Melanie Frankland

Melanie Frankland

Alternative Medicine Specialist in Aldwych, Central London, WC2H 9DP

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About the Business

Modern herbal medicine, or phytotherapy, can offer excellent benefits to people suffering from a wide range of health issues, from chronic fatigue syndrome to asthma, migraines to arthritis and much more. Even in the heart of the capital, it is possible to take a natural approach to your health by consulting a herbalist in London for advice.

I am an experienced medical herbalist in London, with over fifteen years experience in complementary and herbal medicine, offering treatments for patients with a wide range of health issues. As a firm advocate of Holistic Therapy, I believe that both scientific and complementary approaches can be used together to bring about a sense of well being and harmony.

By implementing a practice based on scientific and empirical evidence, I provide the best possible care to each client, with their individual needs always given the highest priority.

As a modern herbalist in London I employ a combination of traditional and scientific techniques to treat the patient holistically; not simply by treating symptoms but by treating the patient as a whole.

Whatever health concerns lead you to consult a herbalist in London, you can be assured of a completely personalised treatment. I take into account a range of factors, including your lifestyle and diet, emotional and mental attitude, and your past experiences, to treat you as an individual. I also have a herbal pharmacy that is stocked by UK herb farms that are permitted by the MHRA and licensed under the European Directive on Traditional Herbal Medicine.

As a qualified medical herbalist in London I am a member of both the National Institute of Medical Herbalists and the College of Practitioners of Phytotherapy.

Business Services
Clinical Supervision

Clinical Supervision

I have a supervision practice at the University of East London where I provide herbalist training in London to undergraduate students on the BSc Herbal Medicine degree programme. My supervision and teaching in the clinic setting includes case history taking, physical examination, pathology and pathophysiology, differential diagnosis, therapuetic goals, phytochemistry and herbal prescription writing. I inbed both Latin and Greek into my teaching.

I am a herbalism tutor in London and can teach a variety of courses in Further Education, including Introductions to Herbal Medicine, Reflexology, Aromatherapy and Health and Social Care. I also teach the ITEC Diploma in Reflexology and Professional Conduct and Business Awareness as well as Level 3 Anatomy and Physiology. I enjoy being a herbalist tutor in London and enjoy teaching other complementary health courses in the wider community. This includes community projects involved with all ages and nationalities. I also teach herbal medicine to Health & Social care personnel to enable them to cater for a wide range of needs within the care setting.

Reflexology

Reflexology

Reflexology is known as an 'archetypal' therapy - which means that many forms of this treatment sprung up independantly around the world over thousands of years. Ancient cultures such as the Egyptians, the Chinese, the Aborigines, widespread African cultures and the Native American Indians all had their own form of this holistic treatment. Reflexology has only be taken up recently in the West, in the last one hundred years - and its effectiveness is becoming increasingly recognised and is even available in some NHS hospitals for more seriously ill patients.

Massaging reflex points on the feet helps to achieve a natural balance of homeostasis in our bodies because it stimulates cells and tissue and the flow of blood, hormone, lymph and neurotransmitters. Homeostasis is the body’s condition of relative stability (balance), within its internal environment. It is the physiological counterpart to the greater balance of all aspects of a person’s life. If this natural balance becomes congested or blocked, excessive or deficient in any place, the stage becomes set for dis-ease to occur.

The Endocrine System including the hypothalamus and pituitary glands and the endocrine organs such as the thyroid, adrenals and ovaries/testes are pivotal in helping to maintain homeostasis in the human body - as is the autonomic nervous system. Reflexology stimulates the body to restore homeostasis through these physiological systems and effectively supports health concerns ranging from minor issues such as insomnia, fatigue, low mood and tension headaches to serious medical conditions such as cancer and autoimmune disease. Reflexology for labour induction and pregnancy is also very useful.

Herbal Medicine

Herbal Medicine

Public and professional opinion on the issue of traditional therapies is now extremely divided in the UK. The realistic benefits of traditional therapies including herbal medicine are being marginalised by seemingly rational arguments that are based on scientific reductionist viewpoints. So what are the main issues between orthodox and traditional medicines and why is there such a divide between the two here in the UK?

Traditional practitioners including herbalists are most concerned with the individual patient outcome. That is - did the patient perceive himself or herself to feel better during/after treatment? The focus is on the individual person and their subjective experience along with the practitioners objective observation. It is the patient’s personal belief that the treatment was effective. The most useful way of researching this is to monitor the patient using one to one consultations. The herbal medicine in London that I provide is based on the principal of ‘personal equipoise’.

Modern medicine is most concerned with population outcomes. That is, did a large group of people feel better during/after treatment. The focus is on sections of the population and the objective observation of the researchers. The most common way of examining this is through Random Controlled Trials. It is based on the principal of ‘clinical’ or ‘collective’ equipoise’.

Conflict has arisen between the traditional and modern systems of health and medicine because each believes that their way of measuring patient outcomes is superior. However, arguments have existed for sometime that the principle of randominsed controlled trials and collective equipoise can conflict with the development of personal equipoise (Edwards et al, 1998; Torgenson and Roland, 1998). The individual healing process can suffer at the expense of the collective healing process – and vice versa.

For example, the NHS does not have the resources to dedicate the time needed to achieve truly satisfactory personal equipoise. Its organization necessarily revolves around the collective equipoise. This makes it difficult to introduce traditional therapies into the NHS. This difficulty leads to a negative reaction from both sides and corresonding accusations and justifications of each other’s methods.
Location & Hours

2 Neal's Yard

Aldwych, WC2H 9DP
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