Claire Mills
The passion to look outside the box and create optimal treatment responses is what drove Claire to study Traditional Chinese Medicine. Claire has worked as an allied health professional for over 25 years and prides herself in the high quality health care she provides to her patients.
Claire has a Bachelor of Health Science: Acupuncture and a Bachelor of Science: Podiatry. Claire is a member of Sports Medicine Australia, an Australian Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine Association member and is registered with the Allied Health Practitioner Regulation Agency as a Chinese Medicine Practitioner and Podiatrist (www.ahpra.gov.au).
Claire strongly believes in working as a team with other health care practitioners to ensure the optimal chances for treatment success and is more than happy to discuss treatment with your other health practitioners.
Claire’s allied health background and Traditional Chinese Medicine training forms a strong knowledge base for the holistic treatment of many conditions, especially those of a musculoskeletal nature.
Areas of special interest:
- Musculoskeletal conditions: Claire enjoys the benefits that are gained in treating these conditions from both a western and traditional chinese medicine perspective.
- Emotional and psychological health: Disharmony in these aspects of ourselves is far too common and often feels out of our control. The ability of Traditional Chinese Medicine to work alone as well as in conjunction with western medicine (counselling, psychology, psychiatry and pharmaceuticals) to improve these aspects is remarkable.
- Womens health: Claire has a special interest in obtaining and maintaining the best possible physical, emotional and psychological wellbeing of women in all phases of life.
What is Traditional Chinese Medicine?
Traditional Chinese Medicine is a holistic system of primary health care that includes acupuncture, Chinese herbal medicine, massage, exercise therapy, and diet and lifestyle advice. Traditional Chinese Medicine views the mind, body and spirit/emotions as intimately connected and utilises this, the vast knowledge developed over thousands of years of clinical experience and modern clinical research to provide individually tailored treatment. Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioners look carefully for signs of health and dysfunction, paying particular attention not only to the presenting signs and symptoms, but also to medical history, general constitution, and the pulse and tongue.
Traditional Chinese Medicine developed from the philosophy that restoring balance or harmony within ourselves can treat presenting ailments as well as assist in disease prevention. Consequently treatments can not only target your presenting signs and symptoms, but also their underlying cause; while improving your other health problems and general state of health and wellbeing. Clinical decision making and patient management strategies are also influenced by contemporary Western approaches to health care, including infection control practices and known interactions of herbal medicines with pharmaceuticals and other therapeutic substances.
Acupuncture is a safe and effective form of health care when provided by a qualified practitioner.
When we are healthy there is an abundant supply of qi (life energy) that flows through meridians (a network of invisible channels in the body). If there is inadequate supply of qi or blockage of the flow of qi in the meridians the body fails to maintain harmony. This can be due to stress (emotional and physical), poor diet and/or lifestyle, overwork, disease pathogens, the environment and weather conditions. This imbalance can result in illness and disease.
Acupuncture treatment involves the insertion of fine, sterile needles into specific sites (acupuncture points) along the body's meridians to clear energy blockages and encourage the normal flow of qi through you. The practitioner may also stimulate the acupuncture points using other methods, including moxibustion, cupping, electrostimulation, gua sha and massage, in order to re-establish the flow of qi.
What is Chinese Herbal Medicine?
Most health conditions present with a core set of recognisable signs and symptoms, but the actual presentation of a particular condition will vary from person to person. Therefore people with similar health conditions may be provided with quite different Chinese herbal medicine prescriptions. A qualified practitioner is able to prescribe a Chinese herbal formula that specifically matches and treats your individual health problem. As your condition changes and improves with treatment, the Chinese herbal treatment is also adjusted and modified until the desired health outcome is achieved.
What substances are used in Chinese herbal medicine?
Some substances that were used traditionally are no longer part of modern professional Chinese herbal medicine practice. For example, substances with similar actions have replaced traditional remedies that were derived from endangered species. More than 450 substances are commonly used in Chinese herbal medicine, with most being of plant origin.
What conditions does Chinese herbal medicine treat?
Chinese herbal medicine provides effective treatment for a wide range of health disorders including:
- Insomnia and fatigue
- Loss of appetite and common digestive disorders
- Constipation and diarrhoea
- Irritable bowel syndrome
- Common cold and influenza
- Chronic headaches
- Skin disorders
- Fluid retention
- Anxiety, depression and stress
- Allergies
- Rheumatoid and osteoarthritis
- Premenstrual syndrome and painful menstruation
- Excessive menstruation
- Infertility
- Impotence and prostate disorders
- Disorders associated with menopause
Chinese herbal medicine can strengthen and enhance normal body functions to boost the immune system, maintain health, and promote a general sense of wellbeing while assisting in disease prevention.
- Acupuncture: manual and electro acupuncture
- Moxibustion
- Chinese herbal medicine
- Cupping
-
Dietary and Lifestyle advice
- Exercise prescription
Moxibustion
- Moxibustion is the burning of the herb mugwort or in the clinic smokeless moxa compounds to facilitate heating to stimulate the flow of qi and blood, nourish blood and maintain general health
- Moxibustion produces a pleasant heating sensation that penetrates deeply into the skin
- Moxibustion has successfully been used for many conditions; however its greatest documentation in western medicine is its effectiveness in turning breech babies
Cupping
- Cupping involves the application of plastic or glass cups to the skin with a vacuum created inside the cup to provide gentle suction. The stimulation of the skin and underlying muscles with cupping helps release muscular knots, tightness and contracture; release localised toxins; and encourages blood and lymph circulation
- There are two main types of cupping therapy:
-
- Sliding cupping where mild suction is used and cups are slid over lubricated skin.
- Static cupping where cups are applied with mild to strong suction and left in the localised area
-
- Many describe the sensation of cupping as deeply warming, softening and relaxing
- After cupping you may have some temporary discoloration of your skin ranging in colour from pink to purple. Since everyone’s condition and treatment response is unique to them the prominence of these marks is hard to predict. This discolouration is generally not painful and will fade in 2-10 days
Initial consultation (Approximately an hour) $130
Complex subsequent consultation (Approximately 50 minutes) $110
Standard subsequent consultation (Approximately 40 minutes) $95
Because of the individualised nature of the treatments provided at Synergy Acupuncture your consultation might take more or less time than above so as to obtain optimal treatment results.
The prescription and provision of any herbal medicine or other products is in addition to the consultation fee.
Payment:
Payment is required to be made at time of consultation with preferred payment being eftpos or credit card.
Most private health funds provide rebates for acupuncture treatments, but please feel free to check with your health fund prior to your consultation. TYRO facilities are available to allow you to claim your consultation rebate through your private health cover and only pay the gap on the day.
Cancellations:
A minimum of 24 hours notice is required for all cancellations. Naturally we understand that unforseen events do occur at times and so request that you please provide as much notice of cancellation as possible, otherwise a cancellation fee (up to the cost of treatment) may apply.
Reminder Calls:
At Synergy Acupuncture we provide a reminder call or SMS 2-3 days prior to your consultation.
