LEARN G-JO: ACUPUNCTURE WITHOUT NEEDLES

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No. 10 is an important point for treating such diverse symptoms as menstrual cramps, seasickness, or hiccups ... but its primary use is to control asthma and other problems of the chest area.

POTENT POINTS

While each of the three basic pressure points already described may relieve as many as 40 distressed areas, none of them is more potent than G-Jo No. 9. This one is located about three inches (the width of one of your hands) below the bottom edge of the kneecap. There's a ridge of bone (the shinbone, or tibia) along the front of the leg, and the pressure point is just alongside that ridge (laterally, in the direction of the little toe), between the shinbone and the front of the calf (or anterior tibial) muscle.

You'll probably find a long, valleylike depression that runs most of the length of your lower leg, and it's in this depression that the point is found. Though No. 9 is the most difficult of the six basic points to locate, it assuages problems connected with all areas from the stomach downward (the entire lower three-fifths of the body), so it's well worth searching out. It can be used to control both diarrhea and constipation, and—when used in conjunction with G-Jo No. 7 (see below)—the elusive point is a powerful treatment for most any digestive problem.

G-Jo No. 7, fortunately, is as easy to find as No. 9 is difficult to locate. Simply measure the width of one hand—roughly three inches—directly above the bulge of the inner ankle (the medial malleolus). The tiny point lies just behind—and almost touching—the shinbone. It's actually between the shin and the calf (the flexor digitorum longus), but since G-Jo points are located in the skin or flesh—rather than the muscles or bones—they tend to "float" a bit.

Nearly everyone will be able to find this point—which works about like No. 9— without much difficulty. My daughter uses it to ease menstrual distress, and I've found that pressure applied to No. 7 promptly reverses any feeling of nausea and indigestion I might experience after overeating.

G-Jo No. 5, the last of the six major pressure points, is a good spot for lower-back-pain sufferers to memorize. To locate it, simply probe the area behind the bulge of the outer ankle (or lateral malleolus), and just in front of the Achilles tendon. The point is found in the hollow or soft, valleylike area, but may be a little off-center.

Every member of my family has relied on No. 5 to get rid of back pain at one time or another, and my son has used it—along with point No. 13—to help relieve the discomfort of a leg and ankle injury he received when he fell while running last year. In short, the point is excellent for many problems from the waist down, especially those that occur along the back (posterior) part of the body. It's also a good point for midwives—and women who plan to use natural childbirth—to know. Point No. 5—alone, or with No. 13—helps alleviate labor pains, speeds delivery, and reduces trauma ... but it should only be used in cases where labor pains are severe or when the delivery may be difficult.

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