Chinese Medicine and Acupuncture can improve your chances of conceiving by: regulating your cycle, balancing hormone levels, stimulating timely ovulation, improving egg and uterine quality as well as preventing miscarriage.

Please visit the following sections for more information:

Regulating My Periods

Understanding My Hormones

Preventing Recurrent Miscarriage

Important Hormones During My Pegnancy

Pre-Conception

Regulating My Period (irregular, short or absent periods)

Irregular periods can be characterized as late periods, over 30 day cycles that have no consistent pattern, or early periods that are shorter than the 26-30 day cycle and come frequently. Late irregular periods are often caused by anovulation, or a cycle in which a woman does not ovulate (i.e. does not release an egg). This is frequently the cause of a missed period. Shorter cycles are a result of a fluctuation of hormone levels, changing the length of time after ovulation, or a delayed growth phase for the maturing egg, resulting in a luteal phase defect.

Irregular periods can be caused by factors such as:

• Poor diet
• High stress
• Emotional trauma
• Illness Strenuous physical exercise

If you miss your period regularly or have a consistently shorter cycle, your body is not functioning well and your hormone levels are not in synch.

Chinese medicine can regulate your hormones, allowing your body to ovulate on time and ensure a healthy regular period. A combination of Chinese herbs and acupuncture is the most successful means of regulating your cycle. Treatment plans generally range from 3-12 months.

Understanding my Hormones

FSH Levels

Follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) is an important hormone in determining fertility. FSH is produced by the pituitary gland stimulating the ovaries to produce and mature follicles. While normal FSH levels indicate whether that particular cycle will have a successful ovulation, insufficient FSH levels resulting from a defect with the pituitary gland will result in no ovulation. High levels of FSH, which is much more common, results from the pituitary gland stimulating follicles that are non-responsive. High levels of FSH may indicate premature ovarian failure, when there are very low or no eggs left. This is also indicative of perimenopause.

Chinese medicine and acupuncture can help reduce and stabilize FSH levels in women that are under the age of 45 and have not yet reached menopause. High levels of FSH in women in their 30’s is commonly seen after extreme stress and can also be seen after a miscarriage.

Estrogen

In a normal cycle, once the FSH is released into the blood stream by the pituitary gland, this signals the ovaries to start maturing follicles. The maturing follicles then start releasing estrogen, as the eggs continue to develop they release more and more estrogen into the blood stream, triggering thickening of the uterine lining and changes in the cervical mucus. Once the eggs have reached a good size (anywhere from 1.6mm-2mm ideally), the high levels of estrogen triggers the release of leutinizing hormone (LH), causing the release of the egg into the uterus (Ovulation).

Summary of the functions of Estrogen:

• Estrogen signals the release of the hormone LH (Luteinizing hormone) which is needed to trigger ovulation.
• Estrogen is needed to build up the endometrium (the lining of the uterus) so that a fertilized egg can find nourishment and implant.
• Estrogen produces cervical fluid which is necessary for the sperm to travel to the fallopian tube where the egg may be fertilized.
• Estrogen causes the cervix to soften and open so that the sperm may enter and reach the fallopian tube for fertilization

In cases where individuals have low estrogen levels or a prolonged follicular stage, where it takes longer than 7-10 days to mature the eggs, acupuncture and Chinese medicine can help regulate hormone levels and help in the healthy maturation of the eggs as well as a healthy rise in estrogen levels. Combination of acupuncture and herbal medicine is needed.

Ovulation and LH levels

Lutenizing hormone (LH) is also produced by the pituitary gland and helps to regulate the menstrual cycle and egg production (ovulation). The level of LH in a woman’s body varies with the phase of the menstrual cycle. It increases rapidly just before ovulation typically around day 12-14. This is called the LH surge.

A combination of herbs and acupuncture can help regulate your hormones promoting timely ovulation and maintaining a cycle of 28-29 days.

Progesterone

While estrogen dominates the first phase of your cycle, progesterone dominates your second or luteal phase of your cycle. After ovulation, progesterone is produced in high amounts. Progesterone plays the following roles:

• Progesterone makes the lining of your uterus soft and spongy so that a fertilized egg can latch onto it and implant.
• Progesterone is needed to support and sustain pregnancy.

Progesterone is a necessary hormone to ensure proper implantation of a fertilized egg as well as a ensuring a healthy pregnancy. Acupuncture and Chinese medicine can help ensure that progesterone levels are adequate encouraging pregnancy.

Preventing Recurrent Miscarriage

A combination of acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine can stop the cycle of recurrent miscarriage and increase your chances of conceiving and maintaining a successful pregnancy. The focus is to strengthen you entire system so that you are capable of supporting yourself as well as your new baby. The combination of herbs and acupuncture will:

• Promote circulation to the uterus
• Decrease stress levels
• Increase uterine lining
• Improve the quality of eggs
• Support progesterone levels
• Enhance energy levels
• Reduce pregnancy related symptoms

...all of which help maintain a healthy pregnancy.

Important hormone levels to monitor during pregnancy.

Progesterone levels

Progesterone helps to build the lining of the woman’s uterus for the fertilized egg to implant. Once conception occurs, the placenta continues to produce progesterone for the duration of the pregnancy. Levels of progesterone continue to increase right up until birth. Low or declining levels of progesterone during any part of pregnancy indicate the potential for miscarriage.

Acupuncture and herbal medicine support and supplement progesterone levels, and can help increase uterine lining prior to conception. Treatment is continued post ovulation and throughout the first 12 weeks of pregnancy. This improves the chances of implantation of the embryo after ovulation. An increased uterine lining not only ensures proper implantation, but also ensures that the embryo has sufficient nutrients for it early stages of growth.

HCG levels

Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (hCG) is produced during pregnancy by the cells that form the placenta. HCG can first be detected by a normal blood test 11 days after conception, and after 12-14 days when given a urine test. HCG levels should double every 72 hours and will reach their peak in the 8th to 11th week of pregnancy. If HCG levels decline or increase at a low rate, there is an increased risk of miscarriage.

Acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine help increase blood circulation to the uterus, supporting the embryo once it has implanted. Furthermore, treatment can also significantly decrease stress and anxiety levels, helping to sustain the pregnancy and encourage healthy HCG levels.