PATIENT TESTIMONIALS

I first met Bruce while I was studying to become an acupuncturist at the London Institute of Five Element Acupuncture. He was inspirational as a teacher, but even more so when the school closed down suddenly after my group had just started our final clinical year. Bruce effectively put his life on hold for almost a year to make sure that we could all get the hours of clinically supervised practice needed to graduate and be eligible to apply for British acupuncture council registration. It was a completely selfless act of extreme generosity and kindness that we will all be forever grateful for.

As a practitioner he is equally dedicated to his patients, as well as being extremely skilled. I came to five element acupuncture after suffering over a decade of clinical depression. My first treatment was utterly profound and I have not experienced depression since, I can't imagine ever going back there.

I had a wonderful pregnancy with my first son, but after we moved out of London I found it more difficult to have regular treatment and had a gap of two years - in this time I suffered from recurrent miscarriage, I came back to having regular treatment with Bruce again and I now have a very beautiful son number 2 to show for it.

Bruce also treats my Doctor husband, and my five year old son. My son has had a hugely positive experience with acupuncture despite being so little, and loves his treatments as they have helped him cope with his extremely intense emotions.

Having observed Bruce many times in clinic I can assure you he genuinely cares for each and every one of his patients. You couldn't have a more dedicated, caring or humble practitioner on your side, going the extra mile to help you on your path towards healing.

I go to see Bruce whenever my emotions are haywire and I want to bring them back into balance: if I've been excessively anxious or irritable, having panic attacks, or if I'm feeling depressed or overwhelmed with fatigue.

He is a calm and compassionate listener, and I feel comfortable talking to him about whatever is going on. Even so, he always intuits far more than I am able to put into words, and I think it is this quality which makes Bruce so exceptionally gifted as an acupuncturist; he can tell what's gone wrong even when I don't know myself. This and his integrated approach; he's just as interested in my eating and sleeping habits, and the state of my relationship, as whatever pain or worry has brought me to see him.

Because of his straightforward and open manner I trust Bruce completely, which is helpful when he's sticking needles into me all over the place! The treatment itself is not always pain-free, but the needles are not left in for long and I always feel a strong sense of relaxation and well being afterwards. Having an acupuncture treatment always brings about a profound physical, emotional and mental shift in me; sometimes so much that I can't stop smiling and laughing all day, after perhaps weeks of feeling down or on edge.

I came to Bruce at a time when I was already getting valuable help from psychoanalysis, as well as healing through yoga, but I was still locked into the symptoms of bulimia and felt anxious all the time. I had suffered with an eating disorder since childhood and just couldn’t shake the compulsion of bulimia. I was skeptical about acupuncture, but I felt drawn to try it out, as I had heard it helps with anxiety, depression and compulsive behaviours.

Acupuncture had a powerful effect on me from day one – but in the beginning, for the first two weeks, I felt awful; I was exhausted, emotionally low and my bulimia persisted. I went to see Bruce once a week at first and he explained that this can happen. I felt Bruce understood me and I appreciated his honesty and assurance. I had a sense of trust in his approach from the outset. After the third treatment, I felt calm and grounded within myself. It was subtle, but I felt different.

It’s hard to put into words what acupuncture feels like or does, but there’s definitely a sense of pausing, re-balancing and harmonising. I still have anxious days and get down, but I am in another place all together compared to where I was two years ago. I go to acupuncture once every four to six weeks these days, unless I am feel rocky, when I might need an extra session. I am so grateful that I gave it a try and would never have predicted the life-changing effect.