Secondary Infertility - Acupuncture or Reflexology?

[ionaming]

Hiya, been ttc no. 2 for a year now & have been diagnosed with low progesterone & a short luteal phase. I've tried all the usual suspects - vit B6, B Complex, Agnus Castus etc & I'm currently awaiting my 1st appointment with the Fertility Consultant.

But in the meantime, I thought I might give acupuncture or reflexology a go, but I'm not sure which is better? Also, any recommendations for practioners in the North Hampshire/Surrey area would be great

The Assoociation of Reflexologists is the largest reflexology oprganisation in the world their UK website is here and all their practitionersa re listed by area. HTH

AoR Website sorry - try this!

I had an amazing acupuncture success story. I used to have only had 3-4 periods a year but my hormones were completely normal, ovaries were scanned and were normal, no PCOS, no weight issues - in short no medical explanation. My GP's advice was to have sex every 2 days!! After three years of trying - including 6 months on a double dose of clomid (single dose didn't work) and ultrasound cycle monitoring - so we could see the egg ripen and get the timing perfect - I got pregnant and then had a miscarriage. I found a really sympathetic female acupuncturist with a special interest in fertility due to her personal experience. She got my cycle to 32-34 days permanently within three months of treatment and we got pregnant first month trying. She continued to treat me during my pregnancy - both acupuncture and reflexology are safe during pregnancy. I did ask my gynae if she had any concerns about me seeing an acupuncturist and she said no. Check with the therapist you are thinking of using but I would say that acupuncture and reflexology are complementary with conventional medicine (e.g. clomid) and would enhance its effect. I now have a ds aged 14 mts and had to be induced in the end so my acupuncturist gave me a "warm up" treatment and as soon as they put in the gel, I went into labour, instead of the usual 8-16 hours later. I can give more details of the exact acupuncture treatments I had and what it was like if anyone is interested.

PS: A lot of therapists are paranoid about doing any kind of treatment in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy, so may be unsure about treating you if ttc as a lot of the professional guidelines say to treat someone who is ttc as though pregnant. But there are reflexologists and acupuncturists who specialise in fertility treatments, so they will treat you when ttc but will probably want you to be pretty sure of your dates and work around them.

Jen28, were you ovulating? What were your hormone levels like? Where did you have your acupuncture?

Thanks

hi iris66 thanks for the web site

good luck ev1 ttc

Jen28 I'd love to hear more about the treatments you had. I had needles in my wrists, knees and ankles - my right wrist really ached and for some time after.

Jen here - with an essay as usual! My ttc problem was a long and irregular cycle. My acupuncturist is in Islington, N1. She has a special interest in fertility. She diagnosed me with deficient kidney energy and damp. She explained that in Chinese medicine, the kidney energy controls reproduction and she thought I had damp in my abdomen b/c it always felt cold. So she treated both those conditions using the needles and a heat lamp. She also suggested diet changes (which I mostly ignored). She worked on my conception channel - from memory that was a needle in the left ankle and another in the right wrist. Then she also treated the kidney energy which included needles on the tummy and some others on the feet, ankles and legs and I think wrists. She gave me some ear seeds a couple of times. I usually felt some pulsing while the needles were in but no bruising or aching afterwards. I had weekly treatments for four weeks then had a period after a cycle of 36 days which for me was unheard of. Then we went for fortnightly treatments and I had a cycle of 34 days. Then we went for monthly treatments and I had cycles of 32-34 days plus noticeable fertile mucus (again for me unheard of and a brilliant sign that I was ovulating). Then we stopped treatment and my cycle stayed at about 33 days. The month before we started ttc again (we had stopped while I was having the treatment b/c I had just started a new job) I went for a check up with my consultant and she suggested I go for some follicle monitoring (my insurance paid for it) and I had a blood test and that confirmed that I was ovulating and all was well. Then next month I had the fertile mucus and got my DH is the right place at the right time and how presto bd = My acupuncturist treated me once when I was about 6 weeks pregnant to stabilise the pregnancy and then right at the end prior to my induction. I had an easy pregnancy so didn't need any other treatments and she said she preferred not to treat me unless there was a reason. For me, acupuncture was life changing after 3 years of ttc plus a whole roundabout of other stuff and I felt like screaming to the world - why didn't someone tell me about acupuncture sooner? I had informed my consultant before going for acupuncture and she was fine with it and she was really pleased with the results. I told all the midwives I met and they had never heard of acupuncture being used to assist ttc. But you never know with the medical profession what they really think about it all. Obviously I responded very well and very quickly to the acupuncture treatment which may not be typical. I think it cost me about £300 although I got some of it back from my insurance. I think at least 6 months treatment before seeing results is more typical and it can take longer. What I really liked was that it got my body working like it should without drugs and interventions and I could finally experience what others take for granted. Most acupuncturists will give you a short and free consultation if you want to just talk to them about what they think they can do for you, costs, what they do etc. My advice would be to find someone who has a special interest in fertility and has experience in treating it.

Jane 313 - my hormones were always normal, they sadly were not the problem. Hence I never really knew what was causing my long and irregular cycle. Since the acupuncture and reflexology are holistic treatments, unlike drugs, they can be used to treat a wide variety of underlying problems.

One last thing before I turn in - with the acupuncture treatment I felt like I had more control over what was happening. My therapist always discussed her treatment plan with me and how we were going, if we needed to change direction, what the full options were. Also, I saw her for a full hour each time and quite frequently. Unlike the conventional treatment where you are more passive, it's try this then have that, you have to wait a long time for treatment (unless you go private) and may not fully understand what is happening and know what questions to ask. Like I said before, the only downside was the cost but when I look at my gorgeous boy now asleep in his cot, I can tell you that he is worth so much more than the 300 quid I spent on acupuncture!

Thanks for that - very interesting. In my session yesterday she put needles in my tummy and it was really painful, but she said that was due to the build up of energy in that area. I think I need to ask more questions - she put needles in my ankles, feet and wrists in both my appointments so far so I'll have to find out why. I had some in my neck to help restful sleep and it's really sore where the needles went in, but I'm enjoying it so far.

hi anyone currently trying any of these have helped them tcc cheers

Hiya, I had secondary infertility & after 17 cycles of ttc was eventually prescribed clomid. At the beginning of my 2nd cycle of clomid I also started a 6 week course of reflexology..... not only was it wonderfully relaxing, but I then went on to conceive on my 3rd clomid cycle I'm convinced the reflexology was a major factor!

I loved hearing about success stories on this board, so hope this has given you some hope. Good luck!

Iona
18+5

2 friends of mine are convinced it was acupuncture which finally got them pregnant (both doing IVF, but had tried unsuccessfully before and conceived on first cycle when using acupuncture as well). There was an article about this in Eve magazine a few months ago, with 5 women claiming acupuncture had helped them get pregnant.

hi there thanks

only had 2 sessions of reflex so far seeing a Acupuncture in sept

can i ask why the prescrbied clomid?mine cycles are reg 26-28days so i dont know whats wrong yet ,just had inital blood tests done waiting for dh to get his test done

thanks tc

hi anyone currentky trying these treatments any sucess

Hi all, good to read all your posts. I am new to the board. Have secondary infertility - had a polyp removed and tubes blasted back in May, after having tried for a year, and had also started doing acupuncture and nutrition. Now I have a new problem - short luteal phase (7 days). Have just started acupuncture again and saw a new obstetrician who has put me on Cyclofenil, a mild drug to stimulate my pituitary gland to produce more progesterone etc. Kind of wish I had given herbs a go instead of the Cyclofenil but we'll see what happens this cycle. Have just ovulated and have to test my progesterone levels again in a week to see if the drug has had any effect. If it doesn't work after two or three cycles I may go and see Dr Zhai in Harley Street, who a friend recommended (she got pregnant with slightly raised FSH, at age 41 and with a poor ovarian reserve). It's pretty expensive (mind you, so is my obstetrician as I'm paying for private treatment - am 39 so no NHS option) but she has a great record of getting people pg via herbs and acupuncture. Or I could stick with my local acupuncturist who is also a herbalist - more convenient and cheaper! If anyone wants more info on Cyclofenil or Dr Zhai let me know.

Hi. I am also interested in acupuncture/reflexolofy. I live in Reading, Berks. Mojomummy - I'd appreciate the details of the reflexologist you know in Reading. Is she good? Thanks.

HI there

i,ve has 2 sessions of reflex so far wont be able to see the acupunture till end of sept

Hi Twinklemummy. Hope you don't mind me asking, but why can't you have acupuncture yet? Are you not supposed to have reflexology and acupuncture at the same time?

hi there

wasnt aware you are supposed to have both at the same time plus its costly i think

reflexology we tried for 2 yrs i had reflexology 3 times got pg the same month.Good luck

hi sorry to butt in.

have been having acupuncture for a year, tried herbal tea (vile stuff!) for 5 months, nothing and currently on a tablet form of a similar herb (have to take 32 tablets a day!). The tea is considered more potent though. Going to try the tablets for 6 wks max I think.

have acup wkly (more recently fortnightly) and have needles put in feet, legs, hands, tummy and top of head. just before ovulation have both sides done, where have needles put in legs and lower back - apparently aids ovulation.

I have had no response to acup yet. It is supposed to relax you and I personally think acheiving pg depends on how you feel after having the treatment. I have had reflexology before and found it very relaxing...only tried for a few weeks though and decided to stick with acup for a while as both quite costly. Have never really felt that different after acupuncture.

Anyway, thats my story.

hi there thanks

in limbo at the mo as i havent been able to find out why i have 2nd infertility

hi tried both no luck waiting to see a specalist now ,had a long difficult labour followed by c- section with 1st wondering if that has caused probs