What are your acupuncture experiences?

[lildottie]

Dh and I have come home with seeds stuck in our ears a tiny needle in our toe and our arm. is this normal? I feel I can get on board with it but dh is not so convinced. also she says because our ivf is so close (down regging starts 28/12) we should go twice a week. that's £160 a week. is that reasonable?

Anyone?

I went when I was having difficulty conceiving baby number two. I was an older mum. My acupuncturist was also a trained midwife. She prescribed supplements too. I did conceive but not sure whether it was down to acupuncture. I found it relaxing

I never came out of session with needles still in though

hi janx. my acupuncturist is also a trained midwife. the needles are tiny pin pricks in a plaster so not like the proper acupuncture needles. not been given any supplements yet did she do the ear seeds or give you any acupressure exercises to do at home?

She didn't give me seeds- I wasn't going down ivf route though different situation. I did a lot of plotting of my temperature

£80 a session? That sounds really pricey. Twice a week isn't unusual though

I paid £45 pet session and I'm in London

its £40 each so £89 for me and dh. I'm on bcp ready for ivf cycle now and I guess your right that will make a difference to the treatment. dh and I have talked about it and even though its him who is infertile he isn't going to continue but I am. I'm going to do once a week as I've read in Zita west book 4 prior and 5during ivf cycle is sufficient to get positive effect from it. I start injections in 5 weeks. we figured as we are having icsi the lab will pick the best sperm anyway and he has good count. we've changed duet in preparation so fx that will be enough.
thanks for your input

£80, not £89

I've been doing twice monthly acupuncture for a year (£37 a session, I'm in the North East). It's helped with stress and regulating my cycles/giving me an energy boost after AF etc. I'm due to start treatment next year hopefully and agree with posters above that it seems common to go at least once or twice a week during IVF; can you negotiate a cheaper session rate if you block-book? Yours seems pricey. Also don't know about the seeds/needles being left in, have never had this!

I think if the problem lies with your husband, he should definitely keep going (but with 5 weeks away is it enough time - I mean the 3 month sperm cycle thing). Regardless really, if the problem lies with him then why doesn't he want to continue?

I think 2 a week is a lot though. I know it gets ramped up for ivf (like EC and ET time) but why 5 weeks before?

Do you like the sessions and the women though? You have to feel comfortable and you don't want to lie there feeling a bit miffed about money etc….

Good luck with ivf x

hi allchat I think if it wasn't so expensive he would go, but surely if we are having icsi and he has high count there should be plenty of good sperm for them to choose from? we thought if only one of us could do it then it was better for me to as its my body that will be doing all the work and all the research seems to be with acupuncture on the woman not the man from what I've found. interested to know if you've found otherwise though.

Yep you are right about icsi, but sometimes it may be worth seeing it more long term. Plus even though it's icsi, the better the quality of the sperm the higher the fertilisation rate.
I agree if the concern is financial though, I would probably do what you are and invest in your body….
Good luck

thanks. I'm thinking I'll send him for some acupuncture when we get round to trying for number 2!!

Good planning Lildottie. I was surprised to be told by my accupunturist that I didn't need any sessions with her leading up to the treatment, she just strongly recommended one session between EC and ET. I did, and of course got my BFP. But it might depend on any underlying issues you might have (circulation, energy, etc etc), hence recommending more sessions. I would certainly ask why she sent you home with things left in (ie forgot? worrying), and also she should offer a package. In London I know there are several practioners now who offer group sessions so, after an initial (full price) consultation you can have following treatments in a large room with several beds. This reduces costs significantly.

To be honest, I've seen quite a few accupuncturists, and some I've just not felt comfortable with - if you're not happy with her you can always change. There are plenty around these days.

thanks rumples. they weren't forgotten, it was intentional but not like the normal needles. got my next appt at 4 and going to ask if I can pay for a set and get discount. also going to say no to the ear seeds and weird needles! and I'm just going to stick to the once a week sessions. I don't have any medical issues so there is no reason to need more and she made no comments to suggest otherwise, just that people normally start 6months before ivf . she does seem nice though so as long as she is accepting of my terms re seeds and frequency today I'll stick with her.

I did acupuncture for 3 months prior to our IVF cycle but only once a week (apart from Embryo transfer day when I went before and after transfer). I had irregular length cycles although our infertility issues were put down to DH's low parts per million. We thought about DH doing it as well but in the end it was just me as similarly to you we thought the clinic would be picking the best sperm. No weird needles or ear seeds with my acupuncture...

We had an amazing cycle and DD is nearly two. We have 7 first class frozen embryos and went to the clinic this morning to discuss a FET in the new year!

I don't know how much the acupuncture helped but I was glad I did it. But I don't think I would have gone twice a week.

Interestingly we were down to do ICSI from our first appointment but on the day they went with IVF as DH's low count had gone from 7 parts per million to 36 (WHO average was 20 I think) which I think is mainly down to him completely giving up alcohol for 3 months prior to our cycle and also taking Q10 supplements. Brazil nuts are good for sperm too so get your DH eating those (mine was allergic!).

GOOD LUCK!

thanks badger, I've agreed a 6 for 5 deal with her and only have the ear seeds today no needles yo bring home! I've cancelled my next appointment so we now average once a week with what's booked. the clinic did mention if sperm quality was hood enough they may still consider ivf rather than icsi. dhs count was fab, 88m, but 3% morph and 4% motility. we've had a major change in diet in preparation so hoping that will do enough for him. will definitely get him on the Brazil nuts though!