About Me – My Journey

“It’s dangerous business, Frodo, going out of your door. You step onto the road, and if you don’t keep your feet, there is no knowing where you might be swept off to.” – Gandalf the Grey, Lord of the Rings.

Hey! 

I’m Bettina Gross: An intrigued adventurer, acupuncturist, herbalist, nutritionist, and accredited holistic pediatric health coach. I’m also a mom who is passionate about investigating children’s health. My curious nature and interest in this area is why I’m driven to help other moms find ways to strengthen their child’s immune system through a holistic approach.

When people ask me why I am so determined to make a difference in children’s health, these chapters in my life must be told:

I grew up in a world surrounded by people who preferred the known to being curious. This wasn’t for me. To put it simply, I wanted more. I wanted to explore the world to find out what existed…

As a child, I was always fascinated by the human body. When it came time to choose what to major in at university, I couldn’t bring myself to pick conventional western medicine and instead found myself selecting biomedical technology.

I worked in a laboratory and then switched to diagnostics, specializing in tissue diagnostics. The heavy workload began to weigh me down, and even though the field was interesting, after 10 years I found myself asking ‘Is this it?’ 

This question was the beginning of my own epic journey.

As fate would have it, it was around this time I went on a ‘short’ trip to the United States… and returned 6 years later. 

I gave up my job in the diagnostic industry to follow my dream of healing people and supporting them throughout their healing process. This led me to study at the Pacific College of Oriental Medicine, one of the most prestigious TCM colleges in the United States. I was lucky enough to be accepted and spent the next 5 years living and breathing Chinese medicine. 

In 2013, after undergoing rigorous training in acupuncture, Chinese herbal science, conventional medicine and TCM theory, I graduated with honors and earned my Master of Science in Oriental Medicine. With a national exam, I received accreditation to practice acupuncture and Chinese Herbalism (NCCAOM) in the United States.

Just like Frodo, who felt compelled to return to the Shire, I left America to move back to Austria, where I opened my own practice in 2014 called TCM Nexus. 

However, due to Austrian regulations, my scope of TCM work was restricted and with a heavy heart, I had to close my practice after only being open for 1 year. 

It wouldn’t be for another 2 years before I found my true calling and purpose...and it changed my life completely. 

In September 2017, my son was born and a whole new chapter of my life began. As I was not the healthiest child, I became worried that my son may have similar health problems, and this began my journey back to Chinese Medicine. I began to research and train in holistic pediatric care, and it wasn’t long before Empowered Mom. Healthy Child was born. 

Empowered Mom, Healthy Child focuses on children's holistic health topics and helping moms to prepare their child for a healthy life with TCM.

Through my holistic pediatric health coaching and courses, my aim became to inspire moms to take initiative with their child’s health by encouraging them to incorporate TCM into their lives. 

Through Empowered Mom, Healthy Child I have finally found my purpose, which is to serve as many families as possible through the field of holistic pediatric care and TCM. 

If you’d like to learn more, please reach out. Together we can bring health and wellbeing to your family, so you can raise healthy, happy children and live the family life you have always dreamed of.