Background and Training
My interest in healing and personal integration began in the mid-1970s when I
was working as a probation officer and developing my counselling skills; I
became interested in the more body-centred ways of working with people's
emotional difficulties (e.g. bioenergetics, primal integration and Reich's
theories of character armouring), and soon began to see connections between this
work and the Chinese doctrines of Yin-Yang and the Five Elements. From this I
went on to do a 300-hour course in Shiatsu massage and related disciplines, at
the East-West centre in London in 1981.
The training which most deeply influenced me was the 3-year, 800-hour course in
Five Element Acupuncture taught by the late Professor JR Worsley and colleagues
at Leamington Spa. In this system the unity of mind, body and spirit forms the
basis of all treatment.
I opened my York acupuncture practice in 1988 and my Darlington one in 1991.
From 1990-2005 I took part in 400 hours of classes with John and Angela Hicks,
joint principals of the College of Integrated Chinese Medicine in Reading and
perhaps the most highly regarded teachers in the UK today. I continue to work
with them regularly.
Other teachers who have influenced me strongly are Giovanni Maciocia, Bob Flaws,
and Kiiko Matsumoto. All in all I have completed over 1000 hours of postgraduate
training.
Since the year 2000, after completing one year of training with John Hicks I
have been prescribing from a range of about one hundred Chinese Herbal Formulae.
My herbal suppliers meet the most stringent international standards of quality
control, and many of my patients have benefited from their products. Many others
I treat with acupuncture alone.
Qualifications
Oxford University
MA (Philosophy, Politics & Economics)
College of Traditional Acupuncture
Licentiate
College of Integrated Chinese Medicine
Certificate in Traditional Chinese Medicine
Certificate in Clinical Acupuncture
Certificate in Chinese Herbal Patents
British Acupuncture Council
Member
Professional Standards
The leading professional body in the UK is the British Acupuncture Council; I
have been a member since its foundation and am bound by its Code of Ethics. I
follow approved hygiene procedures and use only single-use pre-sterilised
disposable needles. The B.Ac.C arranges insurance for all its members. |
