Acupuncture is applied by physiotherapists using a mixture of traditional Chinese acupuncture points, trigger points within muscles and manual therapy to relieve pain. It is a holistic approach to health based on over 2,000 years of development and refinement in the Far East. The tradition is as much about the maintenance of health as the management of disease. Western, or medical acupuncture is a more recent development practised predominantly by doctors and physiotherapists which uses acupuncture techniques within their existing scope of practice on the basis of a western medical diagnosis. In this context, it is generally used as a method of pain relief.
Western Acupuncture - Your physiotherapist will use a combination of techniques within the same treatment session. These may include:
The primary goal is to relieve pain, hence it is different to Traditional Chinese Acupuncture in this respect.
Traditional Chinese Acupuncture (TCA) - Your therapist will use only traditional acupuncture points to treat a vast range of conditions and illnesses, as well as being effective in pain relief. Specific techniques are applied to facilitate and balance the body's motivating energy, known as qi. For more information on TCA, just click here.
Everyone is different and so are your needs. Depending on your assessment, you may need just 2 or 3 sessions and for more long standing and complex problems you may need several treatments. Once you are pain-free, you should come for check-ups every 6 months/yearly to pick up problems early and make sure they stay away, just like you do with your dentist.
Your initial 45 minute Acupuncture assessment and treatment costs £47, and then regular 30 minute sessions cost £38.