Distal Acupuncture: Treating Pain Without Needling the Painful Area
Updated 15 December 2025
One of the most powerful approaches I use in clinical practice is distal acupuncture—a method that treats pain by needling areas away from where symptoms are felt. Patients may often experience reduced pain within seconds!
Many patients come to acupuncture with a simple and reasonable expectation: to leave feeling less pain, more relaxed, and better than when they arrived. What often surprises people is that effective acupuncture does not always involve placing needles at the site of discomfort. In fact, one of the most powerful approaches I use in clinical practice is distal acupuncture—a method that treats pain by needling areas away from where symptoms are felt. Patients often experience reduced pain within seconds! Distal acupuncture involves selecting points on the hands, feet, forearms, or lower legs to influence pain, tension, or dysfunction elsewhere in the body. For example, shoulder pain may respond well to points on the lower legs, knee pain can be treated via points near the elbows, and headaches or migraines are often addressed through points on the hands or feet rather than the head. This approach allows patients to remain comfortable, relaxed, and fully clothed during treatment. From a Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) perspective, distal acupuncture is based on the meridian system, where channels connect the extremities with internal organs and specific body regions. By stimulating distal points along these pathways, acupuncture helps regulate the flow of Qi and Blood, restore Yin–Yang balance, and address the root cause of imbalance rather than focusing only on local symptoms. This concept is classically described in the Huang Di Nei Jing, which states: “For conditions of the upper body, treat the lower; for conditions of the head, treat the foot.” Modern neurophysiology also helps explain the effectiveness of distal acupuncture. Areas below the elbows and knees—particularly the hands and feet—contain a high density of sensory nerve endings. Needling these regions strongly engages the central nervous system, helping to modulate pain pathways, reduce central sensitisation, and promote the release of the body’s natural pain-relieving chemicals, such as endorphins and enkephalins. Improved circulation and muscle regulation at distant sites often follow.
Dr Ping Kapica Dr Ping Kapica has undertaken advanced training with world-renowned Chinese medicine practitioners in distal acupuncture through the Balance Method lineage of Dr Richard Tan and the Master Tung lineage via Dr Wei-Chi Yang, approaches known for their immediate pain reduction and precise, whole-body treatment.
My clinical approach to distal acupuncture
My clinical approach to distal acupuncture is shaped by advanced training in several highly respected systems. I have received training from Dr Eileen Han, a direct disciple of Dr Richard Tan, founder of the Balance Method—one of the most influential distal acupuncture systems in Western practice. I have also trained with Dr Michael Chung, a direct disciple of Dr Wei-Chi Yang, who was one of the most influential students of Master Tung and instrumental in bringing Tung’s acupuncture to the West. These lineages emphasise precision, immediate feedback, and treating the body as an integrated whole. In practice, distal acupuncture allows patients to actively participate in their treatment. Because needles are placed away from the painful area, patients can gently move or test the affected region during treatment and immediately notice changes. Fewer needles are often required, results can occur more quickly, and supporting therapies such as cupping, gua sha, or moxibustion can be safely applied locally when appropriate. For many patients, distal acupuncture offers an effective, gentle, and empowering path to pain relief and recovery.