General Practice

In clinic I treat not only physical but many emotional and mental disorders, the most common being stress and anxiety.  The World Health Organisation website on Acupuncture states: “Acupuncture is a traditional Chinese system of therapy, in which fine needles are inserted through the skin at specific points. Acupuncture has been shown to be effective in relieving post-operative pain, nausea during pregnancy, nausea and vomiting resulting from chemotherapy, and dental pain. It can also alleviate anxiety, panic disorders and insomnia, and has very few side-effects.” (WHO – www.who.int)

On a daily basis, I treat men and women with, amongst other things:

• Arthritis
• Headaches and migraines
• Depression
• Anxiety and stress
• Insomnia
• IBS, constipation and diarrhoea
• Fatigue
• Shoulder, neck and back pain
• Asthma
• Sports injuries

In my years of practice I have been asked to treat such diverse problems as ulcers caused by fire eating, chocolate cravings, commitment phobia and fear of flying, but in a recent analysis of patients seen, the most common problem was shoulder and neck pain followed closely by stress and anxiety.  I also treat children occasionally – my youngest patient is 5 years old.  (See www.pediatricacupuncture.com for further information on treating children with acupuncture).

Treatment is individually tailored according to the condition to be treated and may be once a week to begin with, then at longer intervals as the condition responds. I will always refer you to other practitioners if I don’t think acupuncture can help you or if I think that you would benefit from an additional mode of treatment.

Case study 1: neck/shoulder pain:

Irene was a GP who also played the violin.  However, since suffering from neck and shoulder pain she had been unable to keep up with her music practice and wanted to do something about it.  I used needles around her shoulder and in the muscles in the back of her neck but also warmth to stimulate blood-flow to the muscles in the area.  I use a herb called Moxa (mugwort) to heat small areas of the body, with the herb in the form of a cigar-like stick, normally held a few inches above the skin, or in small cones on the end of the needles (this is very safe).  After two treatments her symptoms had eased enough for her to continue playing and I recommended periods of rest between violin practise and sitting with a hot water bottle, or heat pad, in the evenings when she could.

Case study 2: chocolate cravings and anxiety:

Jemima, 36, came to see me with chocolate cravings.  She was absolutely exhausted with three young children, a job and a husband who worked away in London all week.  She felt the chocolate cravings were stress related but I thought that it was also her body telling her she desperately needed energy (I usually diagnose low energy if people crave milk chocolate which is very sweet and high in sugar and more of an iron deficiency for those who crave dark chocolate!).  She also suffered from piles which from a Chinese Medicine point of view is also a sign of low energy.  At the second treatment she still found herself wanting chocolate but didn’t go out and buy any and her piles were better.  With the third treatment she felt much more relaxed in general although she was still eating chocolate.  Because she had started to observe her behaviour instead of being caught up in it, she realised that she was very anxious and did everything in a rush – especially eating.  I recommended sitting with the children at breakfast time and having some porridge to give her energy.  She also noted that she would always wake feeling groggy and heavy and that this had improved since starting acupuncture.  She had a ‘relapse’ over Easter time and felt awful – groggy and bloated – but by the sixth treatment was much better.  Her piles and sleep had improved but, more importantly, she felt in control of her life, less anxious and spent more time looking after her own needs.