Chinese Acupuncture
What is Chinese Acupuncture?
Chinese acupuncture dates back more than 2000 years. It has been studied and refined to be the most effective form of acupuncture known today. It is used to diagnose, treat and prevent illness, restoring balance throughout the body, and is growing more and more popular in the West.
It is now estimated that around one-third of the worlds population is using Chinese medicine. Acupuncture is recognised by the medical profession and is often used to treat conditions that Western medicine finds difficult to treat. It is more favourable than some forms of drug treatment as it aims to treat the cause rather than just the symptoms, without having side effects. It looks at the whole body emphasising that prevention is better than cure.
Acupuncture
Can Acupuncture Help Me?
Acupuncture can treat a wide range of conditions, muscular skeletal, neurological, internal, mental & emotional.
The World Health Organisation has listed conditions for which acupuncture is appropriate. These are the most common ones treated.
- Back pain
- Sciatica
- Lumbago
- Lower back pain
- Frozen shoulder
- Tennis elbow
- Golfers elbow
- Stiff neck
- Neck pain
- Osteoarthritis
- Rheumatoid arthritis
- Sprains
- Sports injury
- Knee pain
- Ganglion
- Repetitive strain injury
- Carpal tunnel syndrome
- Wrist pain
- Stress
- High blood pressure
- Depression
- Insomnia
- Palpitations
- Asthma
- Bronchitis
- Headache
- Dizziness
- Migraine
- Nausea
- Indigestion
- Constipation
- Diarrhoea
- Irritable bowel syndrome
- Urinary disorders
- Cold
- Flu
- Chronic pain
- Acute pain
The use of acupuncture for treating chronic pain is a great alternative. The proportion of chronic pain relieved by acupuncture is generally in the range 55-85%, which compares favourably with that of potent drugs (morphine helps in 70% of cases) and far outweighs the placebo effect (30-35%).
There are reports of controlled clinical trials showing that acupuncture is effective in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. Unlike corticosteroids, acupuncture treatment, does not cause serious side-effects.
Acupuncture not only alleviates pain it also reduces muscle spasm thereby increasing mobility. Joint damage often results from muscle malfunction. Combining acupuncture and massage is a very powerful combination and will alleviate back pain quickly!
Acupuncture
Are There Side Effects?
Unlike many drug therapies, acupuncture does not produce adverse effects.
This is probably one of the main reasons why acupuncture is so popular in the treatment of chronic pain in many countries. As mentioned previously, acupuncture is comparable with morphine preparations in its effectiveness against chronic pain, but without the adverse effects of morphine, such as dependency.
The one side effect I notice some patients experience is the feeling of a great sense of relaxation! Therefore you should ensure you have time to revive following a treatment before you attempt to drive.
Acupuncture
What to Expect
First, a consultation and diagnosis will be carried out. Here we will record your present problem, past illness history and lifestyle. Also, asking relevant questions, observation and sometimes using traditional tongue and pulse diagnosis to help us decide what the best treatment plan will be.
Next, very fine sterile needles are used in acupuncture points around the body. Different combinations of points are used to treat different conditions. The sterile needles stay in for about 30 minutes.
Most ailments take between 1 and 10 sessions to treat, sometimes more, depending on how long the condition has been present.
Acupuncture
Styles of acupuncture
The public should be made aware that doctors, nurses, physiotherapists, osteopaths, chiropractors, etc can do as little as just 2- 5 days acupuncture training, giving them limited use and knowledge of acupuncture. This style is sometimes referred to as Western Medical Acupuncture.
Acupuncture practiced in China is very powerful, with deeper needling than the much gentler and shallower acupuncture commonly used by practitioners trained in Britain.
There is also another style that is based exclusively on Five Element theory - one of the major systems of thought within Chinese medicine - which uses points mainly located on the extremities with needle insertion that is often very brief. This is a different style to the two described above.
The terms 'acupuncture' or 'traditional acupuncture' are used indiscriminately. Most acupuncture performed in the U.K. is likely to be described as traditional but this gives no clear description of the exact type of acupuncture being offered. This causes a problem as it is very confusing for the public who without a detailed knowledge of traditional Chinese medical theories will regard "traditional" as relating solely to the kind of acupuncture practised in China .
Acupuncture
Is It Safe?
Acupuncture is safe when practised properly by a well-trained practitioner, and has few contraindications or side effects. Unlike many drugs, it is non-toxic, and adverse reactions are minimal, since its therapeutic actions are achieved by mobilization of the organisms own potential.
Price:
£30 (H.S.A applicable)
Acupuncture & massage £40
Acupuncture
Moxabustion
Moxabustion is a heat treatment used to warm and stimulate particular points on the body, usually used with acupuncture. To treat problems such as back pain knee pain and general muscle pain.