If you’ve been exploring acupuncture, you may have noticed a quiet diversity hiding beneath that one familiar word. Acupuncture isn’t just one method — it’s an umbrella for multiple traditions, interpretations, and clinical approaches that have evolved across centuries and continents.
Though each style uses the same fine needle, they speak different dialects of medicine — some ancient, some modern, some spiritual, some strictly anatomical. All are valid, depending on your body, your needs, and your intention.
Here’s a brief guide to the most common types of acupuncture available in the UK today, along with their historical roots.
1. Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) Acupuncture
Origin: Codified in modern China in the 1950s, based on a consolidation of thousands of years of classical Chinese medical texts.
Practiced in: Most modern Chinese medicine clinics worldwide, including the UK.
TCM acupuncture is the most widely practised style in the UK today. It’s based on centuries of observation and philosophical tradition, where the human body is viewed as a living ecosystem. At its core is the concept of qi (life energy) flowing through meridians (energy pathways). When qi is blocked, health suffers.
The version of TCM we practice today was systematised during the mid-20th century under the People’s Republic of China, blending ancient practice with modern biomedical language to create a comprehensive medical system.
In clinic, we use acupuncture points along these meridians to restore balance — not just in the body, but also in the emotional and mental fields. Every treatment is a response to the unique pattern your body expresses.
Best for: Chronic pain, anxiety, menstrual health, digestive disorders, sleep issues, fertility, stress, migraines.
2. Five Element Acupuncture
Origin: Rooted in ancient Daoist philosophy, created in the 20th century by British acupuncturist J.R. Worsley.
Practiced in: Specialist clinics and some integrative practices in the UK and US.
Five Element acupuncture is based on the classical Chinese idea that everything in nature — including the human being — is governed by five phases or elements: Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water.
Each element reflects not only physical processes but emotional and spiritual dynamics. Illness is viewed as a disharmony between a person’s constitutional element and the world around them.
In the mid-20th century, J.R. Worsley, a British osteopath and acupuncturist, studied in Asia and adapted the Five Element system into a psycho-spiritual model of healing that he brought back to the UK. His version focuses on emotional health, trauma resolution, and personal evolution.
Best for: Depression, anxiety, life transitions, inner disconnect, existential fatigue, grief.
3. Medical Acupuncture (Western or Dry Needling)
Origin: Developed in the 1970s–80s by Western physicians and physiotherapists seeking to apply acupuncture principles within a their own framework.
Practiced in: Physiotherapy clinics, NHS pain services, sports medicine, GP surgeries.
Medical or Western acupuncture is a modern, anatomy-based adaptation of traditional needling techniques. It doesn’t draw on Chinese philosophy or meridians. Instead, it focuses on stimulating nerves, muscles, and connective tissue with needles to relieve isolated pain and tension.
The practice emerged as researchers in the West began to study the physiological effects of acupuncture — endorphin release, increased blood flow, and muscle relaxation. Dry needling, a sub-branch, specifically targets “trigger points” in tight muscle bands.
While useful for localised pain, this approach is generally symptomatic in scope — meaning it aims to reduce symptoms rather than address the root imbalance.
Best for: Sports injuries, muscle knots, tension headaches, sciatica, localised pain.
4. Auricular Acupuncture
Origin: Developed in the 1950s by Dr. Paul Nogier, a French neurologist; later adapted into addiction treatment protocols in the US (NADA protocol).
Practiced in: Addiction recovery centres, trauma clinics, and wellness settings.
Auricular acupuncture treats the body through the ear, which is believed to be a microsystem reflecting the entire body. This idea was formalised by Dr. Nogier after noticing scar patterns on the ears of patients treated by Chinese refugees.
His mapping of the ear (shaped like an inverted fetus) led to a sophisticated system now used for regulating the nervous system, reducing stress, and supporting detoxification.
In the 1970s, American clinicians working in addiction clinics adopted and simplified the method, creating the NADA (National Acupuncture Detoxification Association) protocol — a five-point ear treatment still widely used today.
Best for: PTSD, addiction, anxiety, emotional dysregulation, insomnia.
5. Microsystems (Scalp Acupuncture, Korean Hand Therapy, etc.)
Origin: Varies by system — Scalp acupuncture (developed in China in the 1970s), Korean Hand Therapy (developed in the 1970s by Dr. Tae-Woo Yoo in South Korea).
Practiced in: Specialist clinics or integrated into broader acupuncture sessions.
These systems treat specific regions of the body as micro-maps — like the ear — and are especially useful for neurological conditions. Scalp acupuncture has shown promising results for stroke rehabilitation and Parkinson’s disease. Korean Hand Therapy views the hand as a microcosm of the body and uses precise points for therapeutic effect.
They tend to be more technical and require specialist training, but when applied appropriately, they offer powerful support for complex or chronic issues.
Best for: Neurological conditions, chronic pain, stroke recovery, mobility issues.
In Closing: Finding the Right Fit
Each of these styles has its own wisdom — and none is “better” than the other. It really depends on who you are, and who the practitioner is.
My studies are primarily TCM, but incorporate classical and five element nuances. I enjoy the blending of the clinical and the poetic. The physical and the unseen. Some patients come for back pain and leave having healed a grief they didn’t know they were carrying. Others just want to sleep through the night. Both are equally valid.
Whatever brings you to acupuncture, I hope you find a practitioner who listens, respects your story, and invites your body back into conversation with itself.
👉 If you’re in Southampton, get in touch to give my clinic a try!
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