Ringing in the ears or a toothache can be quite disruptive, and you don’t always have the right medication on hand. However, you do have a powerful remedy: your own body.
The Auditory Convergence acupoint (Ting Hui, GB2), located near the ear, can help alleviate these discomforts through acupressure. This natural solution can be especially beneficial for older people with hearing difficulties.
How Ting Hui Helps Your Body
Relieves Persistent Ringing
The Ting Hui acupoint is akin to a reset button for your ears. It is especially handy for those troubled by tinnitus, which causes the ears to ring incessantly. By stimulating this point, you can effectively reduce ringing and restore a sense of calm to your hearing.
Elevates Hearing Abilities
Our hearing faculties can diminish as we age, dampening our quality of life. Ting Hui, located near the ear, helps amplify our hearing capabilities. This is particularly beneficial for older people, providing a non-invasive solution to hearing challenges.
Alleviates Toothache
The effects of the Ting Hui are not limited to ear-related issues. Its proximity to the jaw makes it an excellent point for relieving toothache. By targeting this point, you can manage dental pain, making it a versatile tool for both ear and dental health.
Connecting Timeless Knowledge with Modern Science
Traditional Chinese Medicine Insights
In Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), the names of acupoints often indicate their function or location. ‘Ting’ means hearing, and ‘Hui’ signifies meeting or gathering. Thus, the Ting Hui point is used to tackle ear problems, as its name suggests. Because it is located near the jaw, it also serves as a remedy for toothache.
Integrating Western Medicine Research
Acupuncture at the GB2 acupoint offers several notable benefits, as highlighted by recent research. A comprehensive reviewof 106 studies on acupuncture for tinnitus found that manual acupuncture, frequently targeting GB2 alongside other ear points, had significant positive effects on tinnitus management.
Another studyfocusing on obese patients with chronic subjective tinnitus demonstrated that acupuncture led to substantial improvements in tinnitus severity, as well as reductions in LDL or the so-called “bad” cholesterol and triglyceride levels over eight weeks. This suggests that the GB2 acupoint may alleviate ear-related symptoms and contribute to better cardiovascular health in this demographic.
Lastly, a comparisonbetween acupuncture and clonazepam for treating burning mouth syndrome showed that both therapies improved pain and quality of life without significant differences, indicating that acupuncture, including techniques applied to the GB2 point, is an effective alternative for managing chronic pain conditions.
How to Locate and Stimulate Ting Hui
Finding the Ting Hui acupoint is quite simple. Start by locating the tragus of your ear, which is the small, pointed bump on the outer part of the ear that connects it to your face. Open your mouth and feel the area just in front of the tragus where your jaw moves. If you feel a dip when you press your finger there, you’ve found the correct spot—this is the Ting Hui acupoint.
You can activate this acupoint through simple techniques:
- Massage: With your mouth open, gently massage the point in small circles with your thumb for one to three minutes on each side.
- Press and Relax: With your mouth closed, press firmly on the point for three to five seconds, relax for three seconds, and repeat this for one to three minutes on each side.
- Rubbing: With your mouth closed, rub the point up and down for one to three minutes on each side.
For more advanced techniques like acupuncture or moxibustion (a gentle heat therapy with dried mugwort), visiting a TCM practitioner is recommended.
Who Should Use Caution
If you have injuries around the ears, proceed with caution to avoid exacerbating any issues.
Proactive Self-Care
You don’t need to wait for problems to arise. In a world filled with noise pollution, proactive and preventative care is key to maintaining healthy hearing into old age. Natural methods such as acupressure on the Ting Hui point can be a valuable addition to your self-care toolkit, ensuring long-term auditory health at no cost.
Discover the effects of the Ting Hui acupoint and embrace a path towards enhanced hearing and reduced pain, naturally and effectively.
Originally published in Epoch Times on 18 Feb 2025
