Acupuncture

Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) is over two thousand years old. It has developed into an integrated healing system that treats the whole person - body, mind and spirit. The five branches of TCM are: Qigong, herbal remedies, tuina massage, astrology and acupuncture. Acupuncture is the most widely know area of TCM that is practiced in the West.

The presence of illness is considered to be evidence of a disharmony in the body's vital Qi or energy. The method of diagnosing the pattern of disharmony takes into consideration a person's physical and mental health, lifestyle, diet and many other aspects of a persons life.

In an acupuncture treatment needles are inserted into the skin at specific points. These points have various functions from aiding sleep to relieving a headache. Acupuncture points are located on channels of energy called meridians. These twelve channels traverse the body and are generally associated with an organ i.e. heart, lung, kidney. The acupuncture points chosen depend upon what area of the body is being treated. Usually about 6-15 points are used in a treatment though hundreds of these points are know and used.