Optimizing Ovarian Reserve

This course is a must-take for anyone working with infertility, and especially before a live seminar with Brandon and Wendy. It is indeed dense with information, so takes a lot of patience, but it is incredibly mind-expanding as well as clinically practical. Brandon and Wendy are speaking the language of Chinese and bio-medicine fluently that I speak at a much lesser level, hence the frequent rewinds on my part! However, it is so worth it. Only those of us with training can fully appreciate teachers like this who can make the cosmic connection of Taoist principals with modern science. Such a privelege! What was inspiring about this lecture was not only the application of this information to help bring healthy babies into the world, but a reminder of what it takes to be an excellent (not average) practitioner. If we were musicians, Brandon and Wendy would be performing at a concert level, and that's because they clearly do the equivalent of disciplined daily practice: the instrument in this case being Chinese medicine and the human body. This course has re-inspired me to elevate my own work to a higher level and prioritize that daily practice. Thank you for so generously sharing your knowledge and hard work. Abigail Surasky, L.Ac. Berkeley

The following comments taken from http://www.chinesemedicinetools.com I just wanted to say that I have been going through Brandon & Wendy's online Ovarian Reserve course, and I am simply dumbfounded by the incredible depth of the concepts and materials presented in this course. I was mentioning to Lorne Brown this morning, that after going through this course online (and I already took it live in Vancouver last year), I feel like I shouldn't even be treating my patients with diminished ovarian reserve, I should just refer them to Brandon & Wendy. I have been in practice for almost 15 years, the vast majority of that time specializing in the treatment of Infertility, and listening to Brandon and Wendy teach this course, I realize that how little I really understand. It's humbling and inspiring at the same time. But I suppose that is the nature of learning medicine - western or TCM. This is definitely an advanced course that requires several viewings to begin to understand it, digest it, and then apply it. And the really amazing thing about this course - now that I am going through it for the 3rd time - is that it is really an eye-opening glimpse into just how incredible Chinese Medicine is. The first time though it, the course can seem to be primarily focusing on western reproductive physiology, pathology and genetics/epigenetics. But after going through it a second time online, and now a third time online - and having the added benefit of being able to pause and rewind Brandon when I feel like it - I am struck by how beautifully Brandon and Wendy constantly relate the western reproductive concepts to classical Chinese Medicine concepts. I also am very impressed with Pro D's online courses in general - at least the ones that I have purchased and viewed. These courses are organized, concise, informative and professional. They present a ton of information from the best teachers of our medicine alive today, and in this economy, it's such a tremendous service to practitioners to be able to avail ourselves of this level of material, and these amazing teachers, without the added expense of travel, hotel, etc. Pro D is definitely ahead of the curve in terms of CEU training for our profession. Good on you, Pro D. Anyway, that's my 2 cents. Ray Rubio, DAOM, L. Ac. (FABORM) President/CEO ABORM Chair: Reproductive Medicine Specialty/Yo San University DAOM Program Hi Ray, Thanks for the positive feed back on the effort being made at Pro D Seminars. I am happy to see you had the same experience as I had with Brandon`s course. My first time through his course, which was live, I found it heavy with all the material. I read over my notes I made on the hand outs for the second time through and realized how great the course material was. My third time through, again live, I was amazed at the depth of material being shared. My most recent time through, fourth time, was the online version at Pro D Seminars. The way he ties in the details of western science to Chinese medicine also reminded me how much I respect the medicine we practice. It is amazing how much they knew and documented 2000 years ago. His comparison of Genetics and Epigenetics to pre natal essence and post natal essence is bang on. As for you feeling humbled. Ray, I have had countless discussions with you about TCM and fertility. You are in the same class as Brandon and Wendy. Los Angles is lucky to have such great practitioners. Lorne www.acubalance.ca I have also been able to take Brandon and Wendy's course, both live and on line, and agree that it is full of very deep material. They have put a lot of effort into it and their efforts should be applauded. I agree with ray and Lorne that having the ability to watch it several times really helps to let many of the ideas sink in. Probably the biggest piece of empowered information that I have walked away with is a deeper understanding of follicular genesis. I now feel confident to say to patients who have been told by their western physician that their "ovarian reserve" is depleted, based only on an antral follicle count and an FSH reading, is a complete guess at best. Brandon and Wendy explain in great detail how, in actuality, we have NO idea how many eggs remain in a female ovary, laying dormant in their primordial state. By assuming we know based on a hormone test that comes from a gland other than the ovary (FSH comes from the pituitary) and by a temporary snap shot of antral follicles tells us not very much. It can tell us that for some reason the pituitary and ovary are not communicating very well and that for some reason follicular recruitment is slower, but we really do not know exactly how many eggs are left. That a more conclusive test to do would be to test the Anti mullerian hormone, but that even then we cannot definatively say that a woman's reserve is depleted. That in reality we would have to remove and dissect the ovary to truly know. Brandon and Wendy point out many different reasons for low AFC and higher FSH, including FHS receptor problems relating to genetics, inflammation, toxicity, autoimmunity, etc. They provided me with the knowledge and confidence to say to a patient ,who has been told she is at the bottom of her barrel of egg quantity, that she is old and should just give up (even though she may only be 34 years of age!), and that her AFC is what it is and doesn't change, that in reality if the physician that told her this was basing their opinion just on FSH, AFC, and how well they responded to an IVF stimulation, is NOT being very scientific and is not presenting a true picture of physiology. Brandon and Wendy present a clearer picture of the science related to ovarian physiology, so that we can be better advocates for women to not give up. Since watching the course for the second time I have seen at least two women in the past week come back to me with AFC's more than double than their original first few ultra sounds. Both of these women were told by RE's that their AFC will not change and that they are old and should just give up. It looks like science proved them wrong and that by understanding science a bit better I have been able to support and encourage these women to not give up and to keep working on themselves via the great tools of Chinese medicine. And now the work has paid off. Good work to you Brandon and Wendy and to Pro D for providing the vehicle for us to gain this wisdom. Not only have I gained knowledge and confidence, but most importantly, patients have benefited :-) Warm regards, Trevor www.skin.health-info.org www.acubalace.ca Couldn't have said it better Trevor... Trevor - I absolutely agree with the things you have pointed out above. Having a deeper understanding of the physiology and pathology related to ovarian reserve, and ovarian folliculogenesis, gives us as practitioners the confidence to instill in our patients a trust related to the process of TCM in allowing their bodies more access to their pool of oocytes. And as Brandon and Wendy pointed out repeatedly - and Jeffry Yuen emphasized in his course on the Nei Jing - the Classics indicated that intention and focus is one of the most important preconditions in a successful acupuncture treatment. This intention and focus is fostered by understanding the terrain that we are dealing with from both a western reproductive point of view, and a TCM reproductive point of view - i.e., a clear understanding of the meridian pathways and indications, and the indications and functions of Chinese Herbal Medicine. Brandon and Wendy's course is really very empowering for both us and our patients. Ray Rubio, DAOM, L. Ac. (FABORM) President ABORM Chair - Reproductive Medicine Specialty/Yo San University DAOM Program www.westlakecomplementarymedicine.com

There are also some case studies (not many). The material is information dense. If you are interested in a demonstration of the diagnostic and treatment procedures, we also do practicums where we see 8 - 10 patients for one day. We post the dates on our website. They are generally once or twice a year in San Francisco. It's a very good idea to watch the online course before coming to our practicums so you have a context behind why we're doing what we're doing. The next one is on Feb. 7, 2009. Best Regards, Brandon Horn and Wendy Yu www.herbalroom.com