Gender: Female

Kimberly Dienes

I went to Aliya a year ago as of May 16th because I was one week plus past my due date. I was induced with my first child and I didn’t want to go that route again if possible. I had acupuncture to stimulate labour at 3:30pm. Nathaniel was born at 11:58pm that night. Contractions started intensively about an hour after the appointment and I had him three hours after we arrived at the hospital. Thanks SO much for helping me have my beautiful son!!

Kate R

I can wholeheartedly recommend Ali as an Accupuncturist. Since starting my acupuncture treatment two months ago, my health has improved significantly. My health problems relate to an autoimmune condition that I have had for several years. I suffered from burning feet that were painful and a real problem in my daily life. Ali was very professional and thorough, asking detailed questions about my symptoms which meant a highly personalised treatment plan. The result is my feet are no longer painful. My throbbing headaches are now infrequent, my thinning hair is growing again, my eczema is gone and my periods are regular and pain free for the first time in years. Ali is a very caring and knowledgeable therapist who puts her patients at ease. I am very grateful to Ali for all of her help and kindness.

F

I have been seeing Ali regularly for several months now. Initially I was referred to Ali for fertility issues, but I am glad to say that Ali does not just focus on this. I like the fact that she takes a complete holistic approach and has treated me for many symptoms that have been unrelated to fertility. As a result my body is more balanced and I have a general feeling of wellbeing, both physically and mentally.
Ali has treated me for my eczema which was a big irritant on a regular basis, this is now subsiding and is more manageable, rather than the constant scratching and the soreness. What I have found is that Ali will not only treat the ailment with acupuncture but will then give me general advice, such as what foods to avoid to stop the flare-ups, to go for a swim to cool the skin, to cool down the temperature in the shower, all of this then helps a person to keep the symptoms under control and helps you to understand what’s happening with your body and how to manage it.
Ali also helps me with my hyperhidrosis, a problem I have had since childhood and in the past I have used a machine at home to give myself treatments to help with the condition. Ali did not just ignore this condition, even though I did not come to her to help me with it. Every time she will ask about it and will use the acupuncture again to help me manage it. The symptoms are not completely cured but it is manageable to the point that I have not bothered to use the treatment given to me by the hospital. I wish now that I had known about acupuncture years ago, it would have saved me from so much heartache and embarrassment.
I also suffer a lot from migraines, practically every day, but I can confidently say that these are not coming every day now, I have had respite for several days and I am waiting for the time that these are completely gone, it will be such a relief not to have that sharp pain behind the eyes, I am confident that these will one day disappear. They are getting less and less painful and less and less regular.
As for the fertility, Ali is preparing my body for my first round of ivf, when and not if I have good news, I will be reporting back to her website to announce it. Ali has seen me through the ups and downs every month and has even introduced me to one of her clients who has talked to me, advised me and helped me to finally come to a decision about where I wanted to go for the treatment. I am feeling quite confident and upbeat about starting the process and I know that I have two people in the background that will support me throughout it, Ali and her client are always there, advising, encouraging and giving a positive outlook.
I don’t feel that this is just a treatment of acupuncture, this is a person who will go out of their way to help you, will advise you, will sit with you when you’re upset, will give you positive words of encouragement. I cannot recommend Ali enough and have no hesitation in going back to her for any treatment, I would rather go to Ali first than a doctor anyday. (Healthy baby girl “T” arrived safely).

Kirsty Broadhurst

As an existing client of Ali’s I turned to her when we were struggling to conceive after being diagnosed with polycystic ovaries. After spending two months on hormonal fertility drugs which didn’t agree with me I decided to try a more holistic approach and visited Ali every two weeks. She helped me enormously, and made me feel like I had support with our fertility journey, she took away any fears I had about being unable to conceive and after just two months of consistent acupuncture she regulated my cycle and we fell pregnant naturally. I knew that my body was in the best possible shape for a trouble free pregnancy thanks to Ali and trusted my body for the following nine months. I could not recommend her highly enough.

Amy McConville

Aliya was recommended by a friend who had successfully conceived under Ali’s guidance. I decided to go down the acupuncture route after trying to conceive for a year for our second child. I have a busy, stressful job and attending Ali’s sessions allowed me to relax and find a sense of calm I hadn’t felt in a long time. Ali’s advice was sound, she has such a lovely manner and I cannot recommend her enough; especially after falling pregnant within 3 months of seeing her. Thank you, Ali! xx.

Victoria E

Aliya helped reduce the frequency of my sinus headaches and migraines which often cannot be relieved by medication. She is very thorough and has a calming nature which puts people at ease. Highly recommended.

Orietta Z L Houghland

Aliya’s acupuncture expertise is second to none. I had an extremely positive and value for money experience of her treatment throughout my pregnancy and postpartum from 2011 and till March 2012 when my baby was born. Her acupuncture was a relaxing experience and the wisdom of the Chinese medicine behind the acupuncture enabled Aliya to cure the cause of the symptoms. I found her treatment had a positive impact on the health of my overall pregnancy and in an easier birth. Although I had previously had a previous child I had suffered a miscarriage after. Aliya was able to keep this 3rd pregnancy of mine strongly rooted to full term.

Aliya treated me for several conditions, some common during pregnancy and after: emotional states, morning sickness, carpal tunnel syndrome, mastitis, dry skin conditions, flu, sinus pain, migraine, digestion issues, back ache, swollen legs, exhaustion and many more. I was fortunate that I had received acupuncture in the past so my body was able to respond quickly. Even Aliya was quite surprised when with just one session she was able to cure the carpal tunnel in my wrists.

In terms of the overall pregnancy and health of the baby, Aliya helped me keep the pregnancy grounded. My baby weighed 9.2lb and was a perfectly healthy boy who is very relaxed and happy. She was able to relax me with each session and I felt this had a positive impact. This was very important to me as I had previously suffered a miscarriage. When it came to the actual birth I had an amazing experience in comparison to my first child. I got to 9cm at home in just 2hrs! I managed on a tens machine and good breathing only. My contractions were very effective and not too painful at all. I totally believe the acupuncture had prepared my body well for this.

Her two most memorable sessions were: for the migraines that were blindingly painful in my last weeks before birth when I was feeling ill and had become very tired looking after my toddler – my GP’s only help was for very strong opiate based pain killers. However, Aliya was a miracle worker and with one session cleared my headaches within a few days. The other one was postpartum for mastitis (a painful breast feeding condition). Again I felt I was left high and dry by western medicine as I had been on antibiotics and paracetamol for a few weeks but it had not cleared fully. The GP said they could not help me any further unless my symptoms were extreme. Again with only one treatment Aliya cleared the symptoms fully and even cured some others relating to my dry skin which were apparently connected – according to Chinese medicine.

Overall I can recommend Aliya highly for anyone seeking a healthy pregnancy, birth and post natal recovery. I rate her expertise and feel each session was well worth the money. Her understanding of Chinese medicine and supportive, caring manner made every session a haven of tranquillity when I needed it most.

Thank you Aliya!

Penny Tate

4.7 out of 5
I first went to Ali in October 2010 having been booked off work by my GP with stress. I had always been able to cope with stress at work, however I guess doing 12-14 hour days for a long period of time soon took its toll. The stress manifested itself as chest pains due to the tension I held across my back and I also felt like a failure – “why could others cope and suddenly I cannot”

What impressed me with Ali was that she took the time to listen to me. She did not only treat the symptons of the stress but my whole body. We set 3 goals and they have all been met.

Ali would quite often give me a post card at the end of the session on which she had written what treatment she had done and then sometimes there was some “homework” for me to do. I have kept all the post cards and they have been really useful to look back on to see how far I have come and also as reminders of what I should be doing to look after myself.

Anyone thinking of trying acupunture for the first time, all I will say is go with an open mind. There were times it was rather painful and I did not really understand how this was going to help me. But the results soon started show. I have no chest pains, I am mentally and emotionally stronger. I am sleeping so much better without dreaming or having to get up to go the the bathroom.

I am back at work having managed to over come the stress by only using natural means – no drugs.

I still go every now and again to have a top up or an “MOT”.

Marie Lord

5.0 out of 5
The joyous news if you do not wish to read any further is that I am 13 weeks pregnant and I do believe it is due to Fertility Acupuncture with Ali at Meridian Acupuncture and I cannot recommend this highly enough to you!! My issues were long cycle periods (32/33/34 days+ and getting longer) with a late ovulation date and I had recently developed Acne. I first visited Ali on 5th July 2012, by the 2nd session I’d noticed my appetite was under control again, I was sleeping very well and my digestive system was back up to speed. I had also lost 5lbs within a fortnight without doing anything out of the ordinary!! On the 3rd session sweating and dryness had disappeared, any headaches I was getting had stopped and I felt as if I was getting my life back in balance and reducing stress. On the 4th session the Acne had reduced dramatically (I was on medication – face gel – from the Drs but was using this rarely as it really dried out my skin) and still no headaches. Ali advises me she targeted some strong points to regulate menstruation and boost my fertility, when I returned on my 5th session I informed Ali that my period had started on Day 27 (Amazing by my track record!!), I had tender breasts, and was off the smell and taste of coffee … On the 6th session in October I was pregnant!! I now know I had conceived on 19th August 2012, just over 6 weeks after my first session.
So, in summary, all I can say to you is, if you are unsure do give it a try, I have no idea how this worked but it did and I am immensely grateful to Ali for her expertise.

Marie Lord.

N Rowland

5.0 out of 5
Ali was recommended by a friend who was studying acupuncture and thought that Ali’s gentle and caring nature was exactly what I needed. We are unable to conceive naturally and after several failed fertility treatments it was time to try something different. When I first met Ali I was having difficulty sleeping, it took me a long time to go to sleep and I would wake between 4 -5 am and not get back to sleep, after just 1 session I was going to sleep as soon as my head hit the pillow. I was also experiencing painful and irregular periods and within a couple of sessions I had no pain and a much healthier period and most importantly for my husband I was no longer like a demon.
From my first two ivf cycles I produced 9 eggs on the first attempt and 7 on the seconds since working with Ali my egg numbers have increased to 17 on the third attempt and 16 on the 4th attempt. On both occasions the hospital encouraged us to leave the embryo’s to develop to day 5 blastocyst stage which wasn’t an option on previous attempts we had 2 good quality blastocyst’s to put back. Sadly we haven’t been successful on either occasion but the improvement in the number and quality of eggs has given us hope for the future.
Ali has been a wonderful support and helped me in so many ways, she has regulated my period, improved my quality of sleep, helped to reduce my stress levels and improved egg quality and number of eggs. She is always very encouraging and at the end of every session she gives you a card with helpful suggestions and positive mantra’s, I have kept all of them and when I need a boost I have a read through and make sure I’m following all her advice.
I would highly recommend Ali as I have seen firsthand the difference acupuncture can make.