- Home
- Articles
Articles by Andrea Garratt
Plain answers, written by Andrea.
Guides to acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine in the Cotswolds: what treatment involves, what the evidence says, and when to see your GP first.
Start here · Patient guideAcupuncture in the Cotswolds: a patient’s guideWhat acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine involve, what UK regulators accept about the evidence, safety, cost and how to choose a practitioner.Read the guide The series
Six guides, one question at a time
Your first visitYour first acupuncture appointment: what to expectThe consultation, the needles, how it feels, how many sessions and what it costs.
Fertility & IVFAcupuncture alongside IVF in Cheltenham and the CotswoldsWhat the research shows, and how sessions fit around your clinic’s timetable.
MenopauseAcupuncture during perimenopause and menopauseHow it sits alongside HRT and your GP, and what treatment involves.
The menstrual cyclePeriod pain and irregular cycles: a Chinese medicine viewHow Chinese medicine reads the cycle, when to see your GP first, and a three-cycle tracking routine.
Herbal medicineSeeing a Chinese herbalist in the CotswoldsConsultations, regulation, safety checks, cost and online appointments.
HeadachesAcupuncture for migraine and tension headachesWhat NICE recommends, what a course looks like and how to keep a headache diary.Herb notes
Getting to know the herbs
Herb notesBai Shao, white peony rootOne of the oldest herbs in the Chinese materia medica, and one I use often in formulas for women.
Herb notesGui Zhi, cinnamon twigA warm, aromatic herb that opens the most famous formula in classical Chinese medicine.
Herb notesFu Shen, poria with pine rootA gentle, grounding herb that classical texts place among those that calm the spirit.
Every article is written by Andrea Garratt, a British Acupuncture Council member, checked against NHS and NICE guidance and UK advertising rules, and dated with when it was last reviewed. How these articles are written
Start with the whole picture.
Your first appointment gives Andrea time to understand what has been going on, your wider health history and what matters to you.