Jianshi (PC5): The Inner Forearm Point for an Uneasy Chest and a Queasy Stomach

Where Jianshi Sits

This point sits in the middle of the inner forearm, four finger-widths above the wrist crease, in the groove between the two tendons that run down the centre of the forearm.

The line this point belongs to starts in the chest, beside the nipple, and runs down the middle of the inner side of the arm. It crosses the inner elbow, runs straight down the centre of the inner forearm between two tendons, crosses the middle of the wrist and the palm, and ends at the tip of the middle finger. Vietnamese and Chinese texts call it the Pericardium channel, after the protective sac around the heart. In this tradition the name refers to a set of functions, chiefly a calm, settled chest and mind, rather than to that structure. This is its fifth stop, three body inches above the wrist.

The old texts place it three body inches above the wrist, in the dip between two tendons. A body inch here means the width of your own thumb at its widest. Three of them are about the width of four fingers held together, which is the easier measure. The World Health Organization standard of 2008 describes the same place: on the inner forearm, between the two central tendons, three body inches above the wrist crease.

Those two tendons are your guide. Make a light fist and bend the wrist toward you. In the middle of the inner forearm, two cords stand out, close together. The one nearer the middle belongs to a thin muscle that tenses the palm; some people do not have it, which is normal. The one nearer the thumb side belongs to the muscle that bends the wrist toward the thumb. The point is in the groove between them.

Underneath lies the median nerve, one of the main nerves of the hand. It serves feeling in the thumb, the first two fingers and half the ring finger, and the muscles at the base of the thumb. It runs straight under this point on its way to the wrist. The skin over the point is served by branches from the inner forearm, fed mainly by the sixth to eighth cervical roots.

Why This Spot

On the anatomical side, the centre of the inner forearm is easy to reach and comfortable to press. You can rest the arm on a table or your lap, palm up, and work without strain. The two tendons make the groove easy to find again each time. Because a large nerve runs close beneath, the spot is often quite sensitive, which is why the light, focused pressure of a rounded tip works better here than a heavy push.

In this tradition the point is the river point of its channel, where the flow is described as running wide and steady, like a river. The old books turn to points on this line for an uneasy, tight, restless feeling in the chest, a mind that will not settle, and a stomach that feels queasy. That is the same reputation as the well-known nausea point one finger-width lower, and the two are often seen as neighbours that do similar work. These are traditional descriptions, not statements about any organ.

The name describes a go-between. Intermediary means one who stands between two parties; courier means a messenger. The old idea was a point that carries messages between the chest and the rest of the body. Its Vietnamese name, Gián Sử, carries the same idea.

What the Old Texts Say About Jianshi

The Systematic Classic of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, the Jiayi Jing, compiled by Huangfu Mi in the third century, set the location still used today: three body inches above the wrist, in the dip between two tendons. The Song-dynasty bronze-figure manuals and the later Ming compilations repeat it without change. With two tendons to guide you, the place is hard to lose.

The Vietnamese handbook of points and channels by Ngo Trung Trieu, published by Hong Duc, lists it for a fluttery, uneasy feeling in the chest, discomfort at the front of the chest, and recurring fevers of the kind that came and went in cycles in older times. The same book gives the way to find it used in this page: in the groove between the two central tendons, three body inches above the wrist crease, with the hand bent toward the forearm and turned slightly inward so the groove shows clearly.

In the wider tradition, later teachers placed this point among those used for a troubled, unsettled mind and for nausea with a tight chest. Its use for cycles of chills and fever is one of its oldest roles, from a time when such fevers were common. Today those fevers belong with a doctor. The reputation for calm and for a settled stomach comes from long use rather than proof. It tells you what the old practitioners hoped for when they pressed here: a quieter chest and an easier stomach.

Points That Work With Jianshi

The first partner sits one finger-width lower on the same line, three finger-widths above the wrist crease, between the same two tendons. It is the best known point for nausea in this tradition. Commonly the two are pressed one after the other, and many people use whichever spot stings more that day.

The second sits on the little-finger side of the inner wrist, one thumb-width above the crease, beside the firm tendon on that edge. It is used with this one for restlessness and trouble winding down in the evening.

The third is on the leg. From the dip at the outer lower edge of the kneecap, measure four fingers down and move one finger out from the sharp edge of the shin. In this tradition it is used with this one when queasiness comes with a weak, unsettled stomach.

How to Find and Press Jianshi

Getting Into Position

Sit at a table and rest your forearm on it, palm up, with a folded towel under the wrist if that is more comfortable. Let the hand relax and the fingers curl loosely. Keep your shoulders down. An armchair with a wide arm works too.

How to Find It

Make a light fist and bend the wrist toward you, so the two tendons stand out in the middle of the inner forearm. Now lay the four fingers of your other hand across the forearm, side by side, with the lowest finger resting on the wrist crease. The area is at the top edge of your top finger, in the groove between those two tendons. Relax the fist before you press.

Now probe the groove with a rounded-tip pressing tool, or the tip of your thumb with the nail cut short. Move slowly in small steps, a little up and down the groove. Most of it will feel like ordinary tissue. One spot will sting: a small, sharp, pinpoint tenderness. That spot is the point. If instead you feel tingling running into your thumb or fingers, you are pressing onto the nerve. Lift off, keep between the tendons, and use less force.

How to Press It

Keep the tip of the tool or thumb on the stinging spot and rub in small circles, about the size of a fingernail, roughly one each second. Aim the pressure straight down into the forearm, between the tendons. Wrap the fingers of the pressing hand around the back of the forearm, so your thumb works against them like a clip. Keep the tip on the same spot; do not let it roll onto either tendon.

How Much Pressure

Sharp under the tool is right. That small sting tells you that you are on the point. The test is what happens 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 tingling or numbness in the fingers. This point needs less force than you might think. If you are holding your breath, you are pressing too hard. Ease off until you can breathe slowly through the sting.

How Long

Work each arm for one to three minutes. In the first sessions keep to about one minute, because the point is often most tender at the start. As the days go on, add a little time, up to three minutes. Do both arms. Once or twice a day is plenty. Pressing longer does not add benefit; it mostly adds soreness.

When to Do It

Before bed suits this point well, as part of winding down: lights low, screen off, breathe slowly while you press. It also suits moments in the day when your stomach turns queasy, or when you feel tense and unsettled before an appointment or a journey. Do not press in the middle of the night. If you wake and lie restless, 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 you feel uneasy or queasy. Common reasons include worry, too much caffeine, alcohol, rich meals late in the evening, reflux, some medicines, and pain that keeps you on edge. A point on your forearm will not out-argue any of that. Pressing works best alongside the plain things: smaller evening meals, less caffeine, a calm routine before bed, and a talk with your doctor or pharmacist about any medicine that upsets your stomach.

It will not replace a diagnosis either. Chest pain or pressure, especially spreading to the arm, jaw or back, or with sweating, breathlessness or nausea, needs emergency services straight away. Do not press and wait to see. A racing, pounding or very irregular pulse, fainting or feeling faint needs a doctor promptly. Vomiting that will not stop, vomiting blood or something like coffee grounds, black stools, or nausea with weight loss you cannot explain also belongs with a doctor. If worry or low mood are pressing on you most days, please talk to your doctor or someone you trust.

Safety First

Do not press over skin that is broken, burned, infected, badly bruised or rashy. Leave the forearm alone with a recent fracture, a fresh sprain or unexplained swelling. If you have numbness or tingling in the thumb and fingers, or carpal tunnel trouble, ask your doctor first and use only light pressure. If you take blood thinners, bruise easily or have a bleeding disorder, 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 into the fingers. 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 Jianshi (PC5) pressure point? Jianshi (PC5) sits in the middle of your inner forearm, four finger-widths above the wrist crease, between the two tendons you feel when you make a fist. Probe between those tendons until one spot stings. In English it is called the Intermediary Courier; in Vietnamese, Gián Sử.

How is it different from the point for nausea on the inner wrist? They are on the same line. The well-known nausea point sits three finger-widths above the crease; this one sits one finger-width higher. Many people press both, one after the other, and use whichever spot stings more.

How long should I press Jianshi? One to three minutes on each arm. 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. Work both arms.

I have a tight chest or chest pain. Should I press this? No. Chest pain or pressure, especially spreading to the arm, jaw or back, or with sweating or breathlessness, needs emergency services straight away. The uneasy feeling this page describes is a restless, tense sensation, not pain. When in doubt, get checked.

I feel tingling into my fingers. Is that normal? No. Stop and lift off. A large nerve to the hand runs right under this spot. Press more gently and keep the tool between the tendons without digging deep. The sensation you want is a small sting under the tip, nothing that travels.

Can I press it if I have carpal tunnel trouble? Ask your doctor first. The nerve involved in carpal tunnel trouble runs under this point. If your fingers are already numb or tingling, deep pressure here may stir them up. Use only light pressure, if any, and stop at the first tingle.

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: PC5 · Jianshi · Intermediary Courier · Gián Sử.)