Occipital Headache

How Chinese medicine differentiates occipital headache — pain at the back of the head, along the Greater Yang (Taiyang) channel — into the five patterns you'll actually meet in practice, and the points for each. Distinct from this site's own Headache, Migraine, Cluster Headache and Tension-Type Headache pages by location. Acupuncture only — no herbs.

This page is educational, for practitioners and students — it is not a diagnostic tool and does not replace a proper in-person assessment. A sudden, severe 'worst headache of your life,' or one with fever, stiff neck, vision changes, or after head trauma, needs prompt medical evaluation before assuming a simple pattern.

General Acupuncture Points

Acupuncture points traditionally used for occipital headache — 13 key points, used across the patterns below rather than tied to just one.

Point	Key action
BL-10	Extinguishes Wind and subdues Liver-Yang. Expels exterior Wind. Clears the brain.
DU-16	Extinguishes interior Wind. Expels exterior Wind. Nourishes Marrow and benefits the Brain.
DU-14	Clears Heat. Releases the Exterior and expels exterior Wind.
LU-7	Promotes the descending and diffusing of Lung-Qi. Releases the Exterior and expels exterior Wind. Benefits the head and neck.
G.B.-20	Expels exterior Wind. Extinguishes interior Wind. Subdues Liver-Yang. Clears Heat.
DU-20	Extinguishes interior Wind. Subdues Liver-Yang. Raises Yang.
L.I.-4	Expels exterior Wind and releases the Exterior. Stops pain.
LR-3	Subdues Liver-Yang. Extinguishes interior Wind.
BL-60	Removes obstructions from the channel. Clears Heat. Extinguishes interior Wind.
SP-10	Cools Blood. Invigorates Blood and eliminates stasis.
G.B.-21	Relaxes sinews. Stimulates the descending of Qi.
ST-36	Tonifies Qi and Blood. Tonifies the Stomach and Spleen.
BL-20	Tonifies Spleen and Stomach. Resolves Dampness. Lifts Spleen-Qi.

The Five Patterns

↑ reinforcing ↓ reducing ⊥ even method.

1. Greater Yang Attack of Cold

Clinical manifestations: Stiff, aching occipital pain radiating down the neck to the upper back, strong chills and shivering, no sweating despite fever, generalized body aches, worse with cold/wind exposure.

Tongue: Normal body with thin white moist coating. Pulse: Floating and tight across all positions.

Treatment principle: Warm the channels, dispel Cold, induce sweating to release the exterior pathogen.

BL-10 ↑ DU-16 ↓ DU-14 ↓ LU-7 ↓

Note: moxa applicable on BL-10. This site has no organ-nonspecific exterior-Wind-Cold slide outside the Lung-invasion decks (which are respiratory-framed, not headache-framed) — no pattern link is given here; points still link fine individually.

2. Wind-Heat View full pattern →

Clinical manifestations: Distending, bursting occipital pain, fever with mild chills/aversion to wind, thirst, red eyes, sore throat, flushed face.

Tongue: Red tip and edges with thin yellow coating. Pulse: Floating and rapid.

Treatment principle: Clear Heat, disperse Wind invading the Taiyang channel.

G.B.-20 ↓ DU-20 ⊥ L.I.-4 ↓ LR-3 ↓

Note: no moxa. Matched to this site's own Invasion-of-Lungs-by-Wind-Heat slide on the exterior-invasion level, the same convention already used for several other Wind-Heat-driven conditions on this site.

3. Wind-Damp

Clinical manifestations: Heavy, wrapped sensation at the occiput radiating to the neck/shoulders, worse in damp/rainy or cold damp weather, body heaviness, fatigue, brain fog, nausea, poor appetite.

Tongue: Normal or slightly pale swollen body with white greasy coating. Pulse: Floating soggy or slippery.

Treatment principle: Dispel Wind-Dampness obstructing the channels, drain turbid Dampness.

G.B.-20 ↓ DU-16 ↓ BL-60 ↓

Note: no moxa. This site has no organ-nonspecific Wind-Damp slide, a gap confirmed absent many times over — no pattern link is given here; points still link fine individually.

4. Blood Stagnation View full pattern →

Clinical manifestations: Fixed, stabbing pain that doesn't move, worse at night and with pressure, dark purplish lips, dark circles under the eyes, dark menstrual blood with clots (if female).

Tongue: Dark purple body with stasis spots, distended dark sublingual veins. Pulse: Choppy and possibly wiry.

Treatment principle: Invigorate Blood, dispel congealed stasis in the Taiyang channel.

BL-60 ↓ SP-10 ↓ G.B.-20 ↓ G.B.-21 ⊥

Note: no moxa. Linked to this site's own Liver-Blood-stasis slide via the discoloration-marker rule.

5. Qi and Blood Deficiency

Clinical manifestations: Dull, empty occipital pain, worse after exertion or prolonged standing, better with rest and lying down, fatigue, general weakness, pale complexion and lips, dizziness, heart palpitations.

Tongue: Pale body, may be thin or slightly swollen with teeth marks, thin white coating. Pulse: Fine and weak, especially feeble in the right Guan position.

Treatment principle: Tonify Qi and nourish Blood, strengthen the Spleen.

DU-20 ↑ ST-36 ↑ BL-20 ↑

Note: moxa applicable throughout. This site has no combined Qi-and-Blood-deficiency slide, a gap confirmed absent many times over — no pattern link is given here; points still link fine individually.

Related conditions

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