Acupuncture
鍼灸
Acupuncture originated in China and other far eastern countries, where it still features mainstream healthcare, both as a stand-alone therapy and conventional western medicine. Acupuncture is now widely used and accepted all over the world. In the UK, more and more people are finding out what acupuncture can do for them.
What is acupuncture?
Acupuncture works to help maintain your body’s equilibrium by regulating your Qi by using specific needles. I will use very fine needles to insert specific points on your body to regulate the flow of ‘Qi’, your body’s vital energy. For many lifestyles and environmental reasons, your Qi can become disturbed, depleted or blocked, resulting in some symptoms of pain and illnesses. Acupuncture can be an effective therapy to help you restore balance and promote physical and emotional harmony.
What can it do for you?
Because acupuncture aims to treat the whole person rather than specific symptoms in isolation, it can be effective for various conditions. Acupuncturists treat the person, not just their symptoms, so each patient’s treatment plan will be different. Therefore, I aim to treat the root of your condition as well as your main symptoms. This approach helps with resolving your problem and enhancing your feeling of well-being. You may notice other niggling problems resolve as your main health complaint improves.
Who has acupuncture?
You can use acupuncture for a variety of reasons. You may come to acupuncture to help with specific symptoms or relieve specific pains like osteoarthritis of the knee. You may choose to have treatment to help maintain good health, preventive measure or improve your general sense of well-being. You may not generally feel unwell but do not have an obvious diagnosis from your doctor. Acupuncture is suitable for all ages, including babies and children. If you are receiving conventional medical treatment, acupuncture can support you along with that treatment, strengthens you and also ease the discomfort you are experiencing as a result of that treatment (e.g. IVF, cancer care)
Five Element and TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine) Acupuncture
I use a unique treatment approach, which integrates Five Element and TCM acupuncture. Theoretical and practical application of Chinese Medicine and an intuitive understanding of your internal states, such as psychological and energetical aspects, with various diagnostic skills based on theoretical knowledge, sensory perceptions, intuition, and experience. In this way, I can treat the root cause of your ailments that lie in the spirit and unconscious.
First Consultation & Treatment
If you are my first-time patient, your pre-session consultation will take place via video-conferencing online – rather than face to face. And consultation and consent forms will be emailed to you for completion before the visit.
I will ask about your main complaint, general health, medical history, and medications to complete a Chinese Medicine diagnosis. During treatment, I will check your pulse and tongue, do physical examinations such as palpation on specific muscles, joints, channels, and observe your movement if necessary. Based on the diagnosis, I will proceed to treatment that involves needling, moxa, cupping or Guasha.
Additional Manual Therapies with Acupuncture
Along with acupuncture, I may include the following therapies in your treatment.
Moxibustion (Moxa)
灸
Moxa is a therapy that involves heat application with a medicinal herb(mugwort). I often use it to treat Cold and Deficient Symptoms to warm and strengthen the affected area by burning moxa corns directly on your skin, where particular meridians or acupuncture points are. I also use a moxa stick or box to warm a larger area of your body, such as the back and abdomen.
Guasha
刮痧
Guasah is a scraping therapy that removes stasis and pain and strengthens the area by scraping the skin surface with the edge of the Guasha tool (e.g. metal lid) until it causes light bruising or petechiae. It helps promote healthy circulation of Qi and encourages blood flow, thus benefiting areas where there are muscle tension, knots, and pain from stagnation and deficiency. For example, tension shoulders, neck and back.
Cupping
吸角法
Cupping is an effective remedy used to remove toxins, stagnation and pathogens through the skin surface by applying a local suction with heated or vacuum cups. By doing so, it can treat many ailments, including muscle pain, knots, and fever. Bruising and skin discolouration result from this treatment; they should be cleared within a few days.
What Acupuncture Can Help
Here are some examples of conditions acupuncture is proven to be effective for the short term (up to 3 months).
Headache - Tension Type & Migraine
Temporomandibular (TMD/TMJ) Pain
Chronic Lower Backache
Osteoarthritis knee
Neck Pain -
Chronic & Acute
Acupuncture Research & Information
The British Acupuncture Council (BAcC) produced the updated research information in the A-Z factsheets, which acupuncture has proven effective. Their research includes anxiety, back pain, cancer care, chronic fatigue, and female fertility.
Click here to see the full list of factsheets and research digest.
If you want to read more information and research about the efficacy of acupuncture, you can find them by visiting the website below.
Contact
me
If you have any questions, or want to discuss your conditions, please contact me!
