Who is Ashley Gordon, Acupuncturist?

Ash Acupuncture

We talk to Ashley Gordon, Acupuncturist at FGHG and discover what makes him such a fabulous, dedicated practitioner and why he has chosen to focus on reproductive health, fertility and pregnancy acupuncture.

What initially ignited your interest in studying to become a Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) practitioner and acupuncturist?

Before my time as a TCM practitioner, I was a middle school Biology and Maths teacher. This was good, but I knew there was something… I was on the prowl for job satisfaction. Whilst having a treatment from my acupuncturist, she said “you seem to know a lot about it, ever thought of studying it?”… baffled at the timing of that statement, my answer was “not until now…” and the rest was history!!

How does an Eastern philosophy differ from a western philosophy in terms of fertility and reproductive support?

In my understanding, as different as they can be, they are both just as crucial as the other. Simplistically and generally, Western philosophy seems to go by numbers… if they fit, then they are good. This may not always take into consideration factors such as stress, emotions, sleep and their related symptoms in the body… this is where Eastern philosophy comes in quite strongly. Together, they can make as awesome team, but each have their own ability to stand independently. Fertility and reproductive support can be so easily affected by so many different lifestyle choices. It make sense to sort these out ASAP!

What unique challenges and rewards come from working with your patients in an independent, non-Western healthcare care setting ?

The rewards are many. In fertility and reproductive support specifically, the answer is simply sharing in the joy of people succeeding in their goal of having a baby. In general, assisting people in working towards better health and maximising all that their body and life has to offer. The body knows, we just need to point it in the right direction sometimes…

Chinese Medicine is such a broad discipline with so many different tools, could you offer some insight into how Chinese Medicine works best for you as a practitioner and which areas you particularly love treating?

Without a doubt, my passion lies in treating pregnancy with acupuncture. My fascination and intrigue with the human body is epitomised by pregnancy. Watching the body, grow, adapt and mould whilst still supporting the day-to-day life of a human, blows me away. My other favourite is pre-conception care – assisting this miracle to happen is such a joy!

 

Ash-Gordon-colourAshley Gordon, FGHG Acupuncturist

Ashley is an experienced acupuncturist and Chinese herbalist who is passionate about utilising the innate healing qualities of the body in achieving the desired outcomes. Be that in fertility, pregnancy or general health.

Ashley has a strong focus on preconception care, pregnancy and birth preparation and is motivated by the journeys and emotional and physical changes that these experiences bring. It is his privilege to a be a part of such a personal and life-changing journey.

May 2017 Newsletter

Preparation is vital for success

Reflecting on nature’s cycles is an inspirational way to make the changes we need to improve our health. Autumn shows us that it’s a time for change, for letting go of the old and to prepare for the months ahead, all with the promise of something new in the Spring.

With this is mind we have put together news and inspiration to help prepare for your next steps along the journey. We share some top tips from our Naturopaths to make it through the colder months, we have some warming breakfast inspiration to make positive changes one meal at a time and talking about preparation, we’ve included the latest Podcast; sharing the best ways to prepare for birth with natural induction techniques and treatments. For those in a different stage of your fertility journey, don’t miss the fabulous blog discussion about pre-conception care and preparation by Gina Fox.

We hope you find this information useful and enjoy meeting our new practitioners further into this newsletter. At the very least, we hope you use the Autumn months to cosy up, meditate and take the time to reflect on what it is you want to create within yourself and within your life. In the words of Elizabeth Lawrence “Even if something is left undone, everyone must take time to sit still and watch the leaves turn.”

Enjoy!


Natural Induction Podcast Canva image #2An interview by Naturopath Gina Fox with Acupuncturist Jo Sharkey, and Massage Therapist & Birth Attendant Fiona Harrison on everything you wanted to know about birth preparation and natural induction techniques.

At Fertile Ground we’re receiving more and more referrals from midwives and obstetricians for natural induction using acupuncture, massage and other techniques that have become increasingly popular. More questions than ever are being asked these techniques, so for all the answers have a listen to our podcast.

preconception carePreparing the best environment to conceive. Naturopath Gina Fox talks about the importance of planning for a new baby and allowing some preparation time for your own health before you conceive.

Preparing your body and your home before you conceive can lead to better outcomes for the health of you and your family. Gina Fox is the head of our naturopathy team and has over 15 years’ experience in fertility. In this article she covers all the important topics including gentle detoxification, reducing environmental toxins, pre-conception check up and the special nutrients needed for the best outcomes. Read more.

Winter is coming!

Have you ever wondered why you are the one that catches every winter illness going around? You could be vitamin or mineral deficient, or just too busy and stressed out. Your body needs adequate rest, along with many different vitamins and minerals to function optimally and keep the winter bugs at bay.

With winter just around the corner now is the time to prepare and address any vitamin and mineral deficiencies or poor immunity before the bugs start getting spread around through sneezes and coughs. It could be as simple as eating better and looking after yourself with plenty of rest or a massage.

If you do feel something coming on, tackle it at the first sign to prevent it getting worse or limit the duration of the illness. Here are the top 5 tips from Naturopath Tina Jenkins, made from things you are likely to have around the house already (if not, stock up on these ingredients to be winter-ready).

Tina’s Cold and Flu Home Remedies

1. Steam Inhalation
Sounds revolting but is quite nice! Great for sore throats and coughs and also just as a daily boost for the immune system over winter. 1-2 cloves of raw garlic (finely chopped or put through a garlic press), add 1 cup of boiling water, honey to taste, fresh lemon juice. Can add slices/grated ginger. Drink at least 1 cup a day as a preventative. If you are sick drink 2-3 cups/day. OR 1-2 cloves raw garlic finely chopped added to soup/casserole just before you eat.

2. Chest rub 
Eucalyptus oil chest rub: 4-5 drops of eucalyptus into a 2 tbls base cream/oil (e.g. moisturiser, sweet almond oil, olive oil etc): mix together and rub into chest and throat area especially before bed if you have sinus/nasal congestion.

3. Garlic drink Garlic and lemon
Sounds revolting but is quite nice! Great for sore throats and coughs and also just as a daily boost for the immune system over winter. 1-2 cloves of raw garlic (finely chopped or put through a garlic press), add 1 cup of boiling water, honey to taste, fresh lemon juice. Can add slices/grated ginger. Drink at least 1 cup a day as a preventative. If you are sick drink 2-3 cups/day. OR 1-2 cloves raw garlic finely chopped added to soup/casserole just before you eat.

4. Apple cider vinegar  
Just one teaspoon of the vinegar in 25mls of water and gargle 3-5 x day for a sore throat. If you don’t have apple cider vinegar try salt water instead – 1 teaspoon per half cup of warm water, gargle and spit out.

5. Kiwi & garlickiwi-fruit-vitamins-healthy-eating-51312

1 kiwi fruit

1 tsp honey (manuka if you have it)
1 clove of garlic crushed
Mix together and leave for the enzymes to break down (this makes the raw garlic much more palatable).15-30 minutes will be long enough and eat. It’s actually quite tasty. Have this once a day.

If you feel you need more guidance, come see one of our naturopaths who can do a thorough assessment and help you to keep well throughout winter.

Meet Our New Practitioners

We are very fortunate to attract some of the best and most experienced professionals who specialise in helping people from conception through to birth and beyond. Meet our new practitioners from left to right: Consuella Garreffa, Remedial Massage Therapist, with Sonia Millett and Amanda Cox-Edwards who are both Acupuncturists and Chinese Herbal Medicine practitioners. Click on their names if you’d like to read more about the amazing experience and qualifications these practitioners have!

Sonia, Consuella and Amanda


Change your habits one meal at a time…why not make it breakfast! Here’s a fabulous, warming recipe for your breakfast tomorrow, from our e-book, The Breakfast Project, written by Milly and Charmaine. If you are interested in The Breakfast Project we have an exciting special offer for you – see below for your coupon code.

Super-seed porridge BP

 Porridge from Breakfast Project

Breakfast Project Cover

The Breakfast Project
We’d like to help you change your life so use the coupon
CHANGEYOURLIFE to pick up your copy for just $4.95 (normally $19.95)

Get your copy here


Guided Relaxation for IVF
Guided relaxation for:
Natural Conception
IVF support
Male Fertility
Sleep
$17download / $28 CD
Guided Relaxation for preganancy
Guided Relaxation For:
Early Pregnancy
Nausea
Breech Baby
Due Dates/Overdue
$10-$17downloads/$28 CD
Get your guided relaxations here

Natural Induction. Could it really help?

Natural induction for labour podcast

We hope you enjoy this Finding Fertility podcast interview by Naturopath Gina Fox with Acupuncturist Jo Sharkey and Massage Therapist & Birth Attendant Fiona Harrison on everything you wanted to know about natural induction and birth preparation techniques.

At Fertile Ground we’re receiving more and more referrals from midwives and obstetricians to encourage going into labour naturally, using acupuncture, massage and other techniques that have become increasingly popular.  With more questions than ever being asked, we thought it was time to share everything you needed to know to prepare your body and mind for labour and birth.

Listen here to learn more about how acupuncture, massage and naturopathy can help to prepare your body for spontaneous labour.