Acupuncture

[JB2001]

Hi Everyone! First timer!! Have been trying to get pregnant but am 41.. 42 this year!!! Worried I may have left it too late! I want to try acupuncture. Is it Five Element acupuncture or TCM?? Am so confused and not sure where to go! Thanks so much for any help or advice x x x

Hi JB, I'd recommend it. My acupuncurist specialised in fertility treatment and was very clear that it's not a magic wand and that it might help... No success guaranteed. I got pregnant after 6 months at the age of 35. After years of having short menstrual cycles, the acupuncture lengthened them considerably. I stopped swimming and took up tai chi on his advice.

I don't know if the acupuncture really helped it not, but what did was having someone to talk through my feelings with. I used these talk boards (mostly lurking) but found it good to have someone who I could just spew my feelings at. It cost me a fair bit (40 per session) but I found it helpful in my situation.

Hope things work out for you!

My understanding is that acupuncture can support fertility issues, but only for certain 'types'. It didn't help me and actually seemed to make my periods more irregular. I have endometriosis tho, and there is no positive link between using acupuncture for endometriosis and getting pregnant sadly. My acupuncturist supported a number of women going through IVF and I do know that it has been seen to have a positive effect on the growth (or quality, so sorry don't know the right term) of the eggs in that context. Sorry for such a stupidly detailed answer but I did loads of reading on the topic as I was frustrated that it didn't seem to be helping me. I did get pregnant after 10 months and after having stopped acupuncture. About to start TTc again and think I will use acupuncture anyway. If nothing else it hugely relaxed me, and that alone helped me in its own way during TTC. I really hope it works for you. The best thing for me was a fertility monitor (the old style Clearblue one) as it helped me to at least know when I was ovulating. Tho tbh I guess I don't know if I just finally got pregnant through luck rather than judgment. Good luck.

Thank you so much for your replies! So lovely to chat to other women. .its an emotional roller coaster at the moment! Thanks again x x x

Good luck on your journey! These boards are amazingly supportive and helpful. Something else that helped me (and I'm a little embarrassed to admit it) was writing a letter to my future child before I got pregnant. It made me think more positively that it was going to happen. I did lots of other crazy stuff but it is an emotional journey and the more support you have, the better.