How to Relieve a Stuffy Nose with Acupressure?
Start by relaxing. Take a deep breath. Shake your arms out, one at a time. Yoga poses that open up your chest and upper back can help too, like cobra or downward-facing dog.
Lie on your stomach with a pillow tucked under your head. Put your palms flat on the floor, elbows bent and close to your sides. Push your upper body and head up off the floor while your hips stay down. Hold for 30 seconds.
Now get on all fours, hands under your shoulders and knees under your hips. Keep your back straight, tuck your chin in and push your tailbone up toward the ceiling. Hold for 30 seconds.
These exercises open up your nasal passages, so you can breathe more easily.
Next, use acupressure on the congestion. Press gently on the fleshy part of both hands, between your thumb and first finger, for one minute. This point is called Neiguan. It’s the same as the first acupressure point for nausea.
Press on your chest at a diagonal angle, starting two inches below and to the left of your belly button. Keep pressing until you feel a firm resistance that’s still comfortable. Hold for one minute. Do this three times, switching sides each time.
The large intestine meridian runs straight through this point, and it’s more than just an energy channel. Working on it can ease headaches and body aches, and clear congestion in those nether regions too, which is a bonus in cold and flu season.
Lie down with one leg straight and the other bent in toward your chest. Put both hands on your upper thigh and press down with your thumbs. Push gently and massage the area for one minute. This point is called Zusanli. You’ll find it on the outside of your leg, four inches below your kneecap.
This point is known for helping with congestion, pain and digestive problems.
Repeat these exercises as often as you need to, until the congestion clears. And keep breathing deeply and relaxing while you do them.
There are a few ways to use acupressure on a stuffy nose. You can press the Neiguan point between your thumb and first finger. You can press on your chest at a diagonal angle. Or you can massage the Zusanli point on the outside of your thigh.
You can try other acupressure points too, like the ones for pain and digestive problems, if they help.
Which acupressure points will relieve a stuffy nose?
You’ll find Neiguan (the first acupressure point for nausea) between your thumb and first finger. Pressing it may help with congestion, headaches, body aches and digestive issues. It sits in the fleshy part of both hands, about one inch from the webbing between your thumb and first finger.
You don’t have to use your thumbs or fists. Anything with a small surface area, like an earring back, will give you steady pressure on the point.
The chest point sits in the center of your chest, about two inches below and to the left of your belly button. Press it for one minute. Once you see results, work on other points until your congestion clears.
Zusanli (Stomach 36) is found four inches below and to the left of your belly button.
Pressing this point may help with digestive problems like indigestion, bloating, constipation and diarrhea. It may help with headaches and body aches too, and with a blocked nose from allergies or a cold. It’s a handy point for sinus pain and stuffiness in allergy season, or when you’ve got a cold or the flu.
What if this acupressure does not work?
Still blocked up after trying these exercises? There may be something else going on. See your doctor to find out what’s causing the congestion and work out the best treatment for you.
Acupressure is a good way to clear a blocked nose without medication. Press the right points and you can help clear your sinuses and breathe more easily.
Which points help depends on what’s causing your congestion, so try a few and see which ones work best for you. Acupressure is safe and natural, and it can ease your symptoms so you feel better quickly.
Acupressure for a Stuffy Nose:
– Press on the Neiguan point between your thumb and first finger.
– Apply pressure to your chest cavity. To do this, press on the area two inches below and directly to the left of your belly button.
If you’re congested, you have a few points to try. Neiguan, between your thumb and first finger, is known for helping with pain, congestion and digestive problems.
Medically reviewed by Dr. Jian Times
Last updated: October 22, 2026