Tianshu (ST25): The Points Beside the Navel for Bloating, Gurgling and Slow Bowels

Where Tianshu Sits

This is a pair of points, one on each side of the belly, level with the navel and about three finger-widths out from it.

The line these points belong to starts below the eye. It runs down the face, past the corner of the mouth and the angle of the jaw, down the front of the neck and over the chest through the nipple. On the belly it moves closer to the middle and runs straight down, a little out from the midline, to the groin. From there it travels down the front of the thigh, along the outer edge of the shin, and ends at the second toe. Vietnamese and Chinese texts call it the Stomach channel. This is its twenty-fifth stop, the one that sits level with the navel.

The landmark is the navel. The old texts place the point two units out from its centre. Those units are measured on your own body, and the width of your index, middle and ring fingers held together, measured across the middle knuckles, comes to about two units on most people. So lie on your back, lay those three fingers flat beside the navel, and the point lies right beyond the outer edge of the ring finger. The Vietnamese handbook gives the same simple rule: two units straight out to each side of the navel.

Underneath lies the long, flat muscle that runs down the front of the belly from the lower ribs to the pubic bone, the one that shows as a six-pack on a lean young body. Behind it lie the loops of the small bowel and, further out to the side, the large bowel as it climbs up the right side and comes down the left. The skin at this level is served by nerves from the tenth level of the spine in the middle of the back, the same nerves that wrap around the trunk to the navel. That shared supply is part of why discomfort deep in the bowels is felt in a band around the navel.

Why This Spot

On the anatomical side, the area around the navel is where gas and cramping in the bowels are most often felt. When the belly is bloated, the muscle over this spot can feel tight and the tissue under it tender. The belly here is soft enough to work with a light touch, and you can reach both sides at once lying in bed. Gentle work on the belly is one of the oldest home remedies for slow bowels in many cultures, not only this one.

In this tradition the points have a special role. Each is the gathering point at the front of the body for the large bowel, the place where its influence is said to collect at the surface, even though the points belong to the Stomach channel. That is why the old books turn to them first for complaints of the bowels: gurgling, bloating, loose stools and stools that will not move.

The name explains the rest. Tian means heaven; shu means a pivot or hinge, like the pin a door turns on. The Celestial Pivot sits at the level of the navel, which the old teachers saw as the hinge between the upper and lower halves of the body. Its Vietnamese name, Thiên Khu, carries the same idea.

What the Old Texts Say About Tianshu

The Suwen, the Basic Questions, a Han-dynasty text, uses the name in its sixty-eighth chapter, which is about the movements of the seasons and the body. It describes what lies above the Celestial Pivot as governed by heaven and what lies below as governed by earth, with the pivot as the meeting place in between. Whatever one makes of the theory, the picture stuck: the navel line as a hinge, and these points sitting on it.

The World Health Organization's 2008 standard for point locations places the point on the abdomen, two units out from the centre of the navel. Its description is short because the navel is such a clear landmark.

The Vietnamese handbook of points and channels by Ngo Trung Trieu, published by Hong Duc, lists it for belly pain, a swollen, distended belly, gurgling, loose stools, constipation, blood in the stools, pain beside the navel, irregular periods and poor digestion in children. Notice the pattern. Almost everything on the list is about the bowels and the belly around the navel, the organs that lie right under the points.

That reputation comes from long use rather than proof. It tells you that many hands, over many generations, worked these two spots when the belly was swollen, noisy or stuck.

Points That Work With Tianshu

The first partner is on the shin, lower down the same line. From the dip at the outer lower edge of the kneecap, measure four fingers down and move one finger out from the shin's sharp edge; then go four fingers further down the shin. In this tradition it is commonly paired with these points for the large bowel.

The second sits higher on the same shin, at the first of those two marks, four fingers below the kneecap. It is used with these points for almost any complaint of digestion, one point near the trouble and one far from it.

The third sits on the midline of the upper belly, halfway between the navel and the lower end of the breastbone. It is used with these points when bloating and fullness reach from the upper belly down to the navel.

How to Find and Press Tianshu

Getting Into Position

Lie on your back on a bed or a mat, with a pillow under your head and your knees bent, feet flat. Bent knees let the belly muscles go soft. Rest your elbows on the bed. Make sure at least two hours have passed since a full meal, and empty your bladder if it is full.

How to Find It

Find your navel. Lay your index, middle and ring fingers flat side by side on one side of it, the edge of the index finger at the centre of the navel. The area to work is level with the navel, right beyond the outer edge of your ring finger. On a larger belly, check that you are on the soft muscle, not out toward the side of the waist.

Probe the area gently with a rounded-tip pressing tool, or the tip of your thumb with the nail cut short. Let the tip sink in slowly as you breathe out. Move in small steps. Most of it will feel soft. One spot will sting: a small, sharp, pinpoint tenderness. That spot is the point. Repeat on the other side; the two sides are often tender to different degrees.

How to Press It

Keep the tip on the stinging spot and rub in small, light circles, about the size of a fingernail, roughly one each second. Aim straight down toward the back. Breathe slowly into the belly. Keep the tip in place; do not drag the skin. You can work both sides at once, one hand on each, or one side after the other, starting on the right.

How Much Pressure

Light. The belly has no bone to push against, and the bowels beneath do not need force. Sharp under the tool is right; the sting should fade within moments of lifting off. If the pain stays after you lift, spreads, or turns into cramping, stop and leave it for several days. If your belly muscles are tightening against your hand or you are holding your breath, you are pressing too hard.

How Long

Work each side 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. Do both sides. Once or twice a day is plenty. More does not add benefit; it can leave the belly sore.

When to Do It

Morning, before breakfast, suits slow bowels, since the body's natural urge tends to come after waking and after the first warm drink. Before bed works too, as part of winding down, if supper was early and the belly feels full and gassy. Never press on a full stomach. Do not press in the middle of the night. If a cramp or bloating 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 change what is slowing your bowels. In people in their sixties and seventies, the common reasons are too little fluid, too little fibre, sitting for long hours, pain medicines and some other tablets, low iron, and a bowel that has grown lazier with age. Bloating has its own list: certain foods, swallowing air, fizzy drinks and eating fast. Two points beside the navel cannot change any of those. Pressing works best alongside the plain things: water through the day, fruit, vegetables and whole grains, a daily walk, a regular unhurried time on the toilet, and a word with your pharmacist about your medicines.

It will not replace a diagnosis either. Sudden, severe pain in the belly needs urgent help. So does a hard, swollen belly with vomiting and no wind or stools passing. Blood in the stools or black stools, a change in bowel habit that lasts more than three weeks, weight loss you cannot explain, pain that wakes you night after night, or a lump you can feel in the belly all belong with a doctor. If you are over fifty and your bowel habit has changed, ask about screening.

Safety First

If you are pregnant, skip this one. Points on the belly are traditionally left alone throughout pregnancy. Do not press within two hours of a full meal, over a recent scar or after surgery on the belly, over a bulge near the navel or elsewhere on the belly, or over skin that is broken, bruised or rashy. Leave it alone if you have belly pain you cannot explain or a fever. If you take blood thinners, bruise easily, have a bleeding disorder or reduced feeling in the belly, keep pressure very light and talk to your doctor first.

Stop at once if the pain stays after you lift off, spreads, or if you feel sick, faint or crampy. 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 Tianshu (ST25) pressure point? Tianshu (ST25) is a pair of points level with the navel, one on each side, about three finger-widths out from its centre. Lying on your back, lay your index, middle and ring fingers flat beside the navel; the point is right beyond the outer edge of the ring finger. Probe there until one spot stings. In English it is called the Celestial Pivot; in Vietnamese, Thiên Khu.

Is it two finger-widths or three? The old texts say two units out from the navel. A unit here is measured on your own body, and the width of three fingers held together, at the middle knuckle, is about two units on most people. So three finger-widths and two units are the same distance.

How long should I press Tianshu? One to three minutes on each side. Keep the first sessions to about a minute and add a little as the days go on. Once or twice a day is enough, never on a full stomach. Work both sides, even if the ache is on one side.

Is it safe in pregnancy? No. Points on the belly are traditionally left alone throughout pregnancy. If you are pregnant, skip this one, and ask your midwife or doctor before doing any pressure work.

Will it help constipation? We cannot promise that. In this tradition Tianshu (ST25) is commonly used for slow, irregular bowels and a bloated belly, and many people find it a settling part of a morning routine. Fluids, fibre, walking and a regular time on the toilet matter more. A change in your bowel habit that lasts more than a few weeks belongs with your doctor.

Should I press the left or the right side first? Either. Many people start on the right and finish on the left, following the way the large bowel runs across the belly. What matters more is pressing gently and not on a full stomach.

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: ST25 · Tianshu · Celestial Pivot · Thiên Khu.)