Today’s bonus episode guests are the co-authors of Planting the Seeds of Pregnancy Dr. Lora Shahine, a reproductive endocrinologist with Pacific Northwest Fertility in Seattle, and Stephanie Gianarelli, a licensed acupuncturist and certified Chinese herbalist with Acupuncture Northwest.
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Dr. Shahine, Stephanie, and Heather discuss how to use Eastern wisdom with Western science to achieve pregnancy:
- Tell me a bit about yourself. Briefly, how old are you, what do you do for a living, what do you do for fun?
- Dr. Lora Shahine
- Stephanie Gianarelli
- Dr. Shahine, I understand you have your own infertility story. Take us through that, starting at the very beginning.
- How were you introduced to an Eastern approach to medical care?
- Tell me about Planting the Seeds of Pregnancy. What inspired you to write it, and who is the intended audience?
- What is Traditional Chinese Medicine and what are the four pillars that fall underneath the TCM umbrella?
- Are there specific female and male infertility diagnoses that TCM can help treat? Have there been any peer-reviewed studies to back this up?
- There’s a concept described in your book as “building a baby bank account with TCM.” Please walk us through that.
- How does each of the four TCM pillars complement Western fertility treatments for both women and men?
- There’s a section in your book about Chinese medicine diagnoses. Can you tell us about those?
- Do you include Eastern medicine in your own practice for your fertility patients?
- Tell us about a few success stories of patients who’ve integrated Western and Eastern approaches.
- Why do you think many Western doctors are not open to Eastern care?
- What tips do you have for infertility patients who desire an integrated treatment between Western and Eastern medicine? How can they get their providers to work closely together?
- Where can listeners get a copy of your book?
- What words of hope would you offer to someone who’s at the beginning of their infertility journey right now?
- Dr. Lora Shahine
- Stephanie Gianarelli