AN investment of £50,000 has led to expansion of a specialised health, wellbeing and fertility clinic in Belfast which has so far assisted in the conception of 804 babies born to Northern Ireland couples.
Based in new self-contained premises on the Lisburn Road, the move for Logan Wellbeing and Medical has led to the creation of 13 additional jobs for the business pioneered by clinic director and Belfast mother-of-two, Ruth Ellen Logan.
The new posts cover a range of specialities and include doctor, prescriber, six practitioners, two fertility specialist nurses, aesthetic nurse and two administration staff.
Having previously operated from city centre premises in Montgomery Street – shared with Ruth Ellen's other business, The Beauty Company for over eight years – the move has been prompted by growing demand for The Logan Fertility Method which is based on a "combination of medical and naturopathic advice" and includes therapies such as reiki, reflexology and CBT (cognitive behavioural therapy).
Chief among the complementary treatments are acupressure, acupuncture, meditation and 'Maya abdominal massage' which the businesswoman claims helps re-position the uterus and improve organ function.
Physiotherapy for injury rehabilitation is also among an expanded list of services, along with Reviv IV intravenous therapy and a number aesthetics and sports treatments.
"We are starting hypnotherapy, yoga and 'bump' classes for expectant mums soon and we will also be able to offer specialist blood testing for fertility, so it is a very exciting time for Logan Wellbeing and Medical," Ruth Ellen said. "We have lots of new developments in the pipeline.
"I spent three years searching for a perfect red brick house on the Lisburn Road and I am delighted to have found it – complete with five spacious treatment rooms. It is exactly how I imagined – the perfect sanctuary."
Although still considered somewhat 'unconventional' in a Northern Ireland context, Mary Ellen says the fertility treatments are being more widely accepted by the mainstream medical profession and she is now receiving increasing numbers of referrals from consultants and GPs.
"This is a real step forward and shows there is space for medical and natural therapies to work together," she said. "Consultants do a fantastic job, but they really don't have the time for a two-and-a-half hour consultation with women who want to become pregnant – and that's where we come in."
Mum to daughter Aiyana (6) and son Tommy (4), her passion stems from former emotional pain of failure to conceive herself, due to ectopic pregnancy and subsequent rupture of her Fallopian tubes.
"I was 27 with no Fallopian tubes and so I started to explore IVF (In vitro fertilisation)," she explains. "Then, I discovered the Maya massage technique which can work alongside IVF and is especially effective if you have abdominal adhesions.
"I was so struck by it that I travelled to America and trained to become a practitioner in Greenfield, Massachusetts, using my own body for experimentation. There was no-one doing Maya massage in any part of Ireland and very limited numbers in the UK, so it was something very new.
"Maya massage not only worked for me, but for more than half my clients, most of whom had previously been written off by the medical experts. It’s not just a belly rub – it’s a holistic approach to treating the body."
A two and-a-half hour consultation costs £180, with sessions ranging from £70 up to £135. Drip therapy prices begin at £150 and injectables are £29.
