For years, many have know about the debilitating nature of headaches and migraines, but the sports world has added a lot more media attention through concussions experienced by players such as Sidney Crosby, Marc Staal and Marc Savard to name a few. This type of attention to headaches and migraines has kept Brendan Cleary of Georgetown, Ont. very busy. While he can’t share the name of clients, he has been treating both professional athletes and individuals at the Ontario Migraine Clinic through the use of acupuncture.
Cleary first experienced acupuncture as an athlete in his teens and liked the idea of being treated without the side effect of drugs. He later received his degree in science at the University of Western Ontario and lived in Asia for 5 years. It was during that period that he learned more about acupuncture from a local guru, learning new techniques in selecting acupuncture points.
He returned back to Canada in 1997 and presently runs an office in Georgetown. Having his own pilot’s license, he often flies throughout North America to treat professional athletes.
“The assessment is the key”, Cleary states. “As an example, there could be 10 patients with migraine issues and they all may require different treatments. I look at their overall health and am able to assess the right pressure points for each patient”.
His Clinic has treated patients from over 31 countries. In some cases, patients may be so desperate, that they’ve decided to travel to Georgetown and be treated over a 6-8 week period. The local hotel has offered 50% discount to his patients and there’s also a list of people in the community who have offered to billet people, which is very unique.
For pro athletes, they can’t afford to be out of action for long, so they may have 4-5 treatments in a day, with typically a 2-3 hour break between treatments.
People who suffer from migraines may not have considered acupuncture as a possible treatment. Cleary comments, “if traditional medicines haven’t worked, I hope that people can be open minded to other options”.
The Ontario Migraine Clinic
83 Mill St. Suite 304
Georgetown, Ontario
Tel: (905) 702-0625
E-mail: info@migraineclinic.ca
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