Acupressure for Ulnar Nerve Damage

Like acupuncture, acupressure is an alternative medicine focusing on energy and healing points on your body 13. While acupuncture places small needles into these pressure points, acupressure is pressure applied by the fingers and hands of trained individuals onto the same points 13. Ulnar nerve damage can be reduced by acupressure, pushing on the nerve to reduce and relieve pressure 2. According to Dr. Ben Kim, regular acupressure is the best way to provide your large nerves with optimal blood flow 1. In addition, according to Mayo Clinic M.D. Tony Chon, both acupuncture and acupressure have had a long documented history with respect to healing injured patients 3.

Ulnar Nerve Damage Symptoms

Ulnar nerve damage is often a direct result of ulnar nerve entrapment, a disorder that applies pressure to the nerve running down the side of your arm 2. Symptoms of ulnar nerve damage are numbness in your arm and hands, particularly the pinkie side of your hand 2. In addition, you may experience sensitivity to coldness and tenderness in both your hands and the elbow itself. Acupressure is administered in these regions to help relieve pressure.

Pressure Points

During a regular acupressure session, your healer will focus on specific points along your arm, wrist and hands in an effort to help improve the flow of energy, or blood flow, and build up in these regions 1. TW 5, located just below the wrist is a common pressure point focused on by healers. TW 5 is known as the outer gate point and focuses on the immune system. In addition, LI 11, located on the middle portion of your elbow, directly affects the ulnar nerve 2. LI stands for large intestine. LI 4 addresses the fingers and muscles in your hand that are affected by ulnar nerve damage 2. Each number next to the abbreviation is unique to that particular pressure point on the body. A corresponding number and letter is located on a pressure point that is found in two places on your body. In addition, the numbers reference the 14 major energy channels in your body.

Large Intestine Correspondence

In many forms of healing in alternative medicine, certain points on your body correspond to vital organs within your body. LI 4 is a pressure point located in your hand that directly corresponds to the large intestine. In addition to directly affecting the ulnar nerve, healers believe that treating this area can also improve your digestive health and function 2. In addition to the ulnar nerve, this region moves into the superficial branch of the radial nerve 2.

Caution

While acupressure is recommended by some alternative specialists, it is important to get the pain and numbness in your arm properly diagnosed before treating it with acupressure. If your numbness and tingling increases in severity after acupressure, you may require another form of treatment, such as physical therapy, muscle strengthening or even surgery to help remedy the situation. Talk to your doctor or a health-care professional for a comprehensive and complete diagnosis of your problem.