Five-Element Acupuncture is a holistic style of healing which aims to restore a person’s health by putting them back into balance. This ancient system of Chinese medicine (roughly 3,000 years old) does not treat people based on symptoms, but instead looks for the root cause of the problem. 

Acupuncture works by inserting very fine needles into specific points on the body to assist the flow of energy, known as Qi (Chi). Qi is universal energy, it flows within and around us all, an electromagnetic energy which we call our life force. Qi runs through our bodies via pathways/ channels called meridians (think of the way cars run along motorways). We need the energy pathways to be working in harmony together (no traffic jams!) to prevent disease. So, we use our needles along with the teachings that the ancient Chinese took from nature; The Five Elements (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal and Water), to restore balance and ensure they are doing just that! 

There is no one-size-fits-all approach with Five-Element Acupuncture. Every individual is unique, and so every individual responds differently to treatment.  Someone may find they have relatively quick results and only need to come for a short period, whereas others may take a bit longer. 

Restoring your health with acupuncture is not a quick fix option, but a route to restore one’s health and vitality for the long term. The aim is to get patients to a point where they don’t need such regular treatment, more a top-up for maintenance should they feel a need for it.

Your first appointment includes a comprehensive health consultation and your first treatment. This is an in-depth appointment where we talk about what has brought you in for treatment and go through your health as a whole. The initial appointment lasts roughly 2-3 hours and follow-up appointments should then last about an hour. Please note that these times are not set in stone and appointments can run over. As a practitioner the most important consideration for me is that each patient leaves the treatment in the best state of balance, so if this requires more time, we will allow for that. 

With Five-Element Acupuncture, needles are mainly inserted and then removed immediately. There are only a couple of treatments where needles are left in the body for a period of time. Very fine needles are inserted into the skin at a specific point on the body. Patients may experience a ‘warm rush’ or ‘dull ache’ sensation when needles are inserted which only lasts a number of seconds.

Patients should find treatment a time for them to relax, let the needles do the work and leave the session feeling more at ease and calm.