When the heat outside is stoking the fire inside, and one acupressure point to cool it down

I'm going to be honest with you, and it comes with a little guilt.

This morning I took my coffee outside into a cool, breezy start to the day. My highs this week are barely going to touch 75 degrees fahrenheit. My morning walks on the beach have been lovely, my evenings are gentle, and I happen to live in a pocket of Southern California that, weather-wise, is behaving itself.

Meanwhile, a good chunk of the country and much of Europe is absolutely melting. My friends on the East Coast are describing air that feels like soup. My friends in Portugal, a place I love, are in the thick of a brutal heat wave. And I keep thinking about all of you, sitting in it, trying to sleep in it, trying to work in it, trying to keep your kids and your parents and your pets safe in it.

So this one is for you. For everyone getting cooked out there right now.

Here's the thing about heat, at least the way we understand it in Chinese medicine. There's the heat outside, the weather cooking you, and there's the heat inside, your own body running hot. And they talk to each other.

We're already in the Fire element season, the peak of summer, when the body naturally runs warmer and the Fire element is at its loudest. Add a heat wave on top of that, and the outer heat pours fuel on your inner fire. That's when things start to show up. A red, flushed face. A shorter fuse than usual (you snap at someone over nothing and wonder where that came from). A hot, pounding head. Sleep that won't come, or won't stay. That cooked, wrung-out, irritable feeling where your brain just will not cool down.

If that's you right now, you're not imagining it, and you're not being dramatic. Your system is genuinely overheated, inside and out.

Now, I can't turn down the thermostat outside for you. I wish I could. But here's the part that's actually within reach: you can help your body clear some of that heat from the inside. And when the inside cools a little, the outside becomes just a bit more bearable. You sleep better. Your head clears. Your fuse gets a little longer.

The point I reach for when someone is overheated is LI11, also called Quchi, which translates to something like "Pool at the Bend." You'll find it at the outer end of your elbow crease. Bend your arm, and it sits right at the end of the fold, on the thumb side.

LI11 is one of the strongest heat-clearing points in the entire body. It's the one we turn to when there's too much heat anywhere in the system, whether that's a fever, inflammation, a flushed hot face, or just that generally cooked feeling. It cools things down. It brings the temperature of the whole system down a notch.

And to pair with it, peppermint essential oil. If LI11 is the point that clears the heat, peppermint is the oil that makes you feel it. It's genuinely cooling and refreshing, it eases a hot, throbbing head, it cools the skin, and it clears out that foggy, overheated brain. (One note: peppermint is strong, so dilute it well and keep it away from your eyes.)

The way I like to use it is simple. Put a drop of diluted peppermint on LI11, hold the point gently, and let it settle in. Do both arms, not just one. Take a few slow breaths. And if you have any oil left on your fingers, rub it along the back of your neck for a little extra relief. It's a small thing, but on a scorching day, small cooling things add up.

And if you work with clients, keep this one in your back pocket this month, because they're walking in overheated. The irritable ones, the ones with the headaches, the ones who tell you they haven't slept well in a week. A lot of that, right now, is heat. You have a way to help them cool down, and it's a genuinely lovely thing to offer someone who feels like they're cooking.

One real thing before I go, because I care about you more than I care about a clever blog post. A serious heat wave isn't just uncomfortable, it can be dangerous. So please, do the real stuff too.

Drink more water than you think you need. I recommend adding electrolytes to your water for extra hydration, (my favorite). Get yourself into shade or air conditioning when you can. And check on the people who can't cool themselves down easily: the elderly, the little ones, the folks without AC. A drop of peppermint is a comfort, not a cure for a dangerous situation. Take care of your body first, and let the cooling point be the sweet little bonus on top.

To my friends melting on the East Coast, and to my beloved Portugal in the thick of it, I'm thinking of you. Hydrate. Find some shade. Cool your fire where you can.

And the rest of us will be over here, quietly grateful for a cool morning, and sending you a breeze.

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