Conversations with the Inspiring Jana Royer-Morian

Today we’d like to introduce you to Jana Royer-Morian.

Jana, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I am a Colorado Native and very proud of it. I was raised by a single mom and a sister who is 14 years older than I am. Both of them did very well in their careers but neither of them have college degrees, and out of a group of 9 girlfriends in high school, I was the only one who didn’t graduate with honors. I grew up wanting to be a Marine Biologist and study sharks, however both my mom and sister have told me before I even wanted to swim with sharks, I wanted to be a doctor (I don’t remember that part). When I finished high school, I took a little time before eventually moving to Hilo, Hawaii to get my degree in Marine Science from the University of Hawaii. I worked in student housing to help me pay for my college and eventually graduated in 2003.

I worked in the field for a few minutes but it wasn’t exactly what I expected so in 2004, I started graduate school at Southwest Acupuncture College. My now sister-in-law suggested I go to school for acupuncture and then I could eventually work with her at her busy practice using acupuncture to address allergies. I had never had acupuncture when I started school and I thought it was all such a weird medicine for my biology based, science mind. I did not enjoy grad school, the verbiage was different, the medical model didn’t make sense and I didn’t feel I fit in with the other students who had all grown up using some form of alternative medicine.

The true gift of acupuncture school was in my first clinical rotation I ended up at an oncology clinic in Longmont and I got to see how acupuncture could be used to treat more than just allergies. My sister has had several different kinds of cancers (and has a clean bill of health currently) so seeing how acupuncture could support people going through traditional cancer treatment made me feel like there was a purpose in ending up at Grad school. I finished the program in three years instead of the standard four which felt pretty impressive for the girl who didn’t graduate with honors.

And once I graduated, I immediately opened a private practice in 2007 rather than working for anybody. To this day, I still specialize in working with patients who are going thru, or recovering from, cancer treatments, but I have also found a specialty in fertility medicine. I feel lucky to have opened a business at the time I did with the economic downturn and survived. I feel lucky to have accidentally stumbled into this strange medicine that has given me the tools to help thousands of patients. I feel lucky to have a career that allows me to continue to learn and geek out about science. And I feel lucky that the older I’ve gotten and the more “me” that I’ve become, the more successful I’ve become. I’m grateful that my patients have trusted me with some of the scariest things in their life like cancer diagnosis or miscarriages.

In 2017, after ten years of clinical practice I decided to go back to school to finish my education and finally become the Doctor I apparently wanted to be when I was a toddler. Two years in med school, while running a busy practice was torture, but I wanted the title so it was worth it. Today, I am the least “doctor-y” Doctor out there, but I know my stuff and have been practicing a long time; I take what I do seriously but not myself which I think makes it easy for my patients to trust in me but also relate to me. We’re now working on some big expansion stuff so I hope to continue to grow my business, my staff and our services so we can help even more people. And I hope to have even more fun in this company I have built.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
I think that comparison and circumstance are two big things that can hold people back. I often felt like “the dumb one” since school was tough for me, but now I’m the only one who has the title Doctor. And I think that being raised by a single mom, without a lot of resources, could have led me down a path of settling for less than I knew I was capable of. I paid for my own education, I worked my tail off, I had jobs during school and I became an entrepreneur without any background in business. Hard work and willingness to figure things out goes a long way.

And when I was opening my business, I never let myself think about all the things that could go wrong, and I never let myself listen to the people in my life who tried to talk me out of chasing my dreams. Often people will say things out of fear, even if it comes from a place of love that will make you feel like you shouldn’t go for big dreams. But if there’s a voice in your head that pulls you towards something, just say yes and figure the rest out along the way.

What should we know about Inspired Wellness Center? What do you do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
I opened Inspired Wellness Center in 2007 with no prior business experience or any real idea of what I was doing. I had three jobs when I first started my business and worked from 5:30a to 10:30p. Eventually, I was able to only work in my practice but I think that “sink or swim” mentality helped me just close my eyes and go for it, thankfully I’m a very good swimmer.

I’m primarily known for working with couples who are trying to conceive, but I also have an affinity for helping people who are going thru cancer treatments. I believe I have created a reputation for being honest and making people feel comfortable like they are talking to one of their best friends. I like to joke that I am a little ridiculous, a little over the top, and I’ll do just about anything for a laugh. But I believe people trust that with my 16 years of experience and all my continuing education that I know what I am doing. I am not terribly “woo-woo” so IWC in a good fit for those who are skeptical of alternative/complementary medicine and I’ve been easily accepted by some of the top docs in Denver, working side by side in patient care. When I first started in practice, I would often get phone calls from people who “didn’t want spells or crystals or chanting,” people had no idea about acupuncture and what it could do. Now I get regular referrals from doctors who insist that their patients get acupuncture, it makes me grateful to have watched this profession grow up and become so widely accepted.

All in all, I have a job that I genuinely love and I have created a company that I am super proud of. We are currently a staff of three but will be expanding in 2020 in some really exciting directions. We are actively involved in our community and hope to be even more so going forward. In general, I believe I have one of the coolest jobs in the world.

What do you feel are the biggest barriers today to female leadership, in your industry or generally?
I believe that female leadership has come a long way since I have been a professional. There are many women-owned business and social media is full of messages about “go girl”, side hustles while raising a family and equality. The area that I hope to contribute to, and see grow from here are messages about women not only being a boss but those who are chasing their dreams and crushing their game. I recently read a stat that only 2% of women-owned businesses will ever make over a million dollars in revenue.

I think there’s need to be more women out there playing big, true mogels, who are carving their own path and doing things their own way. Women who work hard and live well, women who don’t have to trade femininity, friends or a family to be uber successful. I want to see women who aren’t insta-perfect, women who are authentic in their struggle and in what it takes to overcome it, women who are figuring it out despite the odds and women supporting other women. Those are the female leaders I want to see more of.

Contact Info:

• Address: Inspired Wellness Center
  8435 W. 80th Ave
  Arvada, CO 80005
• Website: www.inspired-wellness.com
• Phone: 303-377-1365
• Email: jana@inspired-wellness.com
• Instagram: @janaroyermorian
• Facebook: /InspiredWellnessCenter

Image Credit:
Green shirt @audreymichel. Orange scarf and in the email the one of my office manager (stephanie) and I, as well as the one by the olde town sign is @lizzierandazzo. Llama picture and koala pic in email is mine.

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