Our valued acupuncture service for the Sheffield & Hope community

At Activ, our physios have specialist training in acupuncture. Acupuncture is a safe, evidence-based treatment used by many modern physiotherapists today to further the benefits of your treatment.

Very fine needles (much thinner than injection needles) are inserted through your skin at specific points around the body to stimulate the body’s own healing chemicals and provide relief from pain and inflammation.

The method we use is based on both Western and Traditional Chinese Medicine approaches, the latter of which has been successfully practiced across China since 1000BC.

How Acupuncture works

Acupuncture triggers the release of natural pain-relieving chemicals called neurotransmitters that make up the body’s own pain management response. These chemicals are released from nerve cells in response to certain stimulus, and include endorphins, norepinephrine and serotonin amongst others.

Acupuncture is used together with manual therapy and exercises at Activ Physiotherapy.

How Acupuncture is performed

  • Your physiotherapist shall assess the cause of your problem and discuss with you whether acupuncture can aid your treatment.

  • Lying in a comfortable position, single use, sterilised needles of various lengths and widths will be placed into your skin at specific points based on your condition.

  • You may feel a tingling sensation as they are inserted into your skin but it should not be painful.

  • The physio assesses the best places to place the needles with treatment lasting from 5 minutes to 30 minutes depending on the problem being treated.

  • Throughout treatment, your physio might stimulate the needles with a little twist. You may also have some manual therapy before or after your acupuncture session.

How Acupuncture is performed at Active Physiotherapy

Conditions helped by Acupuncture

We treat a range of conditions with acupuncture at Activ Physiotherapy
 
 

  • Arthritis

  • Back pain

  • Chronic pain

  • Hip pain

  • Knee pain

  • Migraines

  • Muscle pain

  • Neck pain

  • Shoulder pain

  • Tennis/Golfer’s elbow

 Cupping therapy

 

  • At Activ physiotherapy we use a treatment technique that derives from ancient Chinese medicine called ‘cupping therapy’.

  • Cupping therapy or simply ‘cupping’, is the practice of using sealed ‘cup’ vessels using a suction force to your skin. This aims to loosen, stretch and lift the targeted tight and/or painful muscle tissues.

  • The suction causes the skin and superficial muscle layer to be lightly drawn into the cup; separating that tissue, from deeper layers of tissue to which unwanted/undesirable bonds may have formed.

  • First recorded in 3000 B.C, where it was also used by ancient Egyptians and recorded in the oldest medical text dated 1500 B.C.

  • Once the suction has occurred, it is also possible for the cups to be gently moved across your skin, to provide cupping massage.

Cupping therapy by trained physiotherapist, Sheffield & Derbyshire
 
Cupping therapy at physiotherapy clinics in Hope & Totley, Derbyshire

  • Cupping is much like the inverse of massage - rather than applying pressure to your muscles, it uses gentle pressure to pull them out/ upward.

  • Once suctioned, the cups can be also left in place for about five to ten minutes, the points being specifically chosen for their relevance to the site and spread of the issue.

  • Cupping Therapy when applied by a trained clinician is very safe, does not affect the skin or joints and there is no interaction with medication you may be taking. You may be left with red circles (Ecchymosis) after treatment, which is similar to any other skin suction mark and is not the same as a bruise. This should leave the skin within a short period of time.

  • If you are interested in trying cupping or would like to know more please contact the clinic.