P. Sze 
Our thighs are packed with nerves, muscles, and tendons because they facilitate much of the body’s movement. Having been a distance runner, rock climber, and having worked a desk job meant that my thighs were almost constantly exhausted. I wondered how to soothe thigh pain for years as it impeded my athletics and caused a reduced range of motion and daily discomfort, even while resting. Luckily, I found pressure points for thigh pain.
Pressure points for thigh pain are a non-invasive, effective, and easy form of self-treatment. Thigh pain can come from various causes and manifest in specific areas, so here are my go-to pressure points for thigh pain relief.
How Do You Relieve Thigh Pain?
Thigh pain can be treated in a number of ways including pain medications and physical therapy. However, some treatments only cover up the pain while others help heal it. Acupressure has been noted as an effective way to reduce and even cure chronic pain in the thighs. Some studies have shown that the activation of acupressure points for upper thigh pain can help heal both nerve and connective tissue pain caused by muscle tension.
Thigh pain can affect movement throughout the entire body and may lead to pain in other areas as well, so it is important to identify and treat your thigh pain. Heat packs can be helpful as an option to gently stimulate acupressure points that are difficult to reach, but the pressure points for thigh pain listed here are ideal.
Acupoint: ST-32 (Other Names: Stomach-32/Fu Tu/Crouching Rabbit)
The stomach channel runs down the legs, putting a few of its points in the perfect position to increase healing and decrease pain in the thighs. ST-32 is commonly referred to as one of the best acupressure points for fibromyalgia because it relieves pain by clearing obstructions in this channel. This point can be helpful for athletes and sedentary people alike because it helps prevent damage to the thigh just as well as it relieves pain.
This point is easy to activate on your own because it is located on the front of either thigh. It is located about 8 finger widths or 6 cun above the knee and slightly towards the outer thigh. When you apply pressure, the point should feel firm as it is dense with muscle layered over the thigh bone. If this point is in the area where you are experiencing thigh pain, please avoid using it as to not further damage the thigh muscles or soft tissue.
Acupoint: ST-34 (Other Names: Stomach-34/Liang Qiu/Ridge Mound)
This next stomach channel acupressure point is equally powerful in preventing damage to associated muscles along the stomach meridian. As part of the stomach meridian and a powerful pain-relieving point, ST-34 is commonly used as one of the acupressure points for lower abdominal pain.
ST-34 is easy to locate when you use the top of your knee as a marker. You will find this point 3 finger widths, or two cun, above the outer edges of your knee caps. The area surrounding this point is firm and bony, so only apply pressure to this pressure point for thigh pain if you are not experiencing pain in this exact spot.
Acupoint: KD-9 (Other Names: Kidney-9/Zhu Bin/Guest House)
You will find KD-9 to be the perfect acupressure point for lower back pain and thigh numbness. This multifunctional point is closely related to increased blood flow, which results in a slew of benefits including relieving pressure on nerves and helping with pain in various areas of the lower body.
Despite being very effective for the treatment of pain associated with the thighs, this point is actually located on the lower leg. This point is located by tracing the area between the outer protrusion of your ankle and your Achilles tendon upward by 7 finger-widths. You can apply firm pressure to both sides of this point.
Acupoint: Bl-37 (Other Names: Urinary Bladder-37/Yin Men/Gate of Abundance)
The sciatica nerve may be located in the back, but it connects down into the legs and can cause sharp thigh pain. Bl-37 is a great pressure point for thigh pain because it addresses this nerve. This is a common acupressure point for leg pain relief of all kinds because it generally relieves pain in the legs, as well as associated lumbar pain.
This point is located in the middle of the back of the thigh, approximately 10.5 inches or 8 cun above Bl-40. For reference, look at the next pressure point for inner thigh and hip pain on this list. It is also important to note that Bl-37 is most effective for pain relief when stimulated lightly and continuously.
Acupoint: Bl-40 (Other Names: Urinary Bladder-40/Wei Zhong/Middle of the Crook)
Bl-40 can be located in the center of the crease that forms at the back of your knees. It sits between the tendons and muscles located at the back of the knee.
This urinary bladder point is used as one of a few acupressure points for pelvic pain because it relieves stiffness and discomfort around the hips, knees, lower back, and upper thighs. When activating this point apply firm pressure for 3 seconds before releasing the pressure for 3 seconds. Repeat this cycle of pressure a few times and don’t apply enough pressure to cause pain.
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