A Different Type Of Needle For Fertility
The first piece of advice I offer women is…………...find an acupuncturist. There have been so many benefits of intertwining Eastern and Western medicine. So much that now some fertility centers have an acupuncturist within the office. My acupuncturist was working in the same center as my doctors and midwives.
“Why?” We all have blocked energy running throughout our bodies. Have you ever had an ache or pain that gets stuck in that one spot? And no matter how much you rub it or take pain medication for it, it keeps reoccurring. Acupuncture can help heal the wound or move the blocked energy from that area.
3 Reasons to get yourself to an acupuncturist:
1. Acupuncture improves blood flow
Acupuncture can increase blood flow by slowing down (or “down-regulating”) the nervous system (central sympathetic nervous system) which then causes the blood vessels to dilate. When the vessels dilate, they release a flood of nutrient dense blood to the ovaries and uterus. Increased ovarian blood flow may help with response to fertility medications. Increased uterine blood flow ensures a thick uterine lining and sets up an ideal environment for implantation. Better response, better eggs, better lining.
2. Acupuncture reduces stress
Couples undergoing fertility treatments experience immense amounts of stress. It is a common reason for stopping treatment altogether. Acupuncture can help reduce the stress. Research shows that when needles are placed in the skin, the body releases its own natural pain killers (endorphins). Endorphins are responsible for the relaxed feeling one gets after a session. It causes your muscles to relax, your breathing to slow, and your mind to calm. We call it “acu-stoned.” This blissful benefit from acupuncture was cited by IVF patients as helping them feel more relaxed during their fertility treatment, and as a result, also feel more “in control.”
3. Acupuncture improves your odds of having a baby with IVF.
I think we are looking at the wrong “dose” of acupuncture. Just like the amount of gonadotropins is important to ensuring egg development, so is the dose of acupuncture. In my own published research, I looked at five years of data on women who did IVF alone and compared that with women who added acupuncture on the day of embryo transfer and women who had acupuncture during their IVF cycles, around 13 to 15 sessions. The women who added more acupuncture sessions were twice as likely to have a baby compared to women who did IVF alone, and 60% more likely when compared with women who just had two acupuncture treatments on the day of embryo transfer. Acupuncture helped their IVF outcomes. The key difference was that patients received more treatment. (By Lee Hullender Rubin, DAOM, LAc, FABORM Acupuncturist at Oregon Reproductive Medicine and Portland Acupuncture Studio)
Be Well! Carry On, Goddesses!