Sudden Stomach Pain? Don’t Panic — 3 TCM Methods to Soothe Your Stomach Quickly

If you don’t usually have gastric issues but suddenly feel a sharp stomach pain, it can affect both your work and daily life.

Occasional stomach pain can happen for several reasons:

Eating without chewing food thoroughly, overloading your stomach.
Talking while eating, causing too much air to enter the stomach.
Eating when feeling upset or angry, which disrupts liver qi and affects the stomach.
Overeating cold or raw foods, triggering stomach muscle spasms.

In such cases, certain acupoint stimulation methods can help relieve sudden stomach discomfort fast. These techniques are adapted from “Regulate the Organs through Meridians” by Master Lu Xinyu.

1. Gua Sha at the Elbow Crease — Release Qi and Soothe the Stomach

One of the fastest ways to ease stomach pain is to perform gua sha at the elbow crease.

How to do it:

Use a gua sha tool, spoon, or any smooth-edged object.
Apply a bit of oil (gua sha oil, baby oil, essential oil, or even cooking oil) on the elbow crease.
Scrape from above the elbow crease downwards — 20 strokes on the outer tendon side, then 20 strokes on the inner tendon side.
Start with the right elbow, then the left elbow.
Pressure should be gentle — avoid scraping too hard to prevent pain or bruising.

Why it works:

The elbow crease is where the Lung Meridian, Pericardium Meridian, and Heart Meridian pass through. Stimulating these meridians can help restore proper qi flow and ease stomach spasms.
In 中医, the lung helps qi descend, which is essential for healthy digestion. When qi flows smoothly, symptoms like belching or bloating may quickly improve.
From a holistic perspective, the elbow crease corresponds to the middle jiao (stomach-spleen area) in body mapping, so working on it indirectly benefits the digestive organs.

2. Press the Zhongwan (Middle Epigastrium) — Relax the Stomach Muscles

The Zhongwan point is located at the midpoint between the belly button and the base of the breastbone.

How to do it:

Start with very light pressure, allowing your body to relax.
Gradually increase pressure, pressing and massaging for 2 minutes.
Rest, then repeat several times.

This method helps relax the stomach’s smooth muscles and relieve tension from spasms.

3. Tap the Biguan (Thigh Joint) — Unblock the Stomach Meridian

Biguan is a key point where the stomach meridian moves from the abdomen into the legs.

How to do it:

Sit upright with feet flat on the ground.
Make loose fists and tap the point three finger-widths below the mid-point of your groin.
Tap 10 times, then massage the sore spot for 2 minutes.
Repeat until the soreness subsides — a sign that the blockage is cleared.

Quick Tip:

During a stomach pain episode, you may notice:

Tightness in the elbow crease
Tenderness at Zhongwan or Biguan

By starting with elbow gua sha, you often relieve stomach pain quickly, and the other points may also stop feeling sore. This is the beauty of TCM — treating the body as a connected whole, using external stimulation to regulate internal organs.

📌 Disclaimer:

These methods can help relieve occasional mild stomach discomfort. If pain persists, worsens, or is accompanied by severe symptoms, please seek medical attention immediately.