Taking Care Of Your Body

I recently learned through the Envivironmental Working Group that, “only 11 percent of 10,500 ingredients in beauty products have been tested for safety.” That means that one in thirteen women are exposed on a daily basis to products that are know or are probably carcinogens. These toxins can harm the reproductive system. The article said that most women will come into contact with one hundred chemicals before breakfast.

It would be wise for all of us to check out what we are putting on our bodies. Just think that you may be rubbing toxings into your breast, face, legs, arms, etc. No wonder many women are having a difficult time conceiving. It may not be the blame for your infertility, but it is worth taking the time to read and understand the products you are using. This is good advice for everyone, not just women.

I suggest reading Gorgeiously Green. By: Sophie ULiano This is where I learned about all the toxins and it could help you improve your life.

Endometrial Lining

I see women who do not have enough endometrial lining. Without enought lining the embryo cannont implanti. Often I find that their body is usually very hot or very cold. Either can contribute to not making enough lining or the lining being thicker than it should be for implantation.

What is wonderful about nature is that each month a women can see changes if she makes changes in her diet, and if more is needed Acupuncture and Herbal Medicine can be used. It is amazing to see how fast the body can change, and how much it changes from month to month.

By keeping a basal body temperature chart you can actually see if your body is hot, cold or normal.
What is neat, is when you keep the chart, you can watch your temperatures change, and with that you will see monthly cycle changes.

Feel free to email your chart to me if you would like to know more about it.

katimc@ancientartsaustin.com

Where Is Your Uterus?

How many of you have been told you have a tilted uterus? Even if you have not chances are your uterus is lower than it should be due to our vertical, standing position we are in most of the time.

Other reasons for a loser uterus may include:
diet
prolasped uterus
fibroids
and more

Here is one way to preform Acupressure to help you lift the uterus:

Use both hands and place on top of your pubic bone.
Press gently inward toward your spine
Once you press as far back toward your spine as possible you should be under the uterus.
You can then lit the uterus upward.
Hold for 33 seconds and release.

Why 33 seconds? 3 is a number that represents yang in Chinese Medicine. You need yang energy to raise the uterus.

Is this true? Who knows but you might as well do it 33 seconds, it can’t hurt.

Have You Been Diagnosed With Unexplained infertility?

Most of the time when women come into my office, they have been diagnosed with unexplained infertility. Although many of these women have not had all the test to confirm that diagnoses, there is nothing obvious so they just get the unexplained diagnoses.

In Oriental Medicine we look for patterns such as:
1. Is the patients body hot or cold?
2. Does the patient have blood stagnation or not?
3. Does the patient have spleen qi deficiency?
4. Does he/she have yin or yang deficiency?
5. Or perhaps blood deficiency?

The same type of diagnoses can be made for male infertility.

Your question is how does this effect me, or is there anything I can do about this?

The answer is yes. Warming or cooling the body with acupuncture, diet and herbs is very effective. Herbs to increase the yin or yang, blood or qi are equally as effective.

In the last year what I have seen the most of is Kidney yang deficiency. Which in Western terms would mean low progesterone. Why is this? Maybe our diets, perhaps medications that we are taking.
Maybe just a lot of stress.

Can Acupuncutre and Herbs help with this? Yes, it can.

How do you know it working? Keep a basal body temperature chart, you will see the change for yourself.

Have more questions? Check out my website at: www.austininfertility.com or give me a call:
512-653-6131

Learning to Deal With People

People come in all shapes and sizes.  People believe many different ways.  People say things that hurt others.  People say things that make others feel good, bad, happy, sad.

When you are facing infertility, it seems often things that are said make you sad.  People ask you when you are going to have children, or why haven’t you had children?

If I could give women one thing, besides conceiving I would give them the ability to just anwser the questions without letting them get to you.  This can be one of the many challenges women who have be unable to conceive face.

Did you know that stistic wise women who are around other pregnant women often become pregnant?  Just you know that keeping a good atittude, without stress helps you to become pregnant.

When you are able to conceive would you like people to be happy for you.

Understanding that things happen for a reason is very important.  Understanding that the women doing the talking are just as excited as you will be when you conceive.  In fact — understanding how difficult to find the right thing to say to women who are facing infertility are sometimes difficult.

Maybe this is all part of the “joke.”  Are better said maybe this is all part of the lesson you are suppose to be learning.  Maybe once you understand are to handle the talk, you will be ready to conceive.

What I do know is when our bodies are out of stress, happy, healthy conceiving is much easier.

It is ok to tell others, we have been working on children and hope to have good news soon.  It is ok to say that is a touchy subject at this time.  It is ok to say, I will be ready to talk about this someday.

But, the important thing to remember is that things happen for a reason.  Relax, enjoy, and spend time around young children and babies.  Who know maybe you will find the peace you are looking for.

Progesterone and Infertility

If you have been keeping your basal body temperature chart and you see that after ovulation you have temperature drops in your chart that go below the cover line, you may have low progesterone.  The progesterone level plays a very large roll in pregnancy.  If your progesterone level in not as high as it needs to be, you may not build enough lining to hold the pregnancy, you may have a miscarraige.  These are just a couple of jobs the progesterone performs.

Having adequent amounts of progesterone is very important to not only conceiving, but in carrying the baby to full term.

Want to know if your chart looks like you have enough progersterone? 

Email me with your chart attached.  I will be happy to give you my thoughts.

katiemc@ancientartsaustin.com

My Body Is Attacking My Husbands Sperm–

I would love for you to share your stories.  How have you been treated?  What has worked or not worked for you?  Do you know any alternative treatments?  Have you been treated with success from Western Medicine?  We would love to hear your story. 

We are looking for stories of antibodies attacking your husbands sperm.  You don’t have to leave your name, but interested in your outcome. 

Too long to share?  Please email me.

katiemc@ancientartsaustin.com

Reading Your Pulse

How to Read Your Pulse

The pulse of a pregnant women will be strong and slippery.  It is usually felt more on the left side than the right.  It can be very difficult to tell the difference of the pulse of a menstruating women or one who is about to be.  I have heard from women who tell me their Acupuncturist thought they were pregnant and then the started their period.  Easy mistake to make because they are so very simular.  Even though I believe I can feel the difference, I usually caution my patients that it could go either way and not to get their hopes up until the bbt chart stays above the cover line for 18 days.  I have found it is better to not get someones hopes up.

If you would like to be able to start reading your own pulse, you can.  Your index finger should go in the first position, then middle finger in second and ring finger in the third.  So you have to place the wrist of the left hand into the right hand and wrap your fingers around the wrist.  Leave only the 3 fingers along the pulse, and just touch it lightly, then a little harder, and a little harder.  This way you are feeling the pulse at the  exterior level, middle, and deep level.  It takes a lot of practice, but if you start doing it everyday, you will feel your pulse change.

Feeling the pulse change is very interesting.  Just make sure to feel it first thing when you wake up in the morning, then again if you are rushing around, maybe when you are stressed and again when you are relaxed.  This way you will soon know how your pulse really feels.  Then you will be able to feel the difference of a pregnancy pulse.  You will feel a rolling pulse of menstruation, or a rolling pulse of allergies.

Have more questions?  Email me — katiemc@ancientartsaustin.com

BBT Charts Dropping Below Coverline After Ovulation

Sometimes I see patients who are able to conceive, but then they miscarriage.  In Eastern Medicines it is recommended that a women waits about 6 months before trying to conceive again.  The theory behind this is to give plenty of time to replenish the body, and to nourish her body back to health.

When I see these women’s bbt charts I often notice that after ovulation, their basal body temperature drops below the cover line.  This indicates  that there is a imbalance in her body, and her kidney yang is deficient.  The kidney yang is what helps to build a healthy uterine lining.  When the kidney yang goes up and down, I have found that often means her progesterone is fluctuating up and down.  Sometimes she will have break through bleeding after ovulation, which in turn causes her to miscarraige.

Sometimes progesterone cream can be used, but is often not strong enough.  There are some great kidney yang tonics which I give my patients.  It is amazing to watch their bbt chart change.  They stop the spotting after ovulation and often conceive and carry the baby to full term.

In Eastern Medicine we also offer herbs to replensish the womens blood after a miscarraige.  After all she does lose a lot of blood during a misscarraige, and needs to be in the best shape possible before conceiving again.

Want to know more about formulas?   Email me:  katiemc@ancientartsaustin.com

Infertility — Unknown Reason

Couples coming into my office have been diagnosed with infertility for unkown reasons.  You would really think as much time, money and research that we would know why a women cannot conceive.  It is such a difficult, stressful time in a couples life.  Yet, we have found that stress causes infertility.  What does one do?

Here are somethings that I find help -  Meditate, find relaxation time, have dates with your husband, find things you enjoy doing, exercise, eat healthy, cut out bad carbs., add lots of fresh fruits and veggies.

Diagnosed with PCOS?  Try Castor Oil Packets on your abdomen.  20 min. a day while in your period.  Put the castor oil on a piece of material, or old towel, put another damp hot towel on top of the castor oil.

Try Acupuncture.  It really helps lower your stress level.  Improves fsh, increases the blood flow to the uterus, and just makes you feel great.  Look for a Acupuncturist who has you keep a bbt chart.  Using a bbt chart you can tell so much about what is going on with your cycle.

Need help reading your bbt chart?  Email it to me — katiemc@ancientartsaustin.com  I will be happy to see what I think.  I am a Acupuncturist in Austin, Texas.  I see men and women everyday who have been diagnosed with infertility.