Acupressure (Zhi ya) has been used for thousands of years in China to treat the symptoms of ill health by applying the same principles as acupuncture to promote relaxation and wellness and to help relieve the symptoms of illness in the body. Acupressure is often thought of as simply acupuncture without the needles and can be used by anyone at any time after some basic instruction. It comes under the Tui Na category of treatment and is the most basic level of Chinese manual therapy.

In treatment, physical pressure is applied to acupuncture points or ashi (painful trigger points) with the aim of clearing Qi blockages and stagnation in the affected primary and sinew meridian systems. Pressure is applied by hand, elbow, or various traditional massage tools. In theory many objects found in our modern households can be used when necessary.

In 2011 a systematic review of 43 studies of acupressure’s effectiveness at treating symptoms found that 35 of the 43 studies had concluded that acupressure was effective at treating certain symptoms.