SereniQi

Your appointment - What to expect

First appointment: 1- 1 and half hours

Follow up appointments: 30 minutes – 1 hour

The first appointment will take longer as a full consultation is taken. Yet the initial treatment may be smaller in order to assess how your body responds to treatment. Follow up appointments will take less time; an update will be taken and a full treatment carried out.

You will be asked about your current symptoms and health condition and a brief medical history will be taken. It is helpful to bring along a list of your medications if you are taking any. As TCM addresses the whole person, further questions will be asked about other aspects of your life such as sleep, digestion and emotions. Observations may be carried out to aid the diagnosis which may include taking your pulses on both wrists and a view of your tongue. If you are seeking treatment for a physical complaint or muscular injury a brief physical examination may be performed.

The practitioner will then discuss with you the next steps and suggest a course of treatment. You will have the opportunity to ask questions and to decide whether you want to proceed with treatment.

Treatment

For treatment you may be asked to lie on the couch or sit in a chair. Depending on the areas of the body to be treated, you may need to undress (keeping underwear on). Removal of clothing is usually minimal. You will be left to undress in private and given towels to cover your body. Ideally please wear loose fitting clothes that can be rolled up easily or shorts and a T-shirt.

Depending on the patient and condition being treated the needles may be left in for 20 - 30 minutes whilst you relax. The needles are then removed and the treatment is concluded.

What it feels like

The treatment itself involves inserting very fine needles in various parts of the body. These needles are sterile and single use only which are disposed of immediately after use. As they are very fine needles insertion is often painless. When needles are inserted, the patient may feel a tingling sensation or a dull ache. Most patients find the treatment a relaxing and pleasant experience. Treatment may also include massage, acupressure, seeds or magnets, cupping and warming the needles (moxibustion).

How many treatments and how often?

The amount and frequency of sessions required will vary depending on the patient and the condition they are seeking treatment for. Acupuncturists like to see some change by treatment three to five and sometimes significant improvements are seen by the first or second visit. Others may require more long-term care or may return for periodic maintenance treatments. As your acupuncturist I will discuss with you your individual needs. 

Is Acupuncture safe?

Acupuncture is safe and suitable for all ages and for a wide range of conditions. As an AAC member strict health and safety rules and codes of conduct are complied with. 

The needles used are always sterile, single use and disposed of immediately after treatment. We follow strict clinical waste guidelines enforced by the AAC and Environmental Health. As AAC acupuncturists we are trained to a high standard and comply with continued professional development and first aid training.

Two independent surveys published in the British Medical Journal in 2001 (MacPherson Et al. and White Et al. September 2001) concluded that the risk of serious adverse reactions to acupuncture is less than 1 in 10,000.

Side Effects

As acupuncture is a gentle treatment, adverse effects are rare. Sometimes responses to treatment can include tiredness or mild dizziness. On a rare occasion minor bruising may occur. These reactions are short lived if they are experienced.

Who can have treatment?

Acupuncture is a gentle treatment that can be used by most and at any age. If there are contraindications the practitioner will discuss these with you and if acupuncture is not suitable, other treatments will be offered or referral to another service.

Many seek acupuncture treatment for help with specific symptoms or pains. Whilst others may seek treatment because they feel generally unwell but have no obvious diagnosis. Some choose acupuncture to enhance their feeling of wellbeing and maintain good health balance.

If you are a blood donor

Please note that the National Blood Service does not accept blood donations from people who have received acupuncture in the last four months (unless treatment has been given within the NHS). Please visit National Blood Service website for more details. This is set to change soon.

Which health conditions may acupuncture help?

A wide range of health conditions are seen in clinic, some of which are given below:

•  Anxiety 
•  Arthritis (rheumatoid and osteoarthritis) 
•  Back and neck pain 
•  Breech presentation 
•  Cancer care 
•  Chronic pain 
•  Conception difficulties / infertility 
•  Depression 
•  Digestive issues 
•  Fibromyalgia 
•  Frozen shoulder 
•  General maintenance of health 
•  Hayfever / Allergic rhinitis
•  Headaches and Migraine
•  IBS / Constipation 
•  Insomnia 
•  Irregular periods 
•  Labour induction / Pain reduction
•  Low energy

•  M.E 
•  Menopause 
•  Musculoskeletal aches and strains
•  Pregnancy related ailments / discomforts 
•  Skin conditions / scarring
•  Sports injury and bruising 
•  Stress 

Please contact the clinic to see if treatment may benefit you.

What we do with your data

If you contact the clinic, I do not save your number or name on the clinic phone. Any messages and call log however will be on the phone for the purpose of communication regarding appointments or treatment.  Your email address may be stored on our devices. Both are password protected. Any email sent is deleted once actioned. Instagram and Facebook comments made by you on our page are in the public domain. If you have contacted us via Messenger, these messages are stored on our devices and password protected.

If you become a client and use our services, your contact details including address and medical data will be stored on my computer for the purpose of keeping accurate treatment records. These are secured by clinic software that has additional security and is password protected. The computer is also password protected.  These records are kept for 7 years in accordance with our Professional Guidelines. Please note that none of these details are disclosed to a third party without your consent. You have access to any written information we store about you at any time and you can request that we destroy any data we have relating to you at any time.