For all of the different combinations that Meridians interact. Over the last two years, I have to take a keen interest in the link between the meridians that run on the front, back, and sides of the body.

Recently l have been working with someone suffering with a thyroid disease and after purposefully working the liver and Heart Constrictor meridians as a pair, my client had a positive increase of makers in their medical tests. 

It is my current opinion that this interaction of the meridians is a very primal one and possibly among the first to be recognized by TCM practitioners as a pattern of relationships between meridians. 

The basis that Yang centripetal force enters in through the fingers and travels down to the earth would suggest that two yang meridians are paired, and yin centrifugal force enters in through the toes and travels up to the heavens through two connected yin meridians, literature can be found in many Shiatsu books on these six pairs and I have taken to working them as pairs in some of my treatments.

LI,ST, SP,LG, on the front bodySI,BL, KD,HT, on the back bodyTH,GB, LV,HC, on the side body.

The interaction between two yang meridians and two yin meridians occurs on three sides of the body. Jamie Hamilton called this phenomena three family shiatsu. We can also see this interaction between all yang and all yin meridians continues into the five-element transformation.

Where all six yang meridians influence each other, and the six yin meridians influence each other. Looking first at the yang meridians LI-ST-SI-BL-TH-GB. Each yang meridian has pressure points related to one of the five-element. Starting at the terminal end of the meridians (the first point on the hands, and last point on the feet) work in towards the Torso.

All yang meridians have the same sequence, beginning with Metal then Water, Tree, Fire, and ending with Earth. 

Stimulation given to any of these elements points will have an effect not only on that meridian being worked but also on the YANG meridian corresponding to that elements point. Interesting to think, you can influence the Large Intestine meridian by stimulating the metal point on any of the other five YANG meridians. 

It should also be noted, when working down a yang meridian in the legs, the five-element points are engaged in a reverse Ko cycle, running earth, fire, tree, water, metal....In the arm's they run in a standard Ko cycle - if you work from the fingers down to the face.

- Wayne Rush