What happens in an Acupuncture & Chinese Medicine Consultation with me
There is a high degree of adaptability in my work, so no two appointments look exactly the same. But this is the basic framework for a peek inside what it looks like to work with me.
Here’s an overview of a typical appointment with me.
You'll fill out a form to explain how I can best support you.
This will be a snapshot of your goals, as well as things like any terminology you want to use or avoid.
This allows you to provide me with clarity around your priorities in your own words. It also allows me to provide you with a greater sense of comfort.
I’ll refer back to these priorities and goals to check our progress over time.
I’ll welcome you into my space, and we’ll talk about why you are coming in in detail.
We’ll sit together and begin to unpack exactly what you’re feeling.
When it started. What kinds of things make it better, and worse. What any central symptoms feel like, and anything else that co-occurs.
This can sometimes involve putting pieces together through pattern recognition that you might not have been aware of before.
I understand that some of these topics (chronic gynae pain, infertility, mood changes, motherhood challenges… all of them really) can be delicate.
It’s always my intention to provide respectful, spacious and safe place for you to speak about your experiences.
We’ll fill in the whole picture around it.
We’ll explore all aspects of your health. Energy, appetite, digestion, bowel function, sleep, mood patterns, menstrual cycle (gosh do our cycles tell us a lot if we know what we’re looking for), any pain, body temperature changes etc.
We pull apart these things because what feels ‘normal’ for you can often be clinically relevant.
For example, you might come in for period pain, but also have very cold hands and feet. To you, the cold hands and feet is just your ‘normal’ but to me it’s part of a whole picture about circulation.
Having no appetite until lunchtime might feel ‘normal’ for you because it’s been that way for a long time. Having a slow bowel transit might feel ‘normal’ for you. But it’s all important.
That is to say: things that might not seem interesting to you, become relevant here.
I’ll feel your pulse at your wrist.
In Classical Chinese Medicine, when we feel the pulse we are feeling so much more than beats per minute.
This means I’ll feel your pulse for quite some time. There’s no need to be alarmed! I promise you’re fine!
There’s a lot of information available through pulse diagnosis. This is a major component of Classical Chinese Medicine diagnosis - we invest years into training our fingertips to interpret the pulse picture. So it’ll probably look like I’m concentrating. Very specific information is gained - certain pulses and combinations indicate particular treatment and herbal strategies.
We’ll open up a discussion.
I’ll pass on some education around why things may be happening, what things may be linked, how we can foster change.
I’ll build your awareness of influencing factors.
I’ll give you some useful frameworks to understand what’s happening. I love me something like a traffic jam / garden hose / cooking pot or similar analogy at this point to help you see things clearly.
We’ll discuss what would be interesting to keep an eye on between now and our next visit.
Sometimes (especially our first appointment) more of the time will be invested in the consultation and discussion pieces. Other sessions will be less conversational and more focused on combining different treatment methods into one session.
If you’re comfortable, we’ll shift to the treatment table for abdominal palpation.
There is information about our bodies in all sorts of places.
Abdominal palpation involves me putting my hands on your belly. I’ll do a series of palpation techniques and see how it feels and responds. I’m looking for things like temperature changes, pulsations, knots, discomfort.
Abdominal palpation is very gentle. Your comfort and sense of safety is always prioritised.
I like to think of pulse diagnosis and abdominal diagnosis as being similar to going to a GP and getting a blood test and an ultrasound. Two things that provide different pieces of information about the internal workings of the same body through different means.
We’ll talk about herbs.
If I think herbs would be advantageous, we’ll discuss what that means: what they taste like, how to take them, how often, the benefits and the focus of herbal treatment, the cost, the synergy of using herbs and pins together.
This is a two way conversation and your questions and curiosities are always welcome. We co-design this treatment plan together.
We’ll do some acupuncture.
It’s okay if you’ve never had acupuncture before, or you feel nervous. Always let me know how you’re feeling.
Acupuncture pins are the same thickness as a strand of hair. Because they’re so tiny the experience is very different from what you might be expecting!
If you’re hesitant, we take it at your comfort level. There’s no rush. This might mean two pins, and then after 10 mins, adding another two. It’s all completely guided by your sense of safety - your autonomy is the most important thing.
For acupuncture we’ll need shoes and socks off. If your pants wont comfortably fold up to the knee (without restriction) we might swap them for covering you with a towel.
On average I use 4-8 needles per treatment. This is a relatively small number. It’s important to me to focus on the most important and deepest changes we can create.
Most acupuncture treatments will be lying on your back / facing upwards. In late pregnancy it’s more side lying.
Most points I use are on the arms and legs. Some are on the belly and the face.
Acupuncture is interesting in that the best point for premenstrual migraines is on your feet. The best point for nausea is at your wrist. Lots of period pain points are on the inside of the lower leg. So coming for acupuncture for period pain or fertility support doesn’t mean a whole lower abdomen full of pins.
Any parts of the body can be avoided if for some reason it’s not right for you.
Lots of people I’ve worked with have described the process of having their pulse taken, their abdomen palpated and acupuncture from me as like watching me tuning an instrument. Careful active listening to the instrument, noticing small things and then using therapeutic tools to recalibrate. And I love that reflection because that’s exactly what it feels like to me too.
Once the pins are in, we’ll get you warm and comfy.
This can include: heat packs on your feet, a heat lamp over your abdomen, blankets. You should feel snuggly and completely relaxed. There is also an eye pillow to help focus inward.
I’ll pop on some music or give you some headphones so the outside world disappears and you can focus on restoring.
I will leave the room while your pins are in for around to 20mins.
I’ll pop out if you’re comfortable with it - and only if you’re comfortable with it.
I can also come back half way through to check in and make sure you are comfortable and feeling supported.
There are all sorts of accomodations we can make according to your needs.
Unlike most Acupuncturists, where it is common practice to treat multiple people at the same time, you have me all to yourself for the time we have together.
This allows me to provide a depth of care that aligns with my values. And to really spent time bringing in all the other facets of my practitioner skills into the consultation.
Care with me is always designed to be transformational - not transactional - meaning the value grows over time, rather than dissipating. The best feedback I get from people I’ve treated a decade ago isn’t necessarily around the acupuncture I gave them, but the fresh perspective and knowledge I imparted to them that follows them through their life long after our time together.
While I’m out of the room, I’ll make up your herbs.
If we’ve decided herbs will be useful, I’ll be at my herb cupboard making the magic happen.
I’ll also be using the time to continue to reflect on your care, and ways we can best support and optimise your experience.
I’ll come back into the room.
I’ll take the eye pillow, headphones, pins, all the blankets and heat packs off again. You can slowly hop off the table and back into your chair. This is always the hardest part - removing all the cosy - so we’ll let you adjust slowly back to the world. There’s usually lots of yawning.
We’ll discuss the essentials.
Chances are, you’ll be in the post pin relaxation mode - meaning it’s not a great time to take in too much more new information.
We’ll focus on the most important things: discussing how to take your herbs (if prescribed) and how often to come in.
I do a bit of a capacity assessment at this point to decide how much more to share. Some people are hungry for details about what’s in their herbs, the design of the formula from 2,000 years ago, it’s original use in those days, want to know more about the acupuncture they’ve just experienced, share what they felt during the treatment.
For other people, they feel cosy - their mind is at ease and they need white space and time rather than any more information and engagement.
Either is fine.
I’ll have written out some notes about things we’ve discussed. Things like:
foods to include / avoid
realistic lifestyle accomodations to work towards
resources to explore
relevant tools, skills, frameworks, mindsets
acupressure points
any recommended referrals
You will leave with clarity around:
what’s happening from my perspective
what we are working on
how we are working on it
our goals, expectations and what to look for
when to come in next / how often to come in
what you can do between treatments to support yourself and positively influence your circumstances
I’ll encourage you to be aware of changes between treatments. To jot any questions or info you might want to share in your phone notes for our next appointment.
I’ll send you to reception to schedule your next appointment and pay, and then send you back out into the world.