Dazhui (GV14): The Base of the Neck Point for a Stiff Neck and a Chilled Upper Back

Where Dazhui Sits

This point sits on the spine at the back of the neck, right where the neck meets the upper back. It is in the gap right below the large knob that sticks out when you bend your head forward.

The line it belongs to runs straight up the middle of the back. It starts at the tip of the tailbone, climbs the spine, crosses the back of the neck, passes over the top of the head and comes down the forehead and nose to end at the upper gum. Vietnamese and Chinese texts call it the Governing Vessel. This point is its fourteenth stop, and the one where the back meets the neck.

The landmark is the largest knob at the base of the neck. On most people this is the top of the seventh neck vertebra, the last bone of the neck. The World Health Organization's 2008 standard places the point in the depression right below that knob, on the midline. The Vietnamese handbook by Ngo Trung Trieu gives a careful way to make sure you have the right knob. Bend the head and you may see one to three round knobs at the base of the neck. Rest a finger on each and turn the head in a slow circle. The knob that moves most under your finger is the seventh neck vertebra; the point is in the gap below it.

Underneath, there is no muscle belly over the point itself. You are pressing into the band of tough tissue that links the tips of the two bones (the supraspinous and interspinous ligaments). On either side lies the flat, tendinous part of the wide muscle that covers the upper back (the trapezius), and deeper muscles that hold the head up and steady the spine.

The skin here is served by small branches from the back of the spinal nerves at the bottom of the neck. The area carries the weight of the head all day, which is why it so often feels tight, and why a soft hump of tissue can build up over it in people who sit with the head forward for years.

Why This Spot

On the anatomical side, the base of the neck is a hinge between two very different parts of the spine: the mobile neck and the stiffer upper back. Every time the head drops forward to read, sew or look at a phone, the strain gathers at this junction. It is easy to find by touch, it is on the midline so one hand can reach it, and it often feels tender in people with a stiff neck or rounded upper back.

In this tradition the point carries a special role. It is described as the meeting place of all the yang channels, the ones that run down the back and outer sides of the body, with the central line of the back. That is why it is often called the gathering point of yang. In the old picture, the yang channels are the body's outer guard, and this is the place where they meet. So the point is commonly used for stiffness of the neck and spine and for the early, chilled, achy stage of a cold.

The name says what it looks like. The large knob at the base of the neck was seen as the biggest of the spinal bones, a great hammer or mallet. The Vietnamese name, Đại Chuỳ, means the same.

What the Old Texts Say About Dazhui

The point has one of the oldest written records on the back. The Suwen, the Basic Questions, a Han-dynasty text, has a chapter on the hollows of the bones. In it, when describing how to warm the body for chills and fever, it tells the practitioner to begin at the large vertebra at the nape. That is this point. Here the old remedy was heat, not pressure, but the place has been trusted for that chilled, shivery stage for some two thousand years.

The Vietnamese handbook of points and channels by Ngo Trung Trieu, published by Hong Duc, gives a long list. It includes colds and fever, stiffness of the neck and nape, pain along the spine, cough, a cricked neck, red eyes and poor sleep. Notice the pattern. Most of those entries belong either to the back of the neck and spine, or to the early stage of a cold, when the neck aches and the body feels chilled.

The same book gives the careful method for finding the right knob that this page uses: bend the head, rest a finger on each knob, and turn the head in a circle. The knob that moves most is the last bone of the neck. That quick test sorts out the most common mistake, which is to press one bone too high or one too low.

In the wider tradition, this point is one of the first that teachers reach for when someone comes in with a stiff, cold neck and a heavy, achy body. That reputation comes from long use rather than proof. It tells you the point was trusted by many hands, over many generations, for the stiffness and chill that people in their sixties and seventies often feel at the back of the neck when the weather turns.

Points That Work With Dazhui

The first partner sits at the top of the neck. Follow the two thick cords of muscle up the back of the neck to where they meet the base of the skull. On each side, the point lies in the hollow on the outer edge of the cord, right under the skull bone. In this tradition it is commonly used with this one for a stiff neck and a heavy head, one at the top and one at the bottom of the neck.

The second sits on top of each shoulder. Find the midpoint between the large knob at the base of the neck and the bony tip of the shoulder. The point lies on the highest part of the muscle there. It is used with this one for stiffness that spreads across the shoulders.

The third sits on the upper back, one knob lower than this point and about four fingers out to each side, above the inner upper corner of the shoulder blade. It is used with this one when the stiffness runs from the base of the neck into the shoulder blades.

How to Find and Press Dazhui

Getting Into Position

Sit upright on a firm chair with your feet flat and your shoulders dropped. Bend the head slightly forward to open the gap between the bones. Rest the elbow of your pressing arm on a table or cushion if reaching up is tiring. A rounded-tip tool with a long handle makes the reach easier.

How to Find It

Bend your head forward and run your fingertips down the back of the neck until you meet the knob that sticks out most at its base. Keep a fingertip on it and slowly turn your head left and right. If the knob moves under your finger, it is the last bone of the neck. If it barely moves, it is the first bone of the chest; move up one knob. Then slide off the bottom of the neck knob into the gap right below it. That gap is the area.

Probe it with a rounded-tip pressing tool, or the tip of your thumb or middle finger with the nail cut short: the very tip, not the soft pad. Move in very small steps. One spot will sting: a small, sharp, pinpoint tenderness. That spot is the point. If you feel tingling or numbness into the arms or hands, lift off at once.

How to Press It

Keep the tip on the stinging spot and rub in small, gentle circles, about the size of a fingernail, roughly one each second. Aim the pressure straight in, toward the front of the throat, and keep the tip in the soft gap, off the bone above and below. Do not let it slide up and down the spine.

How Much Pressure

Use less force here than on a muscle. Sharp under the tool is right; that small sting tells you that you are on the point. When you lift off, the sting should fade within moments. If the pain stays after you lift the tool, if it spreads, or if the area turns swollen, hot or red, stop and leave it for several days. Stop at once for any tingling, numbness or weakness in the arms. If you are holding your breath, you are pressing too hard. Ease off until you can breathe slowly through the sting.

How Long

Work the point for one to three minutes. In the first sessions keep to about one minute. As the days go on, add a little time, up to three minutes. There is only one point here, on the midline, so there are no sides to switch between. Once or twice a day is plenty. Pressing longer does not add benefit; it mostly adds soreness.

When to Do It

Morning suits a neck that is stiff on waking. Late afternoon suits tension that builds after reading, desk work or driving. When you first feel chilled and achy, rub it and keep the back of the neck covered and warm. Before bed is a good time too, as part of winding down. Do not press in the middle of the night. If a stiff neck wakes you, pressing then tends to wake you further. Keep the pressing for the day and the evening.

What This Won't Do

It will not remove the reason your neck is stiff. With the neck, the reason is often years of carrying the head forward, wear in the small joints of the spine, a pillow that does not support you, or muscles tightened by worry and cold. A point at the base of the neck will not change your posture or your pillow. It will not shorten a cold either. Pressing works best alongside the plain things: a screen raised to eye level, short breaks to look up and roll the shoulders, a supportive pillow, a scarf in cold wind, and rest and fluids when you are unwell.

It will not replace a diagnosis either. Neck pain after a fall or a car accident needs to be checked before you press anything. A stiff neck with fever, a severe headache, a rash or sensitivity to light needs urgent attention. Numbness, tingling or weakness in the arms or hands, trouble with balance or walking, or loss of control of the bladder points to pressure on the nerves in the neck and needs to be seen quickly. A fever that is high, lasts more than a few days, or comes with trouble breathing belongs with a doctor. So does neck pain that worsens week on week or comes with weight loss you cannot explain.

Safety First

Do not press over skin that is broken, burned, infected, badly bruised or rashy. Leave the area alone after a recent neck injury or neck surgery, with a known unstable neck, or over a lump you have not had checked. Press very lightly if you have thinning bones, and never jab at the spine. If you take blood thinners, bruise easily, have a bleeding disorder, or have reduced feeling in your arms, use lighter pressure, keep sessions short, and talk to your doctor first.

Stop at once if the pain stays after you lift off, spreads, or if the area becomes swollen, hot or red. Stop too for any tingling, numbness, weakness or dizziness. Nothing here requires you to push through pain. For the full list of cautions and the situations where pressing on yourself is not appropriate, read the full safety guide before you begin.

Questions People Ask

Where is the Dazhui (GV14) pressure point? Dazhui (GV14) sits on the spine at the base of the neck. Bend your head forward and find the knob that sticks out most. The point is in the gap right below that knob, on the midline. In English it is called the Great Hammer; in Vietnamese, Đại Chuỳ.

There are two knobs at the base of my neck. Which one is it? Put a fingertip on each knob and turn your head slowly from side to side. The upper one, the last bone of the neck, moves under your finger. The lower one, the first bone of the chest, hardly moves. Dazhui (GV14) sits in the gap below the one that moves.

How hard should I press on the spine? Gently. You are pressing into the soft gap between two bones, not onto the bone itself. A small, sharp sting is all you need. Never jab or push hard on the spine, and press very lightly if you have thinning bones.

Can I use it when I feel a cold coming on? In this tradition Dazhui (GV14) is commonly used for the chilled, achy, stiff-necked feeling at the start of a cold. Rub it gently and keep the area warm. A high fever, a fever that lasts more than a couple of days, trouble breathing, or a stiff neck with a severe headache needs a doctor, not pressing.

How long should I press Dazhui? One to three minutes. Keep the first sessions to about a minute, then add a little as the days go on, up to three. Once or twice a day is enough.

Is this the point on top of the shoulder? No. Dazhui (GV14) is on the spine itself. Jianjing (GB21) sits on top of each shoulder, halfway between this point and the bony tip of the shoulder. They are often worked together for stiffness across the upper back.

Other Points in This Library

Each of these sits within reach of the same hand. They are often worked in the same sitting.

This page shares general information about a traditional practice. It is not medical advice and does not replace what your doctor has given you. If you are pregnant, managing a health condition, or unsure whether this applies to you, check with your doctor first.

The whole inner edge of the foot, laid out on one page with photographs, is in The Foot Map — the free book. For every point in this library, see the full pressure point index.

(Point shown: GV14 · Dazhui · Great Hammer · Đại Chuỳ.)