About Caitlin
Caitlin Donovan, L.Ac. graduated from Pacific College of Oriental Medicine, San Diego in early 2007 with a Masters of Oriental Medicine. After deciding to pursue her Masters Degree,  Caitlin had the opportunity to visit China before beginning her studies. She spent three months teaching English and observing the natural tendencies of the Chinese. She watched Qi Gong being done on the mountain trails in the early morning, small children doing basic Tui Na massages on their teachers during breaks and a small town acupuncturist removing her needles from glass jars  to relieve the aches and pains of the villagers. Here’s what Caitlin has to say about her experience:
The ease with which everything around me seemed to function was amazing. I had, at this point, read The Web That Has No Weaver by Ted Kaptchuk and had a basic understanding of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). What blew me away the most was to actually see these things in action! The Chinese, even through the years have managed to maintain a sense of harmony in their surrounding environments. They don’t just live on the earth, they live with it. I could not wait to get back to the States and start learning this exceptional medicine and way of life.
After completing her education, Caitlin had a chance to return to China to complete an additional internship at the Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine. It was here that her passion for women’s health grew.
I’ve been here on the gynecology ward in the teaching hospital for three days. We are seeing about 30 patients an hour and it has been tough to keep up with everything the doctor is saying, even with the translator by my side. I have found out in three days that women are being cured of painful periods, infertility, various menopause issues, prolonged menstrual bleeding, postpartum depression and so on.   In the health care system that I was familiar with, there were only two options for women with these issues: hormones and surgery. I experienced this first-hand on my 17th birthday, when I had surgery to remove and extra large and quickly growing ovarian cyst.
It was the realization that TCM offered women effective therapeutic alternatives that led Caitlin to choosing the specialization of Women’s Health in the framework of TCM.
After the gynecology internship in China, Caitlin moved from San Diego, California to Warsaw, Poland to be with her husband. In Poland, she created the opportunity  to become the very first acupuncturist in the country to work in a western fertility clinic (www.novum.com.pl). This experience has lead Caitlin to be very familiar with both western and eastern views of fertility and most of all with the most beneficial ways of combining these two medicines for optimal results. Because of this wonderful experience, Caitlin is now proficient in both western and eastern views of fertility; and most importantly, the best ways to combine these two systems of medicine for optimal results. Caitlin has seen patients with problems such as: endometriosis, high FSH, low ovarian reserve, polycystic ovarian syndrome, amenorrhea, dysmenorrhea, irregular cycles, and blocked fallopian tubes. With Caitlin’s treatments, more women become pregnant both naturally and with the assistance of western medicine.
While working with these patients, Caitlin often heard doctors and other patients saying “just relax”. Knowing that acupuncture is an effective relaxation technique, Caitlin felt there was a way to use this to her patients’ advantage, but was unsure of the exact process. There had to be a way, a method, a series of steps that patients could use in order to gain control of emotions and levels of relaxation and stress. At this point, Caitlin started searching. She found The Fertile Soul Method run by Randine Lewis and Robin Saraswati Tiberi. While in Poland, it was not an option for Caitlin to attend this training, but she read all the books that she could. She then formed a group with a lifecoach, Ewa BÅ‚aszczak, called “Poszukiwacie Skarbow” or “Treasure Hunters - finding your internal gems that help you gain control of your life, starting today”.
Through this group, Caitlin and Ewa have been able to help patients  continue their lives and see fertility in all things, including themselves. Patients became aware of their own inner voices, beliefs and doubts and learned how to adjust them and use each of them where and when they are most beneficial. The most important part, according to Caitlin, is that patients started smiling again. They found health, fertility and strength they were not aware that they had. Instead of waiting for the “perfect, happy life” to arrive in the future, they laughed together and started living a life that is positive at each present moment.