A point to help with detox, anxiety, pain, and balance

LIver 3 is the acupressure point shown above, located in the space where the metatarsal bone of the big toe meets the metatarsal bone of the second toe. If you trace the space between those two metatarsals up your foot, you’ll find a little soft corner between them, before they meet the rest of the foot bones.

Liver 3 point in Traditional Chinese Medicine

If you gently rub this point with your fingertips, or use a tuning fork to vibrate it, you stimulate Liver 3, or Tai Chong. Liver 3 is thought to stimulate liver detoxification pathways in Traditional Chinese Medicine. It’s also used to lessen anxiety, irritability, and pain in the limbs or lower back. The perfect point for people healing Lyme disease!

Use liver 3 to improve balance

Acupressure points are often useful in movement therapy work, sometimes in surprising ways. Liver 3 is one of these points.

Many people with Lyme disease and other forms of chronic illness not only need support for detoxification, but also struggle with balance. Good balance is complex; involving structures in the inner ear and throughout the nervous system. Who knows, it may involve good liver function as well! But, being able to sense your feet and articulate the foot bones is also critical, and often overlooked.

In weight-bearing, walking, and balance, the big toe and the second toe provide the base of support for the rest of the whole body. The last 3 toes are helpful, but aren’t the primary weight-bearing structures of the foot.

Many people with balance issues have a hard time feeling their toes individually, and tend to roll their weight either out toward the little toe, or too far in over the arch of the foot – in either case losing contact with the strength and support of the first two toes and the inner arch. Stimulating Liver 3 can help reawaken sensitivity to these toes, thereby improving balance.

Ways to stimulate Liver 3

You can use your hands or a tuning fork to stimulate Liver 3, as mentioned above. You can even just meditate on the point, using your mind to stimulate it. Just bringing awareness to Liver 3 may be beneficial for detoxification and for issues with balance.

It’s also really helpful to loosen the joints of the big toe and the second toe with self-massage and gentle stretching. Explore the ways your first two toes bend; the toes themselves, and up into the arch of your foot. Play with pointing and flexing your feet, feeling the strength in the arch of your foot, and the flexibility of your toes. Imagine opening the space between your first two toes, making room for Liver 3.

A balance exercise using Liver 3

You can also stimulate Liver 3 through gentle movement exercises. Here’s one I like.

Try standing up with your feet close together, so you have to balance a bit. If your balance is pretty good, you can stand on an unstable surface like a balance pad (available online), or even a couch pillow.

Try to keep your weight centered over your first two toes, gently pressing your toes into the surface you’re standing on, holding on like a bird’s talons wrapped around a branch. Feel all the many joints of your foot moving in response to your balance. As many great movement teachers have said, stability is mobility. Balance isn’t about locking up and holding still, it’s about being mobile and responsive. It’s about sensitivity. (A great metaphor for healing.)

Wrapping it up

Liver 3 is a little treasure of an acupressure point for those of us healing Lyme disease or chronic illness. Not only does it support detoxification pathways in the liver; it may also help with pain, anxiety, and irritability.

Liver 3 can also help with balance – another issue that affects many people with Lyme and other chronic diseases. You can choose from many ways to stimulate this amazing point, from gentle touch to movement exercises. Any awareness brought to Liver 3 can be beneficial, you can choose what works for you.

If you want more support for your liver (and kidneys), tune in to my Detoxification meditation. You can even put it together with exercises for Liver 3 if you like.

Thank you for reading! You are always healing,

Shona