Contact Ian
Ian Claxton MSc. BSc. Lic. Ac. TCM, Dip TCHM (Nanjing, China) Clin. Ac (Beijing, China)
Acupuncture
Chinese Herbal Medicine
Chinese Nutrition Therapy
A question I am often asked is how come a guy ended up specialising in the area of women’s health and in particular fertility, pregnancy and childbirth. Of course it is not something I would have guessed when I was a kid if someone asked what I wanted to do when I grew up!
Like most journeys in life, my path to working in fertility has been a winding one. As a boy my absolute passion was competitive swimming. I was an International swimmer, national and European youth champion and part of the first team to swim around the coast of Ireland. At the time I loved the intense life of a competitive athlete, and I discovered how comfortable I felt in the company of women, listening to their thoughts and concerns.
In University I studied biotechnology and chemistry and began working in the areas of medical diagnostics and then pharmaceuticals. Before long however I felt a pull to work with people in a more connected way. I contemplated returning to university to study medicine, but in my internet searches to find the best course, the words ‘Chinese Medicine’ jumped out at me like long-lost friends. I read everything I could about this inspiring holistic approach and began my acupuncture training. I soon found myself working in a hospital in China and feeling absolute joy at seeing people respond to their treatment. The more people we treated, the more I could see the effectiveness of natural foods, herbs, acupuncture and lifestyle change. On returning to Ireland I opened –
The Elmtree Clinic in Oranmore, Co. Galway in 2007.
In 2009 I became a Dad and this has been the greatest influence on my life so far. We endured our own struggle with fertility and I saw first-hand how a mind-body treatment approach could turn fertility around. I wanted to share my learning with as many couples as possible, and in time this became the main focus of my practice and my life’s work.
As a parent of four small children I can see how much my edges have softened in the past few years. Whatever competitive streak I had has disappeared and been replaced with a yearning to help as many couples have a successful pregnancy as I possibly can. The Elmtree Clinic is the means to help me do that!
In my practice I treat women at all stages of their reproductive life – from menarche, through pregnancy, menopause and beyond. I give treatments to help women with many conditions such as irregular or painful cycles, menopausal, hot flashes, PCOS, endometriosis and various hormonal imbalances.
I also give acupuncture treatments to support couples seeking to conceive – whether naturally or through assisted fertility procedures such as IVF, IUI or ICSI and work alongside IVF programmes in the Galway Fertility Unit, for which I’m the recommended Acupuncturist.
I am so inspired about how this work can help people’s lives and families to bloom!
| The Elmtree Clinic |
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| Oranmore Co. Galway |