Testimonials
"I came to acupuncture after two failed IUI cycles in the continent. I prepared well for my forthcoming IVF cycle in the UK. I had weekly acupuncture and took some Chinese Herbs for 2 months. My first cycle went well. My eggs were good quality and plenty of them. Unfortunately, my endometrium never achieved a desirable thickness. I continued with my acupuncture and had two more attempts and in spite of the oestrogen patches and pills, my endometrium refused to reached the required thickness.
After a lot of research and struggling, and continuing with acupuncture and herbal medicine, I decided to find a surrogate to carry my eggs.
I relaxed being content that I had done all I could and had a little holiday from all the effort and restrictions of alcohol, coffee, etc.
To my total surprise I got pregnant naturally and gave birth to a busy little boy at the beginning on 2015.
Ana Maria's acupuncture kept me going, helped me remain centred and determined in a relaxed manner. I believe the herbal medicine helped the endometrium. I could not have done it without the support, optimism and calmness of Ana Maria.
Eliana - analyst
"My fertility journey has lasted many years and many countries. After failing to become pregnant at 43, I entered IVF. I had several collections to reach a good amount of eggs to be able to transfer. When I had 15 eggs frozen in USA, I had them genetically tested to be able have a clear choice of a viable embryo. The results of the test were all negative. None of my eggs were viable. I was destroyed by this result.
During the whole time I had been taking Chinese Herbs provided to me by Ana Maria. Had acupuncture whenever I could have access to an acupuncturist and with Ana Maria continuously after the negative results.
To my total astonishment the miracle of a natural pregnancy happened and I gave birth in 2016 at the age of 47 to a beautiful baby boy.
Nora- delighted mother"
"I turned to acupuncture, and asked Ana Maria for help, after my third miscarriage. At the time, I had a healthy 2 year old son, but had had a miscarriage before he came along, and two subsequent miscarriages after he was born.
I couldn’t work out why my body was so reluctant to hold onto pregnancies, and the impact of repeated miscarriage was emotionally and physically draining. I had been referred to an NHS recurrent miscarriage clinic, but part of me was anxious about going down a route which I knew might not necessarily be able to provide me with the answers as to why I was miscarrying, let alone help me to hold on to future pregnancies. Acupuncture seemed to offer an alternative pathway, working to explore what my body was capable, rather than incapable of. I had read that, according to Chinese medicine, there is no such concept of infertility, so it seemed like a positive place to start.
One of the things that struck me about my initial acupuncture sessions was how compassionate the treatment was. Before I started the sessions, the prospect of trying for, and losing another pregnancy was terrifying, but the emphasis which Chinese medicine places on a holistic approach to healing meant that the emotional, as well as physical impacts of my miscarriages were dealt with, as part of the process of preparing my body for pregnancy. By the time that I was ready to start trying, I felt much more resilient.
Ana Maria was amazingly optimistic and emphasised that there was no reason why I shouldn’t be able to maintain a healthy pregnancy: I conceived as soon as she said that I was ready to start trying.
When I hit the six week mark – around the time when I lost pregnancies in the past - I had a bleed, which Ana Maria stopped with acupuncture and moxabustion. A hospital scan revealed that I had a subchorionic haematoma and I was told that it would be a waiting game, up until around five months, to see whether it would be reabsorbed, or cause the loss of the pregnancy. The Chinese Medicine approach was more proactive: I continued with acupuncture, and the haematoma was resolved by week 10. The relief was phenomenal.
The rest of my pregnancy went smoothly; I continued acupuncture throughout. Ana Maria gave me treatment to prepare my body for labour and remarkably, my son Idris was born six days before his due date in a labour which was natural, uncomplicated, and lasted less than two hours. I am beyond grateful to have had this amazing support throughout my pregnancy, to have learnt so much about my body in the process, and to have such a healthy, beautiful son as the result.
Emily Ainsworth, photographer
www.emilyainsworth.com
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