After one and one half years of trying to conceive, visits to the fertility clinic and a three month stint with an acupuncturist who, in the end was not a good fit for me, I found out about Dr. Mahanian through a friend who spoke very highly of her and her work. From the first visit, I immediately knew she was the person I wanted to work with to help me along this very personal and emotional journey. From our first visit, I felt confident in my choice because of Dr. Mahanian’s calm and reassuring manner, her thorough and unhurried approach and her ability to clearly explain her diagnosis and rationale for treatment in a way that I could understand and that made sense for me. (I should mention that I have a strong belief in Chinese medicine from a previous experience approximately 10 years ago where I was successfully treated with herbs and acupuncture by a Chinese doctor. This was for an entirely different issue; a condition of unexplained, and untreatable by western medicine, extreme joint pain and inflammation in both of my arms and hands. This experience left me thankful for the diagnostic capabilities of western medicine, and the wholistic treatment capabilities of Eastern medicine.)

Treatment with Dr. Mahanian for me consisted of, initially a very thorough discussion of my medical history, as well as reviewing my current health, monthly cycles and the overall functioning of my "systems" e.g. digestion, elimination etc. This initial visit was followed by weekly visits where Dr. Mahanian and I would continually review my progress, discuss any changes I was experiencing, and as well I would have acupuncture and receive a new "concoction" of herbs suited to my body's needs and to the time in my monthly cycle.

Through this process I learned that many of the monthly symptoms I had experienced for many years (PMS, depression, severe cramping) could be either lessened or eliminated by Chinese medicine. During the first few months, I noticed changes in my monthly cycles including no more clotting while I was bleeding, less emotional ups and downs before and during my period and less painful periods. I also became aware, through charting my cycle that the treatment was affecting my cycle by making it more "balanced" (my daily temperatures evened out to plot a more "classic" graph pattern; my cycles became much more regular - reduced from a 33 to 36 day cycle to a 28 to 29 day cycle). I was feeling good and was feeling empowered that, while the main focus was conception, most importantly I was improving my overall health and could feel and see the results (as well be thrilled to realize that with a more normal cycle length, this gave me at least one more ovulation opportunity each year!).

After about 3 months of treatment I was completely taken aback to learn I was pregnant! I attribute my success to the kind, compassionate and skillful work of Dr. Mahanian, and how we collaborated to improve my health and my chances for successful conception. As I write, I am now 6 and 1/2 months pregnant and thrilled for this opportunity to grow and nurture a new life and bring a new being into this world. As I progress through this journey, I have become very aware of how important it was for me to find a practitioner who, as well as having the necessary knowledge and expertise to address my condition, also has a gentle, personal touch that Dr. Mahanian has, which helped instill in me confidence in myself, that I was doing all I could to promote my health and my chances of becoming pregnant.

Thank you Dr. Mahanian for your part in our little miracle.

-TR, 39 yrs old, Vancouver BC