Posts

Acupuncture: Past and Present.

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What to expect at your first Acupuncture visit.

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Acupuncture – Did you know…

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Why is sore spot not necessarily the problem?

massage pointWhen it comes to muscles, there are two main reasons that pain or tension is caused by another area of the body; feedback issues from nerve compression or satellite referral via active trigger points.

Feedback

If you have tension within your joints (hips, shoulders ect..) or areas with complex small muscle mass (neck), it is likely that you have some form of feedback issue in your extremities. Feedback refers to the nerve signal returning from your extremities to your brain, not the signal from your brain to your extremities. If nerves are compressed along the pathway back to the brain, … Read more ...

Acupuncture – taking the fear out of a dentist’s visit or operation.

acupuncture dentistMost of us feel mildly uncomfortable, if not outright apprehensive, at the thought of a dental procedure or surgical operation. For example, surveys show that around one in five of us are very afraid of dentist visits. This fear can lead us to postpone dental treatment to the point where problems start to build up and we end up needing more work done than we might otherwise. Ouch…!

Poor dental health actually reduces our overall health too – it has been linked to heart disease and dementia – so this situation affects more than just our mouths.

Before operations, up … Read more ...

How does Acupuncture work?

acupuncture-pointsIt might seem bizarre that inserting needles into various points on the body can influence the way our cells work. But a lot of research shows this is the case.

One of the areas most studied is the pain-killing effect of acupuncture. We have known for some time now that acupuncture affects nerve conduction within the spinal cord. The basis of the theory is that acupuncture stimulation ‘closes a gate’ within the spinal cord, preventing pain signals from travelling up the spinal cord and getting to the brain.

Beyond this, we also know that acupuncture has hormonal effects. Researchers initially … Read more ...

Ice or heat for injuries?

acupuncture fire iceA question I am often asked in clinic is “Should I use ice or heat on this injury?”.

The icing controversy

The conventional viewpoint is that it’s best to ice an injury in the first few hours and to apply heat to a chronic (long-lasting) injury. Ice, along with rest, compression and elevation (R-I-C-E), is seen to limit swelling and inflammation for the first 24-48 hours following an injury. However, the use of ice has recently been questioned by some in Western medicine, and has never been advocated in Traditional Chinese Medicine. In clinic, what we tend to see is … Read more ...

Sleep peacefully with Oriental Medicine

acupuncture oriental sleepHow did you sleep last night? Could have been better? If you are rubbing your eyes while reading this and trying to counteract the effects of insomnia with coffee, you are not alone. Almost one in four of us has trouble sleeping on a regular basis.

Much has been said about modern life eating into our sleep. In Victorian times, before the electric light bulb, adults generally slept 9-10 hours per night. Ancient Chinese texts describe the idea of the body being governed by a 24-hour clock, with each of the 12 main meridians responsible for a 2-hour segment of … Read more ...

Acupuncture and Later Pregnancy & Birth Preparation

Sacupuncture and pregnancyo you’re counting down the months (or even weeks or days) till you can meet the newest member of your family. This time should be all about nesting and preparing, but that’s hard to do if you are feeling exhausted by some of the conditions that can arise in late pregnancy. When these problems are severe, they can really detract from the experience of being pregnant. Issues that tend to flare up at this stage of the pregnancy include:

  • Swollen ankles, fingers and wrists (can lead to carpal tunnel syndrome)
  • Iron-deficiency anaemia
  • Indigestion, acid reflux
  • Varicose veins
  • Haemorrhoids
  • Back
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