PinkUk is delighted to feature Sheridan’s Maguire’s story of how he found a way out of depression, anxiety and sleeping problems through acupuncture, training as a therapist to help other people overcome similar challenges.
I got involved with social drug taking and partying on the gay scene mainly in London & Brighton. It was a way to make friends and to feel connected with the world and it was fun a lot of the time. Living in London was a great opportunity for me to connect with other gay, bisexual and other fun and alternative people. I had a roaring time whether out and about in clubs, house parties, Pride festivals or, later on, dating apps. The venues wither clubs or house parties was pumping out great tech and house tunes with loads of hot guys before the dating apps changed things. It was super fun.
Meanwhile my work, social life and mental and physical health all took turns for the worse. I realised that I needed a big change if I was to avoid a complete meltdown, by the time I decided to put a stop to it I was already a bit of a mess. My sleep was disturbed and every night I could only get four or so hours and I was highly fatigued throughout the day. I was just 30 and had severe back pains, heavy tiredness, depression and anxiety. I saw the doctor who prescribed sleeping pills but these make you drowsy and they stopped working after a while.
Then a friend suggested I try something called ‘Five Element Acupuncture’ and recommended me to a gay therapist who practised it. I was a bit sceptical, but I called the guy up and he told me Five element acupuncture is “Different from other types and it gives you back energy like you haven’t had since you were a teenager.” Things can change your life on a really good way. For me it was Five Element acupuncture, but for others it can be other things be it counselling, Ayurveda, meditation, new friends, or just changing our life circumstances so we can pull ourselves out of the darker times in our lives and as a result become better and more resilient people.
You can real my full story here https://pinkuk.com/news/features/pins-and-needles/ If you are in a bad place I really hope this will may be of interest to you, if not at least I hope it will be an interesting read
