There are a number of commonly asked questions about acupuncture, which I’ve answered below. If you have any other questions you can get in touch with here.
Evidence of acupuncture’s effectiveness is growing and researchers are finding new ways of measuring the body’s responses. To date the main focus of research has been on pain management. You can read more about the latest acupuncture research at
https://acupuncture.org.uk/about-acupuncture/acupuncture-research/evidence-a-z/
Definitive surveys in the UK and Germany concluded that when practiced by a properly trained qualified traditional acupuncturist such as BAcC members, the risk of serious adverse events from acupuncture is extremely low.
Sometimes a small bruise may appear when a needle is removed. Occasionally, people can feel dizzy or tired for a brief time after treatment
It is generally recommended that people wear loose comfortable clothing. This will help you to be relaxed during the treatment and allows easier access to many of the acupuncture points.
You do not need to do anything special before having acupuncture. However, it is best not to be hungry or thirsty so please make sure you have had something before you go.
If you take a number of different medications sometimes it is helpful to write these down so that you can let your acupuncturist know.
A lot of people seek acupuncture to help relieve specific conditions, especially pain conditions such as tension headaches, migraines, neck or back pain, osteoarthritis of the knee and temporomandibular joint pain. Clinical trials have shown that acupuncture does relieve these symptoms, at least in the short term. For some painful conditions the benefits have been shown to last at least a year.
Whatever your particular problem, because treatment is designed to affect your whole body and not just your symptoms, you may notice other niggling complaints also get better with a course of treatment. Indeed, some people choose acupuncture when they feel their bodily functions are out of balance, but they have no obvious diagnosis. Once tried, many people have regular or ‘top-up’ treatments because they find it so beneficial and relaxing. For some conditions, such as migraine, acupuncture can be given to prevent flare-ups from occurring. Another benefit of acupuncture is that it can be given alongside other therapies and/ or medication, in almost all circumstances.
Acupuncture treatments are available in South East London at Blackheath or near Liverpool Street.