What is traditional Chinese medicine?
Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) refers to acupuncture, moxibustion, Chinese herbal medicine as well as other modalities. It is a system of healthcare that has evolved over thousands of years.
TCM believes that the body’s vital energy, called qi, flows along specific channels or meridians. It is a holistic medicine and looks at how imbalances in the entire body contribute to medical conditions. Correcting imbalances can be accomplished by acupuncture and herbal medicine, as well as dietary changes and exercise such as Tai Qi and Qi Gong.
How traditional Chinese medicine affects the body and fertility
Acupuncture treatment involves the stimulation of acupuncture points, which are believed to stimulate the central nervous system and promote natural healing abilities. This process releases chemicals into the muscles, spinal cord, and brain, which can help ease chronic pain, arthritis, low back pain, and various conditions such as gastritis, irritable bowel syndrome, hepatitis, anxiety, depression, and insomnia.
These biochemical changes may stimulate the body’s natural healing abilities and promote physical and emotional well-being.
Benefits of traditional Chinese medicine for fertility
Acupuncture offers a gentle and holistic approach to enhancing fertility, promoting stress reduction, improving blood and Qi flow to the reproductive system, and reducing the side effects of fertility medications.
Acupuncture needles are carefully placed at specific points to stimulate the body's natural healing processes, with proper needle placement being crucial for effective treatment. Acupuncture can also boost the immune system, increase sperm count and motility in men, and regulate hormones and menstrual cycles in women.
What to expect during your first visit as a fertility patient:
At East Village Acupuncture, we regularly work with patients seeking acupuncture treatments to support fertility, including those undergoing IVF procedures. Join us as we explore how Chinese medicine can support your journey to parenthood.
Upon arrival, your practitioner will check your tongue and take your pulse (these are diagnostic methods in TCM), ask questions about sleep, digestion, and your menstrual cycle currently and historically. This will help us to determine your TCM pattern and choose the acupuncture points that are appropriate for you.
Following your treatment, your acupuncturist will provide you with a personalized treatment plan. Chinese medicine (TCM) is very effective at regulating the menstrual cycle, and having a regular cycle is the first step to conceiving.
What is a regular cycle?
A regular cycle refers to the pattern and timing of menstruation that is considered normal and healthy for an individual. The typical length of a menstrual cycle is around 28 days, but it can range from 21 to 35 days.
For teenagers and women approaching menopause, cycles may vary more widely. Menstrual bleeding typically lasts between 3 to 7 days, with 5 days being average. In a regular cycle, the flow of menstrual blood is usually moderate and consistent throughout the period, not excessively heavy or scant.
A menstrual cycle generally indicates regular ovulation, which is the release of an egg from the ovary. This typically occurs around the middle of the cycle.
Often young women with painful or heavy periods are put on the birth control pill at a young age. This can treat the symptoms but ignores the underlying root condition. After years of being on the birth control pill with no ovulation, it can be hard for a woman to regulate their cycle later in life. For this reason, we prefer to treat painful, heavy or light periods early in a woman’s teens or twenties.
Basal Body Temperature
If you have been taking your basal body temperature and charting it, bring it with you to your appointment so that your practitioner can have a look at it. We recommend using an app like Kindara, Natural Cycles, or Ovia Fertility to track your BBT.
Basal body temperature (BBT) is the body's lowest resting temperature, typically measured in the morning after at least 3 to 5 hours of uninterrupted sleep and before any activity, including getting out of bed. Monitoring BBT is useful in tracking ovulation and fertility as BBT typically increases slightly after ovulation due to the hormone progesterone, which is released by the corpus luteum after ovulation. You can learn more about BBT's role in fertility and family planning in this article from the Mayo Clinic.
At East Village Acupuncture, every practitioner will be able to look at the notes from your previous visits, so you can either choose one acupuncturist to work with or you can work with our whole team and we will be able to provide a continuity of care that works within your schedule.
If you are coming into the clinic and are early in your fertility journey, we suggest seeing an herbalist and taking herbs along with regular acupuncture treatments for three months to regulate your cycle before seeing a fertility specialist.
For patients who are already seeing a fertility specialist, we will work with the procedures and medications that are being used in order to support the patient and help with side effects. Usually, weekly treatments are recommended. For our patients who are using IVF, we have them come in the day before a transfer and immediately following the transfer.
Assisted Reproductive Technologies
What is assisted reproductive technology (ART)?
ART refers to various methods that help individuals or couples get pregnant. Fertility treatments, including in vitro fertilization (IVF), intrauterine insemination (IUI), and hormonal treatments all involve various procedures, costs, and success rates, offering both challenges and benefits for those struggling with infertility. An ART procedure involves several steps, known as an “ART cycle.”
Common types of ART and how they work
IVF is the most common type of assisted reproductive technology (ART). In IVF, an individual’s eggs are fertilized with sperm “in vitro” (outside the body), involving procedures such as handling eggs and embryos outside the body, fertilization of eggs with sperm in the laboratory, and various techniques like preimplantation genetic testing to improve success rates.
IVF treatments can be expensive, and may include blood and imaging tests, medications, and procedures for removing eggs and implanting embryos. The use of donor eggs in IVF can also impact success rates, especially when the donor is younger.
Intrauterine Insemination (IUI) is another common fertility treatment that involves placing sperm directly into a woman's uterus to facilitate fertilization.
Before undergoing IUI, the woman's cycle is closely monitored to determine the optimal time for insemination. This is usually done through tracking hormone levels (like LH surge) and/or ultrasound monitoring of follicle development. On the day of insemination, sperm is inserted directly into the woman's uterus using a thin catheter.
IUI is less invasive and less expensive than procedures like IVF. It also allows for the use of fertility medications to stimulate ovulation if needed, further enhancing the chances of conception.
Hormone treatments for infertility aim to correct hormonal imbalances or enhance reproductive functions to improve the chances of conception. by stimulating ovulation.
The most commonly prescribed hormonal treatment is Clomiphene Citrate (Clomid). This medication is often the first line of treatment for women who do not ovulate regularly or have irregular cycles.
Clomid works by blocking estrogen receptors in the brain, which leads to increased production of follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) and luteinizing hormone (LH).
This stimulation encourages the ovaries to develop and release eggs. In patients where Clomid is ineffective, or more precise control over ovulation is needed, injectable medications containing FSH and LH may be used to directly stimulate the ovaries and produce multiple follicles and eggs.
Combining Traditional Chinese Medicine with ART
How traditional Chinese medicine can support ART
Fertility drugs are used in ART to stimulate the ovaries to produce multiple eggs, increasing the chances of successful embryo selection and pregnancy. Your acupuncturist works in tandem with your fertility team to support you as you go through this process
Acupuncture can help decrease insulin resistance, promote ovulation, improve uterine lining, and enhance libido.
Traditional Chinese Medicine can also help reduce the side effects of fertility medications.
Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine also helps once a baby is conceived. Once a woman is pregnant, we choose acu points to support the pregnancy and treat symptoms such as fatigue and morning sickness.
In the third trimester of pregnancy we help to ready the body for delivery. There are acupuncture points that help to turn a breach baby as well as points that stimulate labor.
Success stories of combining traditional Chinese medicine with ART
A holistic approach to fertility, combining natural approaches with assisted reproductive technologies, can help individuals and couples achieve pregnancy and improve overall reproductive health. Many people have successfully combined traditional Chinese medicine with ART to achieve pregnancy.
You can read about the personal experience of one of our fertility patients here: Acupuncture for Fertility: A Case Study
Other Natural Approaches to Boosting Fertility
Foods to boost fertility
A nutrient-dense diet plays a pivotal role in improving conception prospects by providing the body with essential building blocks for reproductive health.
Nutrient-dense foods, such as lean proteins, leafy greens, colorful vegetables, and whole grains, help regulate insulin levels and support optimal egg and sperm quality.
Preparing for pregnancy with natural methods
Preparing for pregnancy can be an empowering journey filled with positive lifestyle changes, such as stress reduction, balancing workload, prioritizing quality sleep, and limiting caffeine and alcohol intake.
Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) places significant emphasis on the year prior to conception, considering it a critical preparatory phase for optimal fertility and healthy pregnancy.
Fertility and Lifestyle Changes
Making lifestyle changes to boost fertility
Making positive lifestyle changes, such as quitting smoking, reducing alcohol consumption, and getting regular exercise, can help improve fertility.
Healthy fallopian tubes are crucial for natural conception, and lifestyle changes can positively impact their function.
The impact of lifestyle on fertility for both men and women
Lifestyle factors, such as diet, exercise, and stress, can affect fertility for both men and women.
Male factor infertility, often addressed through intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), can significantly impact a couple's chances of conception.
Maintaining a healthy lifestyle can help improve fertility and overall reproductive health.
Factors that can impact fertility for both men and women
High levels of emotional or physical stress
Tobacco smoking or chewing
Excessive alcohol consumption
Toxic exposures
Poor nutrition
Age
Sexual history
Endometriosis and PCOS
Auto-immune conditions
Embracing a Holistic Path to Fertility
At East Village Acupuncture, we know that navigating the journey to parenthood can be both exciting and challenging, particularly for those facing fertility issues.
Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) offers a holistic and natural approach that complements modern reproductive technologies, providing a well-rounded path toward achieving pregnancy and maintaining reproductive health.
Whether you're considering TCM as a primary treatment or as a supportive therapy alongside assisted reproductive technologies (ART), we are dedicated to guiding you through this journey with expertise and compassion.
By integrating TCM into your fertility strategy, we are here to help you embrace a natural, comprehensive approach that aligns with your body's intrinsic healing abilities. Your path to parenthood is deeply personal. Let us show you that with the right support and care, this journey can become a source of empowerment and hope.
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