Pressure Points

Pressure Points for Self Defense 

Some pressure points can cause immense pain when some force is applied to them. This is very useful for self defense, as knowledge of these pressure points can help you defend yourself, if you are ever attacked or assailed by someone. Different degrees of force on these pressure points can cause varying degrees of pain to the receiver. 

Bladder points - Located at the back of every persons knees. Heart points - About 3 inches above the inner elbow. Lung points - Right in the middle of the chest, a few inches below the middle of the collar bone. Small intestine points - At the outer side of the little finger on each hand, right under the beginning of the nail. Large intestine points - At the outer side of the index finger on each hand, right under the beginning of the nail. Knowledge of these pressure points will help you defend yourself if you are ever under threat by someone. A large degree of force on any of these pressure points will serve you very well indeed. 

All these human body pressure points are very sensitive, but they can be used for our benefit. There are many cultures that have regularly made use of pressure points either to comfort individuals, or to cause them physical harm.

Level 1 Pressure Points

Level 1 pressure points are the most common pressure points there are. These are the types that people generally think of when they think of pressure points. In short, Level 1 pressure points are those pressure points that REQUIRE pain (their effect) to make them work.. NOTE that does not mean that every pressure point that you stimulate which hurts is a level 1 pressure point. Sometimes level 2 type pressure points will also hurt when they are stimulated. However, the difference is that level 1 pressure points REQUIRE pain to work whereas level 2 pressure points do not require pain to work but may hurt when stimulated.

A perfect example of level 1 pressure points is an arm bar or wrist lock. These can have dramatic effect on your opponent but in some non-responders you can actually break the bones before they will feel much if any pain.

Now I will freely admit that the real effect of a level 1 pressure point is the reaction the opponent’s body exhibits when he feels the pain. Suddenly he stops trying to attack you by other means and tries to deal with the pain that is being produced. In fact, this is the intent of level 1 pressure points: to cause this body reaction. But please be aware that the pain itself is only a vehicle to get you to the point that the opponent concentrates on the pain or cannot function due to the pain.

Also be very aware that if the person does not feel pain, then you are not going to be able to do what you want. In our last article we gave an example of a kick to the groin. We admitted that it caused pain in most people but in a small subset it does not. In those people who do not care about the pain whether from training, drugs or mental illness, level 1 pressure points are close to worthless.

So how can you tell? Well, mostly you find out by experimentation. Because level 1 pressure points are very common and located all over the body, you can try striking a point on the way in. If the person responds, it tells you something, if not it still tells you something important.

Another level 1 type of pressure points are the edges of bones. A classic example is the shin kick. Most people know this already but most have never stop to think about the fact that you only have to run your foot down the edge of the shin (or any other bone edge) to cause sharp pain. If the person is not drugged, high or mentally ill, then they are most likely going to have a very pronounced reaction. Again, though it is the reaction you are looking for, your end goal is not simply the pain; for the pain will go away quickly once you stop. Be prepared to use the reaction in advance and you will have a great tool.