“OUR GOAL IS TO MEET YOU EXACTLY WHERE YOU ARE”

Acupuncture is considered to be a low-risk treatment, with the most common side effects reported being minor bruising. With this being said, it is important to remember that there are always risks associated with any form of treatment or intervention to the body. Rest assured that your practitioner at Ease Acupuncture is a fully qualified and registered practitioner. In Australia this means they have completed a four year bachelor degree and a minimum of 1,000 supervised clinical hours to ensure you are in the safest hands possible.

Yes. While it’s been practised successfully for thousands of years, medical research is now also providing evidence to demonstrate the positive effects of acupuncture for many conditions. Perhaps a better question to ask is: is acupuncture effective for every condition? The honest answer is not necessarily.

Like with any form of allied health treatment, every body responds differently. This may impact your own individual response to acupuncture, depending on your needs at the time. Acupuncture, like any medicine, is dose dependent. To feel the full benefits of your treatment, it is best to be guided by your practitioner as to how frequently you will require treatment to achieve your goals.

If you're unsure whether acupuncture is right for you, it is best to get in touch with us to discuss your symptoms.

There are a variety of different types of acupuncture, but the way we practice is very gentle, with sterile, single use needles. The needles are so fine that most patients report hardly feeling the needles at all when they pierce the skin. Some patients will experience a mild dull ache during treatment, a gentle pulling sensation, subtle warmth or tingling. While some people will experience none of these sensations, they are all very normal, but if you feel anything too strong or distracting, we encourage all patients to let us know. Generally speaking, most people are surprised by how relaxing the treatment is, which is something we pride ourselves on.

Many people have tried dry needling prior to trying acupuncture. It can be a great treatment in the right context, but the main difference is that it is more of an intense sensation than acupuncture, which is generally a lot gentler. Dry needling is only used for musculoskeletal conditions, whereas acupuncture can be used for a range of internal health conditions (ie. menstrual health, headaches, digestive health, sleep, etc) as well as aches and pains. Also, every acupuncture patient will receive entirely unique treatment, even if they come in describing the same issue as another patient, whereas dry needling will often have set treatment patterns.

In a word, no. Cupping is used to treat a variety of conditions and therefore it can be used in a variety of different ways, some of which are stronger or gentler than others.

When used to treat musculo-skeletal conditions cupping helps to draw apart the layers of muscle and fascia allowing fresh, oxygenated blood to flow, which can create a warm feeling for many patients. In some ways it can feel like a reverse massage, eg; a pulling sensation rather than pushing. Just like a massage, you can have a stronger or softer version. If your muscles are really tight, you will feel a sense of release once the cups come off, leaving you feeling looser and relieved.

While dark marks may be left on your skin from cupping, they don’t hurt like bruises do.

You don’t have to prepare anything specific before your first appointment, except having your health history and any medications you may be on. It’s good to come with an open mind and arrive 10 minutes early to fill out some introductory paperwork.

Most patients undergoing acupuncture will undress down to their underwear, but if this is not comfortable you are welcome to wear comfortable, loose-fitting clothing instead.

An initial consultation will last for between 60 and 90 minutes and will cover a lot of questions. Sometimes the questions may feel like they are unusual or unrelated but the purpose is to build up a holistic picture of your health, history and lifestyle. We may cover topics including sleep patterns, emotions,

menstrual cycle (for female patients), thirst/appetite, past medical history, bowel motions, and more, to form a Chinese Medicine diagnosis. Then we will follow our discussion with your first lot of treatment as part of your initial consultation.

A follow up appointment generally goes for 45 to 50 minutes and will consist of a check in to see how you’re progressing and then any adjustments required to the treatment.

Children’s appointments will generally start with a 30 to 45 minute initial consultation with 30-minute follow up appointments.

Every client that comes in gets a different treatment based on their individual Chinese Medicine diagnosis, even if they come in describing the same issue. This is one of the other things that makes acupuncture so unique. At Ease Acupuncture we pride ourselves on being gentle — both with our needling and our advice! We like to provide advice for the ideal approach and then let our patients make decisions about what parts of the advice they would like to action. In a ‘perfect world’ we will tell you what we think will be most effective, but in the ‘real world’ we encourage you to do what is realistic for you. You’re in complete control.

We try to be very practical and consider the desires of our patients with all our treatment recommendations. For some people, simply turning up to a treatment session is a deep enough commitment. If we think a change to your diet is relevant for your diagnosis and the goals you hope to achieve, we will make recommendations based on Chinese Medicine Dietary advice. We do often find, like anything, the more treatment areas you apply yourself to, the faster the results, but it’s entirely up to you what you commit to. And of course, if dietary changes are not relevant for your treatment, we won’t recommend them.

Felicity is an AHPRA registered practitioner. She studied a Bachelor in Health Science (Acupuncture), which is a four year degree that requires more than 1,000 clinical hours for completion. She also undertook additional training in fertility acupuncture and cosmetic acupuncture and is a Member of Australian Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine Association (AACMA).

Yes. All our treatments are claimable through your private health fund, depending on your level of cover. Check with your health cover to find out what is available to you.

Yes. As required by the registration bodies in Australia, Felicity is insured for Healthcare Practitioners Liabilities Insurance (Professional Indemnity Insurance). Assuringly, the cost of insurance for acupuncturists is rather low as treatment is recognised to have very few risks when practised in the hands of a licensed acupuncturist.