Hi lovelies, sorry I’ve been a bit slack lately and have been meaning to do a quick review of a Chinese Herbalist and Acupuncturist who I’d been seeing during IVF#1.
The centre is called Chain’s and is run by Mrs Chain, their head Chinese doctor. Her support doctor is a Dr. Tam who although looks very young, seems very knowledgeable. I was introduced to them through a friend and what I like most about Mrs Chain’s approach, is that she combines her knowledge of Eastern and Western techniques. She isn’t one of those mystical old skool herbalists who’ll tell you “I’ll make you pregnant” or “I’ll get you your baby” once you take this magical pill types. She’s actually quite scientific in her approach and she made sure she worked alongside my IVF timeline to ensure that there would be no clash between the Chinese herbs that I was taking and my stimulation injections. Even if she hadn’t had done this, I would have insisted that we stopped the herbs before I started stimming as Chinese herbs (including Dong Quai), contain estrogen hormones which could interfere with the injections (also hormones) and mess up your system.
I also saw Mrs Chain for acupuncture. For the first couple of sessions, I got the rooms with the warm stone table which was lovely as it really heated my inner body up. She used needles on my abdomen, legs and sometimes head areas (if I request it) and they’ll put a curved heater over my abdomen for 20 mins whilst I lay there. I fell asleep at almost every acupuncture session, it was so good! After 20 mins, they’ll come to remove the needles and I’ll turn on my stomach so that they could do my lower back and calves. Again, a heater is placed over the lower back area and I’m left to take a nap for a further 20 mins. Bliss! Once the time is up, my whole body and insides feel really warm and fuzzy which is nice during the cooler months. I usually take a bathroom break after getting changed and have a warm cup of herbal tea that they make available to all customers for free. Does the acupuncture hurt? Not really, although sometimes on my lower back and calves, I’ll experience a dull prolonged ache. It’s a tad uncomfortable but it’s bearable.
I saw Mrs Chain for a few months prior to IVF#1 as well as after my MC. She’s very mumsy and pleasant. Although I didn’t do any Chinese medicine or acupuncture during IVF#2, I’d still recommend Chain’s if you’re looking to give TCM a try. Another pro is that the centre is conveniently located in Central at Regent Centre (above Sasa on Queeen’s Road Central).
A major con however, is the wait time, even when you have a pre-booked appointment. If you want to see Mrs Chain (which is what you’re paying for), expect 45mins – 1.5hrs wait, no kidding. The worst was when I waited 3 hours! Usually, they’ll try to get you to see Dr. Tam to relieve Mrs Chain’s burden and I’ve done this a couple of times with no issues. It also isn’t cheap – around HK$800 for an acupuncture session if I remember correctly and once you add 5-7 days of herbs, it’ll bring the total to around HK$1,700-2,000 a pop.
The centre is renovated with a warm and earthy feel and they offer a wide range of services from Chinese medicine to acupuncture, stone chamber healing rooms and massages and facials if you feel like some pampering whilst you’re there.
Website: https://www.chains.hk
Tel: (852) 2525 9288 / (852) 2525 9919
Fax: (852) 2525 6168
Email: enquiries@chains.hk
Address: 15F, Regent Centre, 88 Queen’s Road Central, Central, Hong Kong
Disclaimer:
*This blog contains some graphic language. Read at your own risk 
*Contents of this blog are based on my personal opinion and own experiences and in no way represents professional medical advice. Please exercise your own judgement when making decisions.
*TCM centres featured here are my personal recommendations and I have not been paid or incentivised to recommend them.
Love, Hope, Jabs and Probes Copyright 2017
Love, Hope, Jabs and Probes 