Liz Shaw Acupuncture

Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is not magical thinking. It uses its own theoretical framework with which to view the human body producing a complete medical system encompassing the mind, body and external environment.

Taijitu symbolises balance - opposites transform into each other and both occur within each other, one cannot exist without the other. TCM is based around the yin yang concept. Illness is recognised as the body being out of balance.

The body's energy flows around the body in 14 major channels along which there are 670 points which stimulate change. Each point affects the energy in a specific way. TCM uses the understanding of these points’ actions to stimulate balance in an unbalanced body, and thus promotes health.

Points can be stimulated using finger pressure, fine needles, moxabustion (burning herbs), cupping (suction cups) and electro acupuncture - low voltage applied through needles (similar to TENS). Treatment method depends upon the condition being treated. TCM theory has been continuously used and refined for at least 3,000 years in China. In modern China TCM is taught alongside western medicine and both systems are respected and used within China's healthcare system.

In the West it is only since the 1970s that acupuncture and its effectiveness has been seriously studied. As the body of clinical evidence increases, so too does the recognition of acupuncture and its benefits. Clinical research shows that acupuncture can affect most of the body's systems - the nervous system, muscle tone, hormone outputs, circulation, antibody production and allergic responses, as well as the respiratory, digestive, urinary, and reproductive systems.

Treatment is generally once a week to begin with, expanding as the condition responds. The number of sessions varies depending on the condition being treated, please contact Liz for more information.