Press/News

EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique) - A very helpful Approach to Anxiety

How is your stress and anxiety level?  Have you ever found yourself in an intense and stressful situation only to discover that your stress has escalated into symptoms of anxiety or panic?  Do you have to face a difficult situation or person and you cant?  Have you always suffered with anxiety or are these symptoms new to you?

Butterflies in your stomach, tight chest, feeling you could cry at any minute, or maybe your heart is racing?...What may seem like a simple situation to some has become really challenging for you - we have seen grown men unable to face a simple task such as driving; people having to constantly take sick leave from work with stress; or students under-performing in their exams.

Among the heart palpitations and nausea, it's hard to gather your thoughts and keep your composure...you may even have difficulty concentrating.  Your confidence disappears because you just can't stop shaking and trembling; and often your sleep becomes disturbed or unrefreshing. 

Have you ever considered that your anxiety might actually be as a result of a disruption in your body's subtle energy system?  Disrupted energy can occur due to difficult emotions and anxiety - this is because we are feeling overwhelmed by the external and internal messages coming at us or how we are interpreting the situation in our mind.

This might be a new concept for you, but it's one that has been employed for 5,000 years in traditional Chinese medicine.  Unresolved emotions can and do affect health, for example, IBS or chronic back problems can be due to stress and tension.  One Medical Doctor suggests that a high percentage of ill health in the western world is emotional in its origin.

And one simple solution, Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT), can balance your energies and put you back in control, so you can eliminate your anxiety, enabling you to stay in control in stressful situations.  Gaining a useful set of tools to help yourself is essential in this day and age.

EFT :

• balances your energy system in a similar way to acupuncture, but instead of using needles, you tap with your finger on specific points;

• offers simple and effective tools for self help or for use with a health professional and is suitable for adults and children;

• provides both rapid relief and long-term benefits for Stress, Anxiety, Panic Attacks, Trauma, Phobias, Cravings, Overeating, Public Speaking, Confidence and many stress related problems - it often works where nothing else has!

Once you have learned the EFT process, you can apply it before or at the onset of an attack and, in most cases, it will quickly put you back in control, within minutes.  For some people, a few rounds of EFT not only rapidly dissipates a current attack but, in addition, it noticeably reduces or eliminates occurrences.

For others, however, such long-term results may require more in depth uses of EFT.  There may, for example, be deeper emotional causes such as anger, fear, guilt or trauma that require more sophisticated uses of EFT with a qualified practitioner at Marlborough House Therapy Centre, where we professionally assess your needs.

In addition to eliminating anxiety, EFT has been a consistently effective self help tool for many emotional ailments.  Please see our website www.mh-tc.com for the links to research papers on the uses of EFT in different situations and conditions.  We always recommend that you inform your GP of changes in your health or any new or persistent symptoms.

Please call us to discuss in more detail, or book in for a free 20 minute chat to get all the facts you need to see how we can be of help to you or your family.

IBS getting you down???

IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome) is a common gut disorder of no known cause. Symptoms are quite variable but usually include bouts of diarrhoea and or constipation, pain, bloating, nausea, headache, back pain, extreme tiredness etc.  It is really important to see your GP to make sure there is no underlying serious health problem, but we see many, many people who have had all the tests and are still suffering.

IBS begins to affect your life on many levels, both physically and emotionally - you begin to avoid going out or travelling any distance in case you ‘need the loo !’; avoid holidays, begin to dread going to work or out to restaurants.  You may begin to suffer panic attacks and extreme anxiety which can lead to bouts of depression.

This debilitating problem is one that people come wanting help with more than any other as it affects so many areas of life.  At Marlborough House, over the years we have been in practice, we have found that we have to look at several different areas in a person’s life to make a difference.  One of the first things we check is spinal alignment, especially if back pain is involved (we offer a FREE back check to everybody).  If this is part of the problem obviously this has to be corrected in order for the bowel to function properly; next we suggest an allergy test, not only to rule out any problem foods but also to check nutrition levels and gut bacteria.  We have found that if a person is very depleted and run down, a short course of acupuncture has made a huge difference in strengthening the digestive system and the body as a whole.

Stressful situations such as family, work, exams and previous abuse, have been proved to exacerbate IBS symptoms and people with anxious personalities find symptoms difficult to control.  The relationship between the mind, brain, nervous impulses and over-activity of internal organs such as the gut is complex.  We have found therapies such as EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique) really effective in controlling stressful situations, the great thing about this therapy is that it gives you tools to take home with you to use when you are feeling stressed, for some people Hypnotherapy has proven to be the best course.

So if your life is being spoiled by this distressing condition, please phone us to see if we can help - we are always willing to make time to chat to you in person at no cost and no obligation.  Alternatively, click on the following links to learn more about each of the treatments  acupuncture, osteopathy or allergy testing.

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Osteopathy - helping you to avoid pain

This is the time of the year when we are starting to venture back into the garden. Clearing vegetation may be satisfying on the one hand but may give rise to some unwelcome aches and pains on the other, especially in the low back.

You may be wondering why suffering with back pain is so common. There are many different reasons and usually it is an accumulation of stresses in the body which finally causes the symptoms. The problem can usually be traced to an accident or trauma which occurred many years previously. Often pushing a heavy wheel barrow or spending a long time bent over can aggravate an underlying problem. A case of the ‘straw that breaks the camel’s back’ is an analogy I often use. Sometimes the pain arrives some time after the injury because the body is very good at adapting to strains. However, as they accumulate, it may be something as small as tying a shoelace which can precede the onset of pain.

Some of the common types of trauma include bad postures or repetitive strains at work. Seating positions are very important as we now spend far longer sitting in front of the computer or TV. An osteopath can advise you how best to set up your chair and screen and how to prevent your trunk muscles getting lazy. Other traumas may be more direct such as falls, car accidents, dental trauma and childbirth.

Following some simple advice can help to prevent back pain.

1. When lifting, stand in front of the object, bend your knees, keep your lower back arched and keep the object close to your body.
2. When sitting do not slouch, push you back-side well into the seat, sit tall and support your back with a cushion if you need to.
3. Be sensible with physical exertion, build up gradually if you are unfit.
4.  If it hurts, Stop! Pain is there for a reason. Early warnings can help you to prevent the situation getting worse.
5. Gentle exercise such swimming or yoga can help to improve your strength and flexibility.
6. Seek osteopathic treatment if the pain does not ease. If you have other symptoms or feel unwell, consult your doctor.
7. Check with your osteopath after a painful episode to see if it is safe to return to normal activity.

Osteopathy is a gentle manual therapy which helps the body to function better by improving its mobility and giving pain relief. Osteopaths use a highly developed sense of touch to enable them to diagnose a problem and detect sites of trauma in the body. It also gives us information about the health of the body tissues. By using various manual techniques such as muscle release, gentle joint articulation and balance we can restore a degree of healthy functioning to the whole body.

Daniel Hayward and is a fully qualified and registered osteopath with over 16 years experience of treating pain and injury to all parts of the body. Daniel is a specialist in treating long-standing painful conditions including disc injuries, repetitive strain and  migraine. He also works with babies and children using a special very gentle technique known as cranial osteopathy.

Please contact us for a friendly, no obligation discussion of your concerns or to book your free back check.

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Hayfever, Sinusitis and Rhinitis

Hayfever, medically known as Seasonal Allergic Rhinitis, rarely causes a fever, and is not due to hay!  What it does cause however, is itchy eyes, runny nose and frequent sneezing.  There may also be facial pain, itching ears and soft palate irritation.  So what is the link between Hayfever, Sinitis and Rhinitis?  The link is the anatomy – the structures of the ears, nose and throat, and the sinus cavities that lie behind our faces.

Sinus cavities - there are more of them and they are probably larger than you may think.  There are frontal sinuses behind our forehead, ethmoid (small nasal bone) sinuses deep behind either side of the nose, maxillary ones behind each cheek bone and finally the sphenoid sinus – almost in behind the eyes.  When working well, these spaces within the bones of the face are lined with healthy membranes that produce mucous which moistens and warms the air we breathe whilst trapping dust and tiny particles.  The sinuses also make the bones of our face lighter, more resilient to impact and create resonance chambers for our voice when we speak.

The ears, nose and throat (ENT), which are all connected.  The ears connect to the throat by the eustation tubes, and the back of the nose joins the part of the throat called the pharynx.  Like the sinuses, all of these structures, and the conjunctive lining of the eyes, are lined with the same continuous mucous membrane.

What happens to cause the inter-connected web of membrane to become so unstable?  Embedded in the lining layers are anti-bodies called ‘mast cells’.  These are part of our immune system and usually work to protect us against infection.  In some cases, however, the mast cells over-react to something such as pollen causing an ‘allergic’ reaction and a cascade of symptoms.  The sensitised mast cells release chemicals including histamine which makes tiny blood vessels swell and redden, nerve endings become irritable causing itching and mild pain, and the mucous membrane secretes watery fluid.  The nose, trying to help clear the offending particles, starts sneezing!

The diagnoses of theses symptoms then is usually based on why, how often, and where in the face you get them.  Sinusitis is more in the face, however, rhinitis is more in the nose.  Allergic rhinitis can be perennial (all year-round) or seasonal - the latter is usually due to pollen :

March, April & May = Tree Pollen
June   = Grass Pollen
August & September = Potato & Wheat
Autumn   = Leaf Moulds

Perennial rhinitis is usually due to house mites, and finally idiopathic/chronic rhinitis can be attributable to stress, chemicals, hormones or temperature changes.

What can be done to help?  Medically, anti-histamines and decongestants may help.  Our allergy therapist and homeopath achieve great results using desensitising remedies making your system less reactive.  Acupuncture is also very effective in relieving these problems.  As an osteopath specialising in the mechanics of the face, the ENT structures and upper respiratory tract, I would be looking primarily at the ability of the anatomy to drain the sinus cavities, to clear the congested mucous, calm the nerve irritation and improve the blood supply.

I do this by applying very gentle finger pressures over the face, working on the specific sinus, then to the top and back of the head to check muscle tensions and neck alignments, and finally to the sides of the neck and throat to check lymphatic drainage.

The treatment is gentle and relaxing and whilst not claiming to cure any of these problems, it may be able to relieve some of the symptoms.  Click here for more information on Craniosacral Therapy or Osteopathy.  For an appointment, simply contact us

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Hypnotherapy - Stage Tricks or Self Help?

Although hypnotherapy is not a cure for everything, its benefits are well documented in medical journals.  So what is it?  Simply put, hypnosis involves learning to relax, and anybody can help themselves by doing that.  The skill is in the Hypnotherapist understanding the unique issues of the client and helping them achieve results quickly and effectively.  The key is in getting people to relax, learn and gain a new perspective on a problem that they have been stuck with.  This requires expertise from the therapist and cooperation from the client.  Like learning anything new, it requires a bit of practice and then people can do it for themselves.

Hypnosis, or trance states have been used by ancient civilisations for many reasons with Hieroglyphic evidence being found in the Tomb of Isis.  The term Hypnosis was first used by Dr James Braid, a Scottish Doctor in the Early Nineteenth century.  James Esdaile, a surgeon in 1850, performed many operations using only hypnosis as an anaesthetic.  A Spanish surgeon has been replicating that work in the present day.

Hypnosis has received a bad name from people using it to perform stage tricks as well as a general lack of information as to how it really works.  Some people express a fear of losing control or of being made to do things they did not want to, or that it would open a can of worms.  The simple fact is that people naturally go in and out of a trance state many times per day as part of cyclical rhythm.  To put this very simply, we have a conscious mind and what is called an unconscious mind and we have our feelings.  The conscious and the unconscious are active and we fluctuate between the two - whilst we are awake, we are influenced by ‘both brains’ as it were.  If we are having psychological problems to do with past upset or trauma, then it’s the unconscious mind that needs to have a ‘’software update’’.  Communicating with the unconscious mind and updating it, is done simply with deep relaxation or trance, and helping the person to overcome the issues causing the problem.

Why Hypnotherapy?
It is a very safe form of therapy that helps the person overcome their problems rather than sedate themselves with medicines or alcohol.  We hypnotise ourselves on a daily basis so why not make sure that you are giving yourself helpful messages?  A client once said that she had been told that all her problems were in her mind - interestingly our attitude to our life and problems will make or break us.  A famous hypnotherapist, Milton Erikson, stated that when a client comes to us with a problem, it is because they are out of rapport with themselves.

What can Hypnotherapy be used for?
People have found benefits in all sorts of stress situations or ill health.  We have helped people suffering in many different ways.  Clients have reported improvements in weight problems, fear of flying and public speaking as well as pain control, confidence issues, performance enhancement, depression and digestive problems, panic attacks, anxieties and insomnia.

Nabeeh Marar has over 20 years experience of helping people overcome their problems.  Please contact us for a free no-obligation friendly chat.

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