Jennifer Farrow West, L.Ac
I began my healing journey 25 years ago when I lost my best friend in a car accident. She was driving up to visit me from L.A. when she fell asleep at the wheel. I could barely recognize her unconscious in the hospital and stayed with her until she passed. Afterwards, life became challenging as I fell into a deep depression and struggled with anxiety, panic attacks, loss of appetite/weight and insomnia. The medical doctors I saw could only go so far, prescribing various medications before running to off to their next patient. It wasn’t until I started working with my Mom’s best friend, a gifted acupuncturist, that I began to see the changes I was looking for. The profound experience of emotional healing, treating the root causes of my imbalances naturally, changed the trajectory of my life and opened my eyes to the inherent limits of western medicine and infinite healing capability of the human body when seen through the holistic lens of integrative medicine.
After 4 years of eastern medical education, clinical rotations and an Internal Medicine Internship at the Hubei Dazhong Hospital in Wuhan, China I graduated from Pacific College of Oriental Medicine(Sand Diego, CA) in 2001. Currently, I am a National Board Certified Acupuncturist with over 19 years experience, specializing in mental / emotional imbalance, digestive and sleep disorders, autoimmune disease and general wellness.
Jonathan H. West, L.Ac
I’ve always considered myself a healer at heart as far back as I can remember but my turning point came in the early 90’s when I was given Deepak Chopra’s Perfect Health (one of the original holistic health best sellers) from my mother (a social worker). At the same time, my father (a medical doctor) took me to learn Siddha Yoga meditation practices in Oakland, California. To experience mindfulness as a young adult, to experiment with food as medicine and see the healing power of different herbs and supplements opened up a whole new way of life. In 2000, I enrolled at Pacific College of Health & Science in San Diego, CA to formalize my studies and meet my future wife, Jennifer West L.Ac.. After two years I transfered to East West College of Natural Medicine for their combined Bachelors / Masters Degree Program in Sarasota, Florida. I received my NCCAOM national board certification in 2004 and we opened our first wellness center Frontier Health Inc. shortly after. I also decided to re-enroll in school, this time at Five Branches University in Santa Cruz, CA for advanced clinical rotations and to complete a second Master’s Degree Program with emphasis on mental health conditions and addiction protocols serving the considerable homeless population in Santa Cruz County.
Jen and I currently practice Japanese Meridian Therapy (JMT) which is a gentle, effective, pulse balancing technique (many patients fall asleep on the table during treatment). JMT also utilizes the technique of moxibustion (moxa) which boosts immunity, calms the nervous system, reduces pain and extends the benefits of the acupuncture treatment.
We love empowering patients to understand their bodies, their innate healing powers and discover the gentle power of holistic medicine. We regard each patient as a whole, looking at all lifestyle aspects that can have an affect on their health. We also offer a wealth of knowledge in herbal medicine and believe in the healing potential of food as medicine. We believe in comforting, cultivating and healing from the inside out. We also enjoy being able to bridge the gap between western medicine and more holistic modalities, while providing a safe and nurturing atmosphere in which to begin healing.
