I first encountered acupuncture 20 years ago through my martial arts training in Taijiquan and Seven Star Praying Mantis Kung Fu, which incorporate elements of health and energy cultivation, alongside teaching the fundamentals of Eastern philosophy and medicine.

After years of frustration with hay fever, I explored many complementary therapies and found acupuncture to be the most effective.

Having worked as a secondary school teacher, training to be an acupuncturist was a pipe dream, but I took the leap in 2014 and enrolled at the Northern College of Acupuncture, where I graduated with Distinction in 2017. Since graduating, I have furthered my development by training in the advanced methods of Dr Tan’s Balance Method Acupuncture and Master Tung’s distal needling style, specialising in particular in musculoskeletal pain conditions. I went on to study Tui Na (Chinese medical massage) at Xian Tian College under the tutelage of Rob Aspell.

I feel very honoured to now teach at the Northern College of Acupuncture, where I am module leader, lecturer and examiner for three of the main Chinese medicine theory modules on the acupuncture course.

In my quest to further my knowledge and understanding of Chinese medicine, I have recently completed a diploma course in Chinese herbal medicine with the Phoenix Academy. As of October 2021, I am pursuing this field of study further via the Northern College of Acupuncture’s MSc degree course in this subject. This will have an obvious impact upon my available clinic appointments for the duration of this course, but it will allow me to increase the ways I can help my patients.

I am a full member of the British Acupuncture Council and the Federation of Traditional Chinese Medicine Practitioners.