Can I use moxibustion for lower back pain?

Moxibustion is a treasure of traditional Chinese medicine. It has a good effect in treating diseases. When low back pain occurs, it can be treated with moxibustion. It can activate blood circulation and remove blood stasis, and promote blood circulation. When using moxibustion to treat low back pain, pay attention to selecting the corresponding acupoints. When you feel pain, you can choose the Ashi point, which is a painful acupoint. After a good moxibustion, it can achieve the effect of relieving pain.

Can I use moxibustion for lower back pain?

1. If there is pain, there is blockage; if there is blockage, there is no pain!

It can be said that moxibustion is the most suitable method for preventing and treating low back pain. The principle is very simple, as the saying goes - "If there is pain, there is blockage, and if there is blockage, there is no pain"! On the surface, the most prominent feeling that low back pain gives us is just pain. In essence, “pain means blockage”. When the meridians are blocked, it will cause lower back pain.

There are two ways in which moxibustion works:

1. Rely on the high-penetration short-wave radiation generated during combustion to warm the meridians and transform cold and dampness;

2. Relying on the highly permeable wormwood essential oil in wormwood smoke, it can penetrate into our meridians, open up the twelve meridians, and eliminate cold and dampness. Both of these pathways have high permeability and can penetrate deep into the meridians and dredge them, both of which are very useful for treating back pain - "if the meridians are unblocked, there will be no pain"!

2. To treat low back pain with moxibustion, you only need to remember one acupoint!

The painful area is the Ashi point! There is a basic rule for moxibustion, which often does not need to be specifically explained, that is, moxibustion should be applied wherever there is discomfort or pain. This is also called local moxibustion at Ashi points, and it is particularly effective in treating pain-related problems. Ashi points are usually located according to the disease, and are mostly located near the lesion, but can also be located at a location far away from the lesion. There is no fixed location, so the method of finding Ashi points is to use pain as the point, "where there is pain, there is a point."

Ashi points (pain points) are caused by the blockage of Qi and blood in the diseased area. In other words, as long as the Ashi points exist, they will affect the function of the meridians and block the flow of Qi. Therefore, if you want to relieve pain, dredge the meridians, stimulate the circulation of Qi and blood, and give full play to the function of the meridians, the most important thing is moxibustion on the Ashi points! If you have a headache due to a cold in the head and neck, or have back pain and cannot bend, the Ashi points in the above areas are the focus of moxibustion.

Ashi points appear only when there is disease in the human body, which means that Ashi points themselves are the disease. Its appearance indicates local disease, and its disappearance indicates that the symptoms have been alleviated. Therefore, the existence and disappearance of Ashi points can prove the existence and disappearance of diseases. For example, for patients with lumbar disease, there are Ashi points on the waist and lower limbs. If the pain in the Ashi points disappears after moxibustion, it means that the disease is cured.

In fact, when we usually select acupoints for moxibustion, we usually use the Ashi point as the main point, and then use other acupoints to surround the lesion area. Therefore, when we treat low back pain, we only need to remember one point, and that is the Ashi point! Of course, it is not just simple low back pain. Specific low back pain diseases such as lumbar disc herniation, lumbar muscle strain, lumbar bone hyperplasia, etc. can all be treated with Ashi point as the main acupoint.

Moxibustion time for Ashi point: 30 to 45 minutes each time. If the disease is serious, it can be done 2 to 3 times a day.

3. When you have free time, you can also do moxibustion on other acupoints!

Although moxibustion on Ashi points is the main treatment for low back pain, it is also often related to cold, dampness, strain, blocked meridians, and kidney deficiency: wind, cold and dampness reside in the meridians, which are blocked when bending over to bear weight, resulting in poor circulation of qi and blood, or pain caused by long-term illness, kidney deficiency, excessive work and desire, insufficient essence and blood, and malnutrition of tendons and veins. Therefore, if you still have some free time after focusing on moxibustion on the Ah Shi point, you might as well moxibustion on some auxiliary points at the same time to achieve faster recovery.

1. Cold and painful waist

Symptoms: Cold, painful and heavy waist, difficulty turning, gradually worsening, aggravated on rainy days or when the waist is cold, pain likes warmth and is relieved by heat, tongue coating is white, greasy and moist, pulse is deep, tight or slow.

Acupoints: Shenshu, Mingmen, Yaoyangguan, Dachangshu, Yanglingquan, Weizhong.

2. Low back pain

Symptoms: Soreness and pain in the waist, which likes to be pressed and kneaded, weakness in the legs and knees, which is aggravated by exertion and relieved by lying down, and often recurs.

Associated acupoints: Geshu, Qihaishu, Zhishi, Sanyinjiao, Taichong.

3. Kidney deficiency pain

Symptoms: Soreness and pain in the waist, which likes to be pressed and kneaded, weakness in the legs and knees, which is aggravated by exertion and relieved by lying down, and often recurs.

Those with partial kidney yang deficiency will have lower abdominal cramps, pale complexion, cold hands and feet, shortness of breath and fatigue, and a pale tongue. Those with partial kidney yin deficiency will have restlessness and insomnia, dry mouth and throat, flushed complexion, hot hands and feet, and a red tongue with little coating.

Acupoints: Guanyuan, Mingmen, Shenshu, Taixi, and Ran Gu.

Moxibustion time: Initially moxibustion for 15 minutes on each acupoint, and gradually extend the time after getting used to it, until 20 minutes on each acupoint on the limbs, 30-40 minutes on each acupoint on the trunk, and rest for 1-3 days within a week.