of chronic OCD. They are not the answer for serious warning signs.

If you are experiencing severe OCD that limits daily functioning, panic attacks alongside OCD, suicidal thoughts, symptoms that involve harming self or others, alcohol or substance use as a coping approach, or symptoms that are not responding to any approach, please reach out for professional mental health support.

If you are experiencing suicidal thoughts, please contact the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline (call or text 988) or reach out to a mental health professional immediately.

For patients whose OCD needs additional support, Can Acupuncture Treat OCD? covers the Traditional Chinese Medicine perspective on this condition and how to treat it naturally, including the important connection between inflammation and OCD symptom severity.

Many patients living with chronic OCD also experience depression and stress patterns that require additional focus and attention.

Above and Beyond Acupuncture offers acupuncture, cupping, and lifestyle coaching at the North Frank Lloyd Wright Boulevard location in Scottsdale.

Schedule an appointment online or call us today to start your healing journey.

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The points above are only as effective as the technique used to apply them. Where to press, how firmly, and for how long all affect the result. For a full breakdown of how to perform acupressure properly at home, read Performing Acupressure in 3 Easy Steps.