James Robinson
5 years ago
I highly recommend Dr. Macari of New England Family Osteopathy for any child with chronic ear infections and/or asthma.
My daughter had her first ear infection when she was six months old, and we soon found ourselves stuck in a cycle of monthly ear infections and antibiotics. During this time, she was also diagnosed with reactive airway disease and required daily nebulizer treatments. Reluctant to have our daughter on so many doses of inhaled corti-steroids and courses of antibiotics, my wife and I tried anything and everything to get the infections to clear up without antibiotics, and reduce her dependency on the nebulizer—all to no avail. By the time she was 18 months old, we felt we had no other choice than to put tubes in her ears. Four months later, right before the winter cold/flu season, her right ear tube fell out, and the ear infections immediately returned, and we were faced with the prospect of another surgery for ear tubes.
A new neighbor recommended that my wife and I take her to see Dr. Macari, an osteopath. I was unsure what osteopathy was, and how it might help my daughter, but after doing some research, felt it was worth a try. I was unsure how my daughter would tolerate the treatment, but it was evident from the start that Dr. Macari has lots of experience treating children, including very active 2 year olds! She played with a variety of toys while Dr. Macari gently treated various areas of her body. To me, it looked like a very gentle massage, and at no point did she seem to be uncomfortable or frightened.
We saw Dr. Macari a couple more times, and I began to notice that her breathing seemed better. The real test came when she was diagnosed with another ear infection. While her pediatrician advised treating with antibiotics, we asked to ‘wait and watch’ and sought out the help of Dr. Macari. I can’t describe the sense of relief I felt when I brought her back for an ear check a few days later and was told that the infection had cleared. While we had tried this approach in the past, it was never successful. We were also given the go ahead to begin to wean her off her nebulizers!
I look forward to working with Dr. Macari to continue to improve my daughter’s health. He is very knowledgeable about children’s health issues, both from conventional and holistic perspectives. He is a great resource and ally for parents struggling to make the best health care choices for their child(ren). He is personable, great with kids, and very accommodating. My only regret is that we didn’t start working with him sooner.
Nicole Yoga
5 years ago
A 5-star experience. T.J. Macari is very knowledgeable and enthusiastic about his practice and what he offers his patients. I have reservations about what my 'Western medical' experience has to offer me (in terms of preventative and care for chronic imbalances), so have been working with alternative health professionals for over a decade now. Dr. Macari offers a solid, complementary practice to help sustain health and work with structural and muscular imbalances that often cause dis-ease; I am reassured that he reinforces the important notion that we are responsible for our own health and can work with practices like Osteopathy, Acupuncture, Massage, Yoga, Meditation, etc., to support, enhance and preserve personal efforts towards healthy living and a balanced body. My 13-year son is also a patient of Dr. Macari's and (having been diagnosed with and treated for Lymes disease this past summer) continues to follow up with Dr. Macari as a way of working with this 'chronic' infection. THANK YOU!