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Posture at work. The Alexander Technique helps alleviate chronic and recurring pain caused by posture, stress and tension and this has been confirmed by numerous medical research trials. What first appears to be lazy or stiff posture may in fact a problem of muscular coordination, a lack of teamwork in the body. Some muscles are overworking whilst others are under working. This can lead to poor body mechanics and pain. This may show itself in postural problems such as scolios

By kind permission of Sue Merry, Alexander Technique’ By kind permission of Sue Merry, Alexander Technique’ What does the Alexander Technique help? It helps alleviate aches and pains from horse riding It improves your riding by cultivating the attributes seen in top riders as follows: It reduces excessive tension in the rider It encourages the rider’s head, neck and back to work together to produce a secure seat and good position It helps aids appear almost invisible It encou

The Alexander Technique: Musician’s Method for improvement By kind permission of Lori Schiff, Juilliard School, New York Brilliant and Comfortable Bass Playing by Peter Buckoke. By kind permission of Peter Buckoke, Professor of Double Bass, Royal College of Music’ The Alexander Technique has a long history of helping instrumentalists and singers to perform with less strain/stress and likelihood of injury. Musicians carry out some of the most complex and demanding physical mo

NICE, the advisory body to the NHS, guidelines 2017 (1.7.4) recommend: Consider the Alexander Technique for people with Parkinson's Disease who are experiencing balance or motor function problems.

In 2008, a Randomised Controlled Trial of 579 NHS patients suffering Low Back Pain was published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) – Randomised controlled trial of Alexander technique lessons, exercise, and massage (ATEAM) for chronic and recurrent back pain. It showed the Alexander Technique achieved an 86% reduction in pain compared to standard GP care. What Doctors Say 97% of people with back pain could benefit by learning the Alexander Technique – it is only a very sma

Chronic pain affects millions of people, often leaving them reliant on painkillers or facing limited options after physiotherapy has failed to bring relief. Acupuncture offers a gentle, drug-free alternative that works with the body’s own healing mechanisms rather than against them. By inserting fine needles at specific points along the body’s meridians, acupuncture helps release blocked energy, or qi, restoring balance and reducing inflammation. This traditional Chinese ther

In 2020, it was estimated that 145,000 people in the UK live with a Parkinson’s Disease diagnosis. Parkinson’s disease is a degenerative disease, mainly affecting people of retirement age, for which there is no known cure and so it is a question of how best to manage the condition. It occurs when there is a loss of the majority of cells in part of the brain called the substantia nigra which produce a chemical called dopamine. Dopamine acts as a messenger between the parts of

Back pain is one of the commonest conditions in western society and little has been found to substantially help patients with chronic or recurrent back pain in the long term. A research trial, funded by the Medical Research Council, was conducted to look into this. It took 579 patients who had previously contacted their GP for help with chronic back pain and divided them into groups receiving GP care, therapeutic massage or Alexander Technique. In 2008 the British Medical Jou

Knee osteoarthritis, has been estimated to affect over 12.5% of the UK population. (This blog focusses on osteoarthritis and not the much less common condition of rheumatoid arthritis which is a separate condition ) Osteoarthritis of the knee is generally viewed as a degenerative disease of the bony surfaces of the knee and the articulated cartilage and the OA related pain is a direct result of this destructive process. NHS Physiotherapy typically conservatively treats knee o

The stresses of modern life can deeply affect a woman’s health. A woman’s wellbeing is naturally linked to her menstrual cycle and hormonal changes at different stages of her life. Ideally menstruation should be regular, moderate and painless, and transitions like the menopause should be a steady, gradual passage into a new stage of life, rather than distressing and debilitating. Acupuncture aims to treat the whole person, restore balance and can be effective for a wide range

Acid reflux/ heartburn / GERD is extremely common affecting up to 1 in 4 adults in the UK . It is a discomfort, often a ‘burning’ sensation, in the chest that occurs after eating, lying down or bending over. Western medicine generally treats the disorder’s symptoms by acid suppression drugs with varying degrees of success. Those who come to my acupuncture clinics in Brentwood, Chelmsford and Leigh on sea are either not helped by the drugs or who dislike taking drugs or wish t

Ulcerative Colitis (UC) is a chronic inflammation of the large intestine with symptoms such as pain, diarrhoea/ frequent visits to the toilet, blood and mucus in the stools, tiredness and sometimes weight loss. Research in the Scandinavian Journal of Gastroenterology (2006 Sept:41(9):1056-63) on the treatment of Ulcerative Colitis patients with acupuncture found that not only did their colitis symptoms significantly improve, but they experienced significant improvements in ge

For cancer survivors, cancer treatment such as chemotherapy and radiotherapy etc can often cause pain and side effects that may last beyond the final treatment. These side effects may include pain, nausea, vomiting, hot flushes, fatigue, dry mouth, peripheral neuropathy etc. To manage the discomfort, many people turn to acupuncture. In the UK, Macmillan Cancer Support states on its website:‘Some studies show that acupuncture may help to reduce nausea in people who have had ch

In my acupuncture clinics in Brentwood, Chelmsford and Leigh on Sea, I’m often asked if Traditional Acupuncture can help with fertility problems. The answer is yes. Research is increasingly showing that It can be used to improve the chances of conceiving naturally or to boost the chances of IVF success. In the case of IVF, some acupuncturists recommend starting acupuncture 3 months before IVF to optimise the chances of success. The aim of acupuncture is to improve the balanc

This is a common question that I’m asked in my acupuncture clinics in Brentwood, Chelmsford and Leigh on Sea. According to the news agency Reuters ‘half of adults worldwide suffer from headache disorders such as migraines and tension headaches’ with migraine affecting ‘1 in 6 women and 1 in 12 men ‘ and yet headache disorders are ‘widely under-recognised, under-diagnosed snd under-treated.’ Migraine can be defined as a headache disorder with throbbing head pain, often one sid

In my acupuncture clinics in Brentwood, Chelmsford and Leigh on Sea, I often get asked what acupuncture can treat. Here’s an idea: Everyday digestive problems such as acid reflux, nausea, IBS, constipation, diarrhoea to more complex problems such as Ulcerative Colitis and Crohn’s disease. Headaches and migraines – NICE, the advisory body to the NHS recommends acupuncture as a treatment method. Mood disorders such as anxiety and depression. Musculoskeletal problems such a

The NHS lists the most common symptoms of Long Covid as being: Fatigue Feeling short of breath Memory and Concentration problems (brain fog) Heart Palpitations Dizziness Joint pain and Muscle aches. As Acupuncture has anecdotally shown encouraging results in the treatment of Long Covid, the Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Hospital, Surrey has carried out a trial of Acupuncture for the treatment of Long Covid / fatigue. Results are awaited but Dr Imogen Locke, a clinical oncologi