Tag: natural health

Acupuncture for Fertility

As an ancient and holistic approach, acupuncture has been proven to be a safe, drug free, accessible treatment option for pre-baby self care, conception, maintaining a healthy pregnancy and in difficulty conceiving. If you’re thinking about having a baby and are curious about what acupuncture can assist you with, lets get you informed on the basics of acupuncture for fertility.

Some Positive Effects of Acupuncture Treatments for Fertility include:

  • Increasing blood flow to reproductive organs in both partners
  • Creating balanced hormone levels which in turn produces a larger number of follicles
  • Regulating a woman’s cycle to create a consistent ovulation period
  • Improving the uterine lining to encourage a successful implantation
  • Increasing the quality of eggs being released
  • Reducing FSH levels (follicle stimulating hormone)
  • Increasing a guys count, shape and mobility of sperm
  • Has been shown to decrease the chance of a miscarriage

How does Acupuncture Treat Infertility? 
Acupuncture has been proven to affect the function of the:

  • Central Nervous System: responsible for the the control of our thought processes, movement, and provides sensation throughout the body
  • Endocrine System: in charge of hormones and chemical substances produced in the body that regulate the activity of our cells or organs.

By utilizing treatment to prescribed points, Acupuncture works to detox the body from chemicals, medications, and substances enhancing the body’s likelihood of conception while directly regulating the Ovarian Hormonal Axis; a system that works together to regulate development, reproduction, ageing and many other body processes. Promoting an increase of blood flow to the pelvic areas treatments create a refresh to the ovaries, uterus and testicles which is essentially important for conception.

In Traditional Chinese Medicine conditions of poor blood flow and energetic congestion relate to signs and symptoms which may be contributing factors to fertility issues.

These conditions may include:

  • Amenorrhea
  • Painful periods
  • Discomfort during sex
  • PMS
  • Endometriosis
  • Polycystic ovarian syndrome
  • Tubule blockage
  • Uterine fibroids
  • Clotting
  • Migraines with menstral cycles
  • Increased follicle stimulating hormone
  • Poor quality of sperm

How long does it generally take to get Pregnant when using Acupuncture for Infertility?

Compared to many fertility medications that provide a powerful affect over a short duration, acupuncture is more subtle and accumulative, producing significant long lasting results.

It can take a minimum of three months (and cycles) to regulate a woman’s hormonal system regardless of age. As there is a four-phase cycle of menstruation (follicular, ovulation, luteal, menstruation) hormonal adjustments are made during each week of the cycle. Usually, women conceive anywhere between 6 to 12 months with a consistent treatment schedule.

However, if acupuncture is used with assisted reproductive technology such as IVF, the treatment period varies depending on the success of the procedure.

Suggested Acupuncture Visit Cycles:

One Visit Per Week : for woman preparing their bodies for conception, coming off birth control, having mildly irregular cycles, those without a diagnosis related to infertility.

Two Visit’s Per Week: for an absence of a period, Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome, endometriosis, poor responders, for woman over 35 and male factor infertility

How do you know if Acupuncture Treatments are Working?

If you are currently not taking any hormones, you can take your basal body temperature every morning when you first wake up. It’s not a fool proof method of detecting ovulation, but it will give you an idea of your hormone fluctuation patters. By observing changes from month to month during treatment, it can help you measure your progress and consistency.
Acupuncture treatment focuses on improving your overall health. After receiving a series of treatments many experience easier menses, a decrease or stop of PMS, increases energy, decreased anxiety and better quality of sleep. When your body is aligned and healthy – conception is generally not far behind.

How does Acupuncture Compliment Western Medicine in the treatment of Infertility?

Many patients receive Acupuncture while undergoing IVF (In Vitro Fertilization) or IUI (Intra Uterine Insemination) treatments. Acupuncturists have specialized training to enhance Western treatments and work towards increasing your success rate even further while also minimizing the side affects you may be experiencing from IVF medication.
It’s recommended that patients begin receiving acupuncture once or twice a week, two to three months prior to an IVF procedure. This allows the body to regulate the central nervous system and hormonal systems creating an increase in the quality of the follicles, uterine blood circulation, thickening of the uterine lining and improving egg quality before retrieval and embryo transfer. Ultimately, enhancing the ability for implantation.

5 Ways Massage Therapy Keeps You Younger


Being proactive about healthy choices and balance are key to aging gracefully. The benefits of massage are one of the most enjoyable, drug free choices for maintaining a healthy lifestyle and staying in check with your body.
Here’s 5 reasons Massage Therapy can help you feel younger, whatever age you are!

1. Helping you cope with stress
Having an outlet for stress is a major tool for keeping in check when life becomes complex. Massages have a powerful affect on the nervous system, allowing our bodies and minds to deeply relax and decompress. Stress puts major strain on our body’s overall systems, which as we know, can lead to more complicated health problems down the line.

2. Increasing mobility
We should all strive to keep active and get moving, but when an injury arises or our bodies feel out of whack, the idea of getting active and pushing ourselves gets brushed aside.

Massages get you in-tune with your body needs and allows tissues and joints extra space to move more freely and perform better. If you’re stuck in a holding pattern of restriction and discomfort, massage is a great way to help break the cycle.

3. Circulation
Circulation is key to vitality, that’s why getting your blood pressure checked is called taking your vitals! If circulation to an area is sluggish from things like restriction, scar tissue, adhesion’s from tension knots and sticky fascia, it makes it more difficult for fresh blood flow to pump oxygen and nutrients to area’s that need it to open the pathway. Massage therapists work to open these restrictions with added techniques to encourage an increase in circulation.

The post massage circulatory work can continue for days to weeks after a session, so unless you’re Lance Armstrong, you can utilize massage to keep that fresh circulation flowing.

4. Body Awareness
It’s easy to ignore the small discomforts and the subtle signals that the body is out of alignment and needing a tune-up. Checking in with your therapist and getting some self-care is a great way to connect to your body and understand why things are feeling off.

A massage therapist has a mountain of knowledge and education about muscles, movement and biology of how the body works. With the one on one time that you have with your therapist in a session, it’s a great opportunity to inform yourself. They also love to talk about stretching and home-care practices, so you can learn the tools to take better care of issues when they arise.

5. Sleep Support
For many people, getting the hard z’s every night comes with it’s challenges. Not sleeping well puts us in a daze, and lethargy is a tough wall to push through.

Getting a therapeutic massage can be a great tool for getting a good nights sleep. Not only is your nervous system super relaxed, but generally after deep tissue work, your body creates a healthy fatigue to put energy towards processing the changes in the tissue after a treatment. Getting a massage later in the day and then heading home to relax with the intent of getting some sleep, could lock you into some solid lights out time.
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So the next time you walk out of a massage in a happy daze, give yourself a high five for giving back to your body and all it’s done for you – over the years.

Thanks for reading!