Treatments

A healthy body has an abundant supply of qi – or “life energy” – that flows through channels (called meridians) to all parts of the body to support physiological functions. Poor nutrition, stress, infection, exposure to cigarette smoke and other external factors can reduce levels of qi or block its flow. In this state the body quickly becomes imbalanced and more susceptible to disease or illness.

Acupuncture helps to restore optimal levels and flow of qi by stimulating specific points, termed acu-points, along the meridians. By clearing energy blockages and promoting an increased supply of qi, acupunture treatments promote healing and return the body to a state of harmony and well-being. Acupuncture provides the added benefit that, once order is restored, the body is better able to protect itself and maintain balance.

In our clinic, an acupuncture treatment involves the insertion of fine, sterile needles or the application of a needle-free electric stimulus directed onto the acu-points. Chinese massage, moxibustion and cupping are also used to stimulate the flow of qi.

Chinese massage is an excellent remedial therapy that uses different hand techniques and soft-tissue manipulation in order to relax muscle and relieve pain. Our clinic mostly uses massage to complement an acupuncture treatment. Tui Na is used to correct the problems the patient may experience such as musculoskeletal conditions, diseases and also minor and major headaches. At the clinic we also can provide therapeutic and lymphatic drainage massage as well as Shiatsu. The staff at the centre have many years experience in the various massage techniques we use at the centre and can discuss what the best method is for you circumstances.

We have more than 500 kinds of Chinese herbal medicine in our clinic, which including pills, Raw herbs and concentrated powders.

Chinese herbs have been used for medicinal purposes for thousands of years. Today it is widely accepted as a natural and holistic therapy that can be used  to treat a broad range of health problems.

Your practitioner can choose from hundreds of herbs that each have unique healing qualities when prescribing a formula based on your individual symptoms of disease. Some herbs are commonly recognised as foods, such as ginger, mint and mandarin. Others, such as poria (a tree fungus), cornus fruit and rehmannia root may be less familiar to you.

Your formula may contain only a single herb or include a selection of herbs that are known to act more effectively when combined together. This formula may be modified as your treatment progresses to better respond to improvements or changes in your symptoms.

Moxibustion is the practice of burning a herb on or close to the body in order to generate specific therapeutic effects. The herb that is used is Artemesia Vulgaris, commonly known as Mugwort. The leaves of the mugwort plant are dried and refined to remove the rough stems and the resulting compound, which is known as moxa or moxa punk, has a soft and fluffy consistency which is readily moulded and burns smoothly.

The fundamental principle involved in moxibustion is the promotion of blood circulation. This increase in blood flow automatically enhances the vitality of the local tissues because the blood brings more nourishment and oxygen to the cells, eliminates more carbon dioxide (and therefore disperses the acidity of the local tissues) and brings more of the immune defending cells such as phagocytes and lymphocytes to the area. So just as with acupuncture, the application of moxibustion has an immune enhancing effect; the body responds to the stimulus by increasing the vitality of the local tissues. This simple, local principle is further enhanced by the ability of moxibustion to effect not only distal areas but also specific functional systems of the body, in other words the organ systems and the channels of Chinese Medicine.

This is a method that takes its origins from ancient China. Glass or plastic cups are used to create a vacuum inside of the cup which is then placed on the skin. The action of the vacuum is to increase blood flow which can then help in the treatment.

Cupping therapy is something which is used to access the meridians of the body. A meridian is a path though which the “qi” or life-energy flows according to traditional Chinese medicine. There are five meridians in the back which when opened as a result of cupping allow invigorating energy to travel the entire length of the body.