Choosing a complementary therapist

Most complementary therapy practitioners will only see a few, if any, patients with HIV. It can therefore be hard to be confident that you are being treated by a practitioner who understands your situation. It’s worth asking a few questions:

  • What is the treatment you are offering and how can it benefit me? Different practitioners will approach the same therapy in different ways. If a practitioner makes amazing claims for the benefits of their therapy, such as an ability to cure HIV, they’re best avoided, as is any practitioner who advises you to stop your HIV treatment or other conventional treatment.
  • What is your experience of treating people with HIV? It’s important that your practitioner has a basic understanding of HIV. If they don’t have this knowledge, they may miss important symptoms which you should bring to the attention of a doctor.
  • What are your charges? Charges vary. Discuss and agree charges in advance. Be wary of any practitioner charging more than £60 for an initial assessment – the chances are that you’re being overcharged. Many practitioners will have a sliding scale of fees depending on your income. Some HIV organisations offer some complementary therapies
  • What are your qualifications? Try and find out what qualification your practitioner has. This isn’t necessarily a guarantee of competence or quality, as very few complementary therapies have the same rigorous regulation that governs conventional medicine.
This content was checked for accuracy at the time it was written. It may have been superseded by more recent developments. NAM recommends checking whether this is the most current information when making decisions that may affect your health.