Sunday, May 30, 2010
Endometriosis, Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) and the IVF patient
Thursday, May 13, 2010
3 Fertility Signs
All Women of reproductive age can easily learn how to observe and chart three primary fertility signs that their bodies produce. This information can then be used to tell them numerous things about their cycle, the most obvious being whether they can or can't get pregnant on any given day.
The three fertility signs that almost every women produces are:
1. Basal Body Temperature (BBT), or, Waking temperature
2. Cervical fluid
3. Cervical position
The following is a brief summary of each.
Basal Body Temperature (BBT)
Taking Your Temperature
1. Take your daily temperature first thing upon awakening, before any other activity and record throughout the cycle.
2. If using a digital thermometer, wait until it beeps, usually about 30 seconds. If using a glass thermometer, leave it in 5 minutes.
3. Take your temperature orally or vaginally, but always from the same place.
4. Try to take it at the very same time each day.
5. Before taking your temperature, a minimum of 3 hours consecutive sleep must have been had.
6. If you use a glass thermometer, shake it down the day before.
Charting Your Temperature
1. Try to get in the habit of recording you temperature soon after it is taken.
2. If the temperature falls between two numbers on a glass thermometer, always take the lowest.
3. Make dots on the appropriate temperature and connect the dots with straight lines.
4. Note events such as stress, or illness in the miscellaneous row. Temperatures taken late should be noted in the time taken row.
5. In the above cases your temperature may be quite high. For these days, draw a dotted line between the day before and the next days temperature.
Cervical Fluid
Observing Your Cervical Fluid
1. Start checking the day bleeding stops.
2. Pay attention to vaginal sensations.
3. Try to check fluid everytime you go to the bathroom.
4. Check every morning and night.
5. Checking fluid while sexually aroused may not give accurate information.
6. To check your cervical fluid, separate your vaginal lips and swipe with fingers.
7. Be sure to have clean hands.
8. Does it feel dry, sticky, creamy, slippery like egg white?
9. Put finger with fluid on it together with your thumb, then slowly pull apart to see if it is stretchy, holds together, or immediately breaks apart.
10. After urinating, pay attention to how easily the tissue slides across your vaginal lips.
11. Take note of the secretions on your underwear.
12. Around fertile times, check in the toilet water to see if you can see cervical fluid.
13. Note the colour, consistency, and amount of fluid.
14. Using your finger to insert into the vagina to feel the cervix may be necessary for some.
Charting Your Cervical Fluid
1. Day one of your cycle is the first day of true menstrual bleeding.
2. Distinguish between sticky, creamy, and slippery egg white.
3. Sticky breaks when you pull your fingers apart. Slippery egg white is quite wet and stretchy between fingers.
4. Slippery egg white indicates fertile days.
5. Note any vaginal sensations.
Identifying Your Peak Day
1. Your peak day is the last day of slippery egg white fluid. This is your wettest-quality day.
2. Record your peak day. This tells you that ovulation has occurred.
Cervix Position
Observing Your Cervix
1. Start observing cervix once bleeding has stopped.
2. Wash your hands thoroughly.
3. Try to check at the same time each day (+/-).
4. The best position is squatting.
5. Use your middle finger to check softness, height, opening, and wetness of the cervix.
6. Women who have had children vaginally will note a slightly open oval cervix.
7. In your fertile period before ovulation is the best time to start checking because of the wet slippery conditions.
8. You may feel small nabothian cysts on the cervix.
Charting Cervix Position
1. Use a dot to indicate a closed, low, and firm cervix (before and after menses).
2. Use a small circle to indicate a partly open cervix (approaching fertile period).
3. Use a large circle to indicate a high, open, soft cervix (fertile period before ovulation).
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Fertile Diet: Natural Fertility Management Eating Plan
FATS
Good Fats = essential fatty acids such as Omega 3 and Omega 6 oils which are beneficial to many different aspects of our health
Sources = olive oil, flaxseed oil, avocado, deep sea oil fish, nuts and seeds
Bad Fats = saturated fats which upset your nutrient/hormone balance
Sources = deep fried food, butter, margarine, check labels for amounts of saturated fats
PROTEIN
You need an average size serving (equivalent to the palm of your hand) of protein providing food 2-3 times a day. This can be from
1. A primary protein (complete protein) which comes from an animal source and contains all essential amino acids or
2. A combination of secondary proteins, which come from plant sources and need to be combined in order to provide full range of amino acids: nuts/grains/seeds/legumes.
Protein Providing Foods:
Fish: 2-3 x week but beware of potential mercury problem. Suggest a deep/sea/ocean/cold water fish which are less polluted eg: mackerel, trevally, sardines, salmon and avoid larger varieties, such as tuna, barramundi, orange roughy, flake which are likely to be higher in mercury.
Chicken: only use chemical free or certified organic and trim the skin to avoid fats
Eggs: excellent source of protein and should be only limited if allergy exists or they cause gastrointestinal upset. Again suggest certified organically fed.
Diary: minimal intake of cow’s milk and cheese as it can contribute to mucus and malabsorption problems. Natural cultured non-flavored yoghurt is good. Rice and Soy Milks are OK but avoid genetically modified, high fats and sugar brands. Soymilk should be whole bean and organic.
Red Meat: eat in moderation once to twice a week. Avoid organ meats/offal and poor quality sausage mince. Also suggest avoiding deli meats, which are high in fats, offal content and preservatives. Trim all fat.
Legumes: split peas, lentils, chickpeas, beans, tofu, tempeh. Good plant protein and carbohydrate.
Nuts/Seeds: raw, unsalted and fresh essential. Easily oxidized so keep refrigerated and eat within 2 weeks. Nuts should not taste bitter. Use in stir-fries, salads, pasta and snacks.
CARBOHYDRATES:
The balance of protein to carbohydrate foods should be approximately 1:1 although you can eat as many non-starchy vegetables as you like. There are two types of carbohydrates simple and complex. The rule of thumb is simple. It’s important your diet consists of plenty of the “good” complex carbohydrates (non-starchy vegetables and whole grains). And less of the "bad" simple carbohydrates (sugar, white flour products like white bread and pasta) which can disrupt your hormone balance and leach nutrients from your body stores causing you to crave more of those foods.
Starchy Vegetables: potatoes, green vegetables. All ‘eyes’ or ‘scabs’ on root vegetables should be removed. Vegetables should be steamed, stir-fried or dry baked not microwaved.
Fruit: 2-3 pieces daily including juices with fresh ginger.
No dried fruit.
Grains: whole grain bread (yeast free)/rice/pasta whenever possible
Avoid any refined flour products and bakery products
Sugar: We want to minimize all sweet things as much as possible including sugar substitutes, undiluted fruit juices, cakes, biscuits, soft drinks and chocolate
Alcohol: Avoid Alcohol. Alcohol is toxic to the fetus and leaches nutrients.
Sunday, December 20, 2009
FERTILITY SPIKE FROM ACUPUNCTURE
* Adam Cresswell, Health editor
* From: The Australian
* February 09, 2008 12:00AM
WOMEN having IVF treatment can boost their chances of falling pregnant by 65 per cent simply by having acupuncture.
A review combining the results of seven previous studies has found that acupuncture also increases the chances of having an ongoing pregnancy (beyond 12 weeks from gestation) by 87 per cent -- and nearly doubles the chance of a successful live birth, increasing that by 91 per cent.
The authors of the review, published online yesterday by the British Medical Journal, said the results suggested that just 10 women would need to be treated with acupuncture in order to bring about one extra pregnancy.
In all the studies, together involving 1366 women, acupuncture was given within 24 hours of the embryo being transferred to the women's wombs.
It is poorly understood how fertility could be affected by acupuncture - the insertion of fine needles into the skin at specific points along invisible "meridians".
The review's Dutch and US authors suggested it might work by stimulating fertility hormones, increasing bloodflow to the uterus, or reducing stress.
They said that, although their results might have inflated the positive effect of acupuncture, it was probably still highly cost-effective because of the cost differential.
In Australia, women generally pay about $5000 out of pocket for IVF treatment, compared with about $100 for acupuncture.
There were more than 46,000 IVF treatment cycles provided in Australia in 2005, a rise of nearly 14per cent on the previous year.
The results were welcomed by Australian IVF experts. Peter Illingworth, medical director of the Sydney-based clinic IVF Australia, said his clinic already advised women about acupuncture and referred them to suitable providers.
Although there were many herbal and other complementary treatments claiming to boost fertility, the new study confirmed a belief that acupuncture was one of the few that actually worked.
"What this new study shows is that this effect is statistically significant, and is real," Associate Professor Illingworth said.
"As a doctor practising in Australia, I would regard it as fairly convincing evidence. But some couples might take the view that they have more than enough needles inserted into their bodies as it is with an IVF process."
Monday, November 30, 2009
Coping with the Stress of Christmas and Infertility
We have all seen the Hallmark version: the loving, happy laughing family gathered around the Christmas tree. Then there’s real life. Why is that, upon reaching adulthood, the ‘magic’ of the season seems to lose its essence that was once bestowed upon us growing up. Jesus was born into a family that had its own Christmas drama of sorts- an unmarried pregnant woman, a long hard trip, and a no vacancy sign at the local motel. For many, Christmas can easily be the most joyous time of year of the most stressful. Buying and wrapping gifts, sending cards, close encounters of the family kind, extra baking and full schedules all work together to create an atmosphere of tension. Fertility treatments can be stressful, too. Hormone treatments, a packed medical schedule, worry and expectations all work together to create an atmosphere of anxiety. When you add them together, you have a pressure cooker filled with stress worry and a potential meltdown.
10 TIPS TO GET YOU THROUGH THE CHRISTMAS PERIOD
1. Rather than getting caught up in the hustle and bustle of Christmas, take a few moments to sit out in your garden with a cup of tea, watch the sunset and just breath.
2. Plan Ahead. Before everyone converges on a relative’s house, talk about or think through what to expect and set some boundaries. Make a game plan. “Don’t become a victim”.
3. For those worried about being lonely plan ahead finding some things you’d like to do and invite others to join you. Get tickets to a holiday show, volunteer for a local organization, go for walk/hike. Then hold yourself to the schedule. “Remember there’s a part of you that will want to do nothing but stay at home”.
4. Don’t be afraid to be a little selfish. If you need time away from the frenzy TAKE IT. Take care of yourself. When the family gets to be too much, it might be time to leave. Think of an exit strategy ahead of time.
5. Protect yourself during this very emotional and stressful time. Stress and depression levels can increase if you don’t have adequate sleep, don’t exercise and eat nutritious foods. Get enough sleep, enough exercise and eat healthy foods.
6. Give yourself a break. This is the time of year when you don’t need to think about fertility. Instead of focusing on getting pregnant and fertility treatments, do something different for yourself. Make it a tradition to relax.
7. Create a new tradition. For my partner Christmas is a very difficult time, for the two of us we have created our own Christmas tradition. Every year we have dinner at China Town, mind you it’s the only place that’s open!
8. Look out for others and yourself. Be sensitive to others-those who might be especially vulnerable this year. Sometimes helping others can help you forget about your own troubles for a while. Volunteer in a soup kitchen or shelter, buy presents for a child whose holiday would otherwise be bleak. Sing Christmas carols.
9. Doing that spiritual preparation will change your expectation. To cope with infertility over the holidays, stay in touch with God or Buddha or the Universe – whoever or whatever grounds you. Take time to breathe deeply and say a prayer, or just sit on a park bench and reflect on this season of your life. If you’re disconnected from your soul or Spirit, you’ll find that coping with infertility is almost impossible.
10. Use communication and empathy. Don’t lock your feelings inside. Share with your partner how these holidays are affecting you. Together you can make it through.
Monday, September 21, 2009
Acupuncture and Blocked Fallopian Tubes
Most women never suspect that they may have blocked fallopian tubes. This happens mainly because women don’t experience any obvious symptoms that would lead them to believe that they have such a condition. Infertility is what usually leads women to discover the state of their fallopian tubes. If you have been trying to conceive for longer than a year and you are over 35 years old, you definitely want to consider checking the state of your fallopian tubes.
Diagnosis
Fallopian tube obstruction can be diagnosed in a number of ways. Laparsocopy is a surgical procedure which uses a small lighted tube that is inserted through a tiny incision (cut) on the abdomen. With this procedure, a surgeon is able to see directly into the abdominal cavity and check the state of the fallopian tubes on the outside and the inside by injecting colored dye through the cervix and watching for its appearance at the end of the tube.
Hysterosalpingogram is a procedure in which a dye is injected into the uterus and the uterus is examined via X ray to see if the dye spills into the tubes and pelvic cavity. These diagnostic techniques are quite invasive so they are not done routinely unless a woman has been trying to conceive for a long period of time without success (and male factor infertility has been ruled out).
Causes
The common reason for the fallopian tube blockage is a pelvic infection which may produce minor symptoms or no symptoms at all. However, if the infection was left untreated it can cause scarring, adhesions and complete obstruction of one or both tubes. In cases of PID (pelvic inflammatory disease), opportunistic bacteria coming from the uterus can spread to the fallopian tubes since they are the structures closest to the uterus. If a woman is experiencing acute infection, antibiotic therapy is indicated in order to prevent damage to the fallopian tubes. However, if a woman already has obstruction and damage of the fallopian tubes, a surgery that can repair the damage may be indicated.
Endometriosis can be another possible cause for fallopian tube obstruction.
It’s also possible that fallopian tubes are blocked only some of the time. This type of blockage is referred to as a “functional blockage”. This scenario is typical in women who experience a lot of stress. Stress tends to constrict pelvic musculature and decrease blood flow and this can be a factor in inability to conceive. This type of functional blockage responds very well to acupuncture as well as Chinese herbal medicine. Also, excessive mucous buildup within the tube can create a plug and cause blockage. In Chinese medicine, this would be refered to as “damp accumulation” and would be treated through dietary therapy, herbs and acupuncture.
Infertility Treatment for Blocked Fallopian Tubes
If there is an extensive damage and scarring in both fallopian tubes it is very difficult (or nearly impossible) for a woman to conceive and IVF is probably the best route to take. IVF was actually developed for women with extensive fallopian tube obstruction and damage since it can bypass the problem.
Using acupuncture prior to an IVF treatment is a wise decision since it can help decrease side effects of drugs, decrease stress levels and remove any stagnant blood and energy in order to ensure successful implantation.
Microsurgery is another treatment option for women whose tubes are not damaged along too much of their length. Surgery seems to be more effective if the damage is in the area closer to the uterus.
The good news is that modern technology does help women with tubal blockage have a healthy pregnancy and birth. If you decide to use assisted reproductive technology, you should make an effort to take good care of yourself in order to create optimal conditions for a new life to flourish. Nutritious diet, proper rest, moderate exercise and stress reduction are the most important things that you can do to improve your health as well as increase your chances of conception.
Sunday, September 6, 2009
Can i feel ovulation?
Can one feel ovulation?
- One may experience lower abdominal discomfort
- Changes in cervical mucus
- Slight rise in body temperature
Lower abdominal discomfort is known as "mittelschmerz." - lasts from a few minutes to a few hours. 20% of women feel this sensation of discomfort or pain. This sensation is felt felt as the egg leaves the ovary.
A few days before ovulation, cervical mucous becomes clear, slippery, and stretchy like raw egg whites.
Right after ovulation, one's body temperature can increase by 0.4 to 1.0 degrees.
Monday, July 27, 2009
Study shows acupuncture facilitates IVF conception
Study shows acupuncture facilitates IVF conception
A controversial new study measuring the degree to which getting acupuncture during IVF treatment increases a woman's chance of a successful pregnancy, has found this to be the case to a significant degree.
Acupuncture administered for 25 minutes both before and after an embryo is transferred to the uterus improves the likelihood of a live birth, a review presented at a medical conference in Brisbane has shown.
"On the basis of the current level of evidence we have, if nine women have acupuncture around the time of embryo transfer with IVF there will be one extra live born baby," said Professor Neil Johnson, lead researcher of the New Zealand study, and medical director of Fertility Plus in Auckland.
"That figure looks pretty good, especially to women wanting to do all they can to have a baby."
But Johnson's Australian counterparts have applied caution and skepicism to the findings, labelling the statistic as stretching "the current scientific data too far".
However, Professor Johnson has reviewed the latest major studies on the benefits of this ancient Chinese therapy regarding reproductive technology, and fertility in general, to a definitive degree.
"In a nutshell there is evidence that acupuncture administered around the time of embryo transfer really does help," he said.
"But doing acupuncture at other times in IVF treatment doesn't appear to be helpful, and there's no really robust evidence about the effectiveness of acupuncture for couples trying to get pregnant naturally."
Johnson explained that acupuncture has traditionally been believed to be effective because it improves energy flow through pathways in the body. However the conventional medicine take is that it inhibits the nervous system, which improves pelvic blood flow or makes the uterus "quieter".
"It might just be that relaxing and having some TLC at this stressful time is where the benefit comes in, but it would seem there's something more at work," Professor Johnson said.
Whatever the reason, the therapy has been widely embraced by IVF patients in Auckland, often those with the poorest pregnancy outlook deriving the most benefit.
It still may be a while however, before doctors and medical professionals embrace the method.
IVF Australia's Professor Michael Chapman said acupuncture had the strongest evidence of any alternative therapy for use in fertility, but the studies were small and "relatively inconclusive".
"The evidence to date would suggest it's not harmful but I certainly wouldn't recommend every IVF patient rush out and get it," Prof Chapman said.
Monday, May 25, 2009
THE MENSTRUAL CYCLE
- Menstruation
- Post Period
- Ovulation
- Pre -Menstruation
With each phase different hormones are triggered and this causes the body to respond in different ways. Modern physiologists describe the menstrual cycle in terms of hormones made by the ovaries (estrogen & progesterone) and their actions on the follicles, the tubes, the endometrium (lining) and the uterus. In Chinese Medicine we talk about the involvement of Qi & Blood with the influence of Yin/Yang.
The average menstrual cycle is 28 but can range from 24-35 days.
Day 1-5: Menstruation
Day 1 is the considered the first day of the 28 day cycle. If an egg has not been fertilized it disintegrates. Low levels of both estrogen & progesterone during this phase cause the endometrium (lining of the uterus) to break down and shed in the form of menstrual blood. Bleeding last an average of 5 days.
Note: if your period begins in the evening ie 5pm or during the night 3am then Day 1 is taken from the next day.
The nature of the menstrual flow and its accompanying symptoms are all significant in pinpointing any glitches in the movement of qi and blood. Any obstructions to the menstrual flow can have implications for infertility. The timely arrival and departure of the period is therefore crucial to the transition, growth and decline between yin & yang and the interplay of qi and blood.
Days 1-13: Follicular Phase
Early in the menstrual cycle the pituitary gland in the brain produces rising amounts of follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) which acts on the ovaries to promote the development of several follicles, each one containing an egg. Only one follicle will reach maturity. Toward the end of this phase, the ovaries secrete increasing levels of estrogen which causes the uterine lining to begin thickening in preparation for a potential fertilized egg.
Days 10-18: Ovulatory Phase
The pituitary gland and hypothalamus release a surge of lutenizing hormone (LH) about midway through the cycle. This causes the mature follicle to bulge out from the surface of the ovary and burst, releasing the egg. Ovulation usually occurs around day 14 of the cycle. The egg then begins to travel down the fallopian tube into the uterus. This is the time woman are most likely to fall pregnant.
Day 15-28: Luteal Phase
After releasing the egg, the ruptured follicle develops into a structure called the corpus luteum (an endocrine body), which secretes increasing amounts of progesterone. The corpus luteum is the only structure which produces the hormone progesterone in large quantities. The progesterone causes the endometrium to thicken further and prepare to support embryonic development. If the egg is fertilized, the corpus luteum begins to produce chrionic gonadotropin (HCG) pregnancy hormone which maintains the corpus luteum and its progesterone secretion. The egg moves to the uterus and attaches itself to the endometrium about six or seven days after ovulation, where it begins to develop into a fetus.
If the egg is not fertilized, the corpus luteum degenerates after about 14 days and levels of progesterone and estrogen drop. This causes the endometrium to break down and shed, and a new menstrual cycle begins.
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
The advantages of Acupuncture during IVF treatment and natural fertility
2. Acupuncture has been shown to regulate hormone levels by moderating the release of beta endorphins levels in the brain, which improves the release of gonadotrophin releasing hormone by the hypothalamus, follicle stimulating hormone from the pituitary gland and oestrogen and progesterone levels from the ovary.
3. Acupuncture reduces stress and a hyperactive sympathetic nervous system response.
4. Acupuncture has been speculated to moderate cyclooxygenase and prostaglandin levels in the uterus, reducing uterine motility to improve implantation rates.
5. Herbs nourish the blood, whilst acupuncture moves qi, which facilitates the movement of blood. It has been claimed that some herbal formulas produce high clinical pregnancy rates as well as improve the general wellbeing of patients.
The following descriptions below will describe how acupuncture can integrate with Western Medicine. Each point is directly linked to the points above.
1. There needs to be adequate blood flow to the developing ovarian follicle. This is essential to the initiation and maintenance of normal human pregnancy. Doppler ultrasound evaluation of uterine and ovarian blood flow has demonstrated that improved blood flow in either vascular system is associated with improved fertility outcomes. Women who respond poorly to ovarian stimulation for IVF have compromised blood flow to their ovarian follicles.
2. There are 4 phases in the menstrual cycle. During each phases various hormones are released. The most common cause of infertility is hormonal imbalance.
3. From a Western Medicine perspective, people who are under stress release the hormone cortisol in the brain. Cortisol alters the brain’s neurochemical balance thus changing hormone levels and disrupting the pituitary balance, which is the key to the reproductive cycle. Because of this delicate balance between the hypothalamus, pituitary and reproductive glands, stress is capable of preventing a woman from ovulating entirely.
4. For IVF transfers and implantations the endometrium needs to be of particular
density and thickness for successful implantations and fertilization. The uterus therefore needs to be in a relaxed state.
5. The menses is based on the condition of blood.
