Does acupuncture hurt?
No, it doesn’t hurt. In acupuncture we use tiny thin disposable needles that you often don’t even feel when they are placed on the acupuncture points. Most of the time you can feel a tingling sensation or sometimes you feel the energy flow but I can honestly say I never hear people say “Ouch!”
Due to health and safety regulations we only use disposable needles.
What can be treated with acupuncture ?
The complaints that can be treated with acupuncture are:
Heartdisease (only after you have been to see you GP or cardiologist, acupuncture can help release stress and lessen psychological problems or even depression after heart attack for example), palpitations, hypertension.
Headaches (tension type headache, migraine, peri menstrual) ,dizziness,
Respiratory problems ( astma, hyperventilation) hayfever, skinproblems (itch, eczema, acne).
Digestive disorders( irritable bowell syndrome, acid reflux, nausea, constipation, diarrhoea) .
Insomnia , jointproblems (pain relief for reumathoid arthritis), muscular pains (neck-/shoulderpain, muscles spasm or cramps, fibromyalgia), burnout ,fatigue, stress, depression, anxiety, addiction, gynaecological disorders, fertilityproblems, weigh tloss, treatments to help you quit smoking etc.
During pregnancy acupuncture is used alot to help women with hyperemesis gravidarum/ severe nausea, insomnia, depression, skin problems, digestive problems, muscle or joint pains, malposition of the fetus etc.
The World Health Organisation has a list of ilnesses/complaints scientifically proven to benefit from acupuncture.
Does acupuncture really work or do I need to believe in it?
Alot of scientific research has been done in acupuncture for it to safely state : it works well for several complaints.
You don’t need to believe in acupuncture for it to work. To give you one example: both babies and animals are often succesfully treated by acupuncture to prove that placebo probably isn’t the thing that makes acupuncture work.
I also think it would not have lasted the thousands of years if it wasn’t working.
Do I need a referral from my doctor?
No you don’t need a doctor’s referral. You can just make an appointment for acupuncture treatments yourself. But it is a good idea to consult your doctor before you start acupuncture treatments.
How many acupuncture treatments will I need?
It depends on the duration and severity of your complaint. Chronic ilness will usually also need a longer treatment time that an acute complaint.
In the beginning you wil probably have weekly treatments but after a few weeks your pain ,for example, will be less and so will the frequency of treatments. After about 6 treatments we will evaluate your treatment and see how many you need.