Restless Legs Clinic

25/11/2021

Our new website is now live at monkmedicalgroup.co.uk.
The new website represents our shift from a physical practice to a virtual practice.
After 40 years of hands-on experience we are delighted to realise a long time ambition; to deliver safe and effective drug free treatments remotely to patients at home. This is made possible by digital electronic technology (a Digital Treatment Unit + online consultations). Our guidance, and ‘prescriptions’ developed over the years, personalised to each individual patient, helps to ensure interventions are effective.
We see this as a replacement for clinical treatments for selected conditions which we talk about more on the site.
Treatment is based on modalities in Bioelectronic medicine, a rapidly developing field in medicine. Some of these modalities lend themselves to self management in a safe manner under guidance.

01/03/2021

Acupuncture without needles - at home

27/01/2021

Introducing our Clinical Director -

Michael Monk MB BS MRCS LRCP DMRD MLCOM Dip Med Ac​
is one of very few medical doctors in the UK who have also qualified as osteopaths and acupuncturists.
​
He has a wealth of experience gained over nearly 40 years of private practice in acupuncture, no needle electroacupuncture and musculoskeletal medicine.

Michael trained with the doctor who originated the specific treatment for RLS, and has thousands of hours experience using positional release manipulations and no needle electroacupuncture.

Although retired as a doctor, he remains on the GMC Register and is bound by their code of practice. He has full accreditation with the British Medical Acupuncture Society.

Michael was for many years a Trustee of the London College of Osteopathic Medicine and a Council Member of the British Medical Acupuncture Society.. He is also a Regional Fellow of the Royal Society of Medicine.

GMC No. 1455388
BMAS No. 461

21/01/2021

At first sight Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS) doesn’t seem to be such a big problem. Having to get up a few times in the night to move around can’t really be that distressing, surely?

But if we think about it in terms of ‘sleep deprivation’ we may begin to understand why it is so disturbing and disruptive of normal life. Forcing people to stay awake and go without sleep has been a major part of interrogation techniques used by armed forces throughout the world. It was one of the ‘five techniques’ used by the British Army in Northern Ireland, until it was outlawed by Prime Minister Edward Heath in 1974.

Most students have ‘pulled an all-nighter’ - that last minute desperate cramming before an important exam or test - staying up all night fuelled by coffee in the hopes that last minute information will stick. And they survived. It isn’t recommended, however, because as a technique it doesn’t work that well.

But the effects of chronic sleep disturbance are much more insidious and serious.

It can have a serious and severe impact on many areas of health and work, on relationships and education, and may affect not just the victim but also their partners and family. For the sufferer, severe sleep deprivation will affect concentration, mood, and cognitive ability.

Severe RLS is a deeply unpleasant condition. In a study of the impact on quality of life of sufferers, RLS had a similar effect to other chronic disorders, such as type 2 diabetes, and clinical depression. RLS may require a considerable restriction of lifestyle as a result of intolerable symptoms during long airplane or car journeys, lectures or visits to the cinema, dining out, or even family meals.

People with Restless Legs Syndrome are more apt to suffer problems such as social isolation, frequent daytime headaches, and depression. The also complain of lower s*x drive and other problems related to insufficient sleep.

RLS can contribute to insomnia. Insomnia itself can increase the activity of hormones and pathways in the brain that produce emotional problems. Even modest changes in waking and sleeping patterns can have significant effects on a person's mood.

Studies have shown that severe RLS is associated with a marked increase in the likelihood of having a stroke, heart disease and asthma attacks. Other studies have shown that there is an increased risk for depression and mental illness and, of course, there is an increased risk for potentially life threatening complications such as car accidents.

So we need to take RLS much more seriously and recognise the health risks that come with it. It seems that many doctors, including neurologists - the specialists who deal with it - simply fail to recognise the devastating impact of this condition. Unfortunately most of the medications which are prescribed for RLS can make symptoms worse in the long term.

For many RLS sufferers alternative therapies provide a much better (and drug free) way of managing symptoms and one such is our ‘acupuncture without needles’ GHET which can be followed in your own home.

https://www.therestlesslegsclinic.co.uk/journal-blog-dr-monk/restless-legs-syndrome-and-loss-of-sleep

19/01/2021

More and more people are asking “Will you have the vaccine?” and “Is it safe since it seems to have been rushed through?”
The short answer is yes on both counts. The Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine, which is the one being offered at the moment by the NHS seems to be remarkably effective and safe.
A research study published on 10 December in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) demonstrated that the vaccine was effective in preventing infection in 95% of people over the age of 16. The remarkable effectiveness of this 2 dose vaccination also appeared to be very safe with few side effects.
The Editors of NEJM concluded “What appears to be a dramatic success for vaccination holds the promise of saving uncounted lives and giving us a pathway out of what has been a global disaster.
There are many questions that remain unanswered - does it work as well in the elderly; how long does protection last - and so on, but as a first step it is a dramatic success.
Has it been rushed through? It has all happened at great speed, but this is because of the huge amounts of money spent on the research and the co-operation of many scientists worldwide who shared information and knowledge. But only 20,000 subjects have had the vaccine and we don’t know whether problems will become obvious when that is scaled up to millions.
We can’t be complacent, though. The vaccine on its own will not be enough. For a long time to come we will still need to maintain social distancing, mask wearing and hand washing as we have been doing for months.

14/12/2020

We recently spoke about anosmia, or loss of sense of smell, so we were intrigued to see this piece of research from Finland, albeit not about humans.

Sniffer dogs are being tested at Helsinki airport to see if they can detect COVID-19 in passengers.

And it seems that they can. Apparently a trained dog can detect the SARS-COV -2 virus in samples as low as 10-100 molecules, with almost 100% certainty and before any symptoms appear. Compare this with one of the standard medical tests, the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) which needs 18 million molecules for an accurate result.

The dogs don’t sniff individual passengers directly, but swabs of sweat are taken from passengers, placed in a cup and presented to the dogs. This protects the dogs from the risk of catching and or spreading it.

10/12/2020

We are able to provide treatment remotely through our no needle Guided Home Electroacupuncture Treatment programmes (GHET).

The Programme takes place over a 2 month period with 5 consultations which are timed for the most effective and productive results. For most sufferers this will be enough to produce a major and lasting improvement in their Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS)

09/12/2020

“I can’t describe it”.

Most patients with RLS will say “I can’t describe it” or “I can’t put it into words”.

This difficulty in describing what they suffer probably accounts for the long delay that most patients endure before they have a firm diagnosis.

According to a study in 2013 more than half the population of the UK have never heard of "Restless Legs Syndrome" even though it affects 5-10% of adults in this country (maybe 3-6 million sufferers).

But it took on average 7.53 visits to a health professional for the diagnosis to be made. For some patients it took 20, 30 or more visits. For 23% of sufferers it was more than 10 years before the diagnosis was made.

Unfortunately It's often misdiagnosed or diagnosed late. Some people with symptoms of RLS will not seek medical attention, believing that they won’t be taken seriously, that their symptoms are too mild, or that their condition is untreatable.The study found that 56% had waited or more than a year to seek medical attention and 16% had waited more than 5 years. Because RLS was considered rare and the symptoms that patients described were ‘bizarre’ they were regarded as psychogenic by many doctors.

11/05/2020

Private medical practice, with more than 30 years of experience in osteopathy, acupuncture, musculos

15/04/2020

These are stressful and anxious times
but changing your breathing pattern for short periods has powerful long term effects on reducing anxiety and stress which will improve your immune function.
Follow our specially commissioned HRV Breathing Trainer to guide you through this breathing pattern.

Breathe to the rhythm of the heart image, breathing in as the heart expands, and breathing out as it gets smaller. At the end of the out breath there is a pause, where you hold your breath. Then you start again. Follow this pattern for 10 minutes. Breathe naturally and breathe smoothly. With regular practice, this pattern:

• reduces anxiety
• improves sleep quality
• improves immune function
• lowers heart rate
• lowers blood pressure
• reduces stress hormones
• increases 'feel good ' hormones

We'd love to hear how you are using this and finding it helpful info@monkmedicalgroup.co.uk
Feel free to share with friends and family.

We believe this is safe for everyone but if you have particular health concerns please check with your GP first.