INFERTILITY AND THE DEEPER ISSUES
Are Instant Results Possible?
by Dr. Randy Martin, OMD – Doctor of Chinese Medicine

When Sandy made her first appointment, she told my secretary she was coming to see me for infertility treatment. But as soon as Sandy sat down across from me, I could tell she had more severe problems than just having trouble getting pregnant. I could tell by examining her pulse, observing her tongue, and reading her patient intake forms.

Sandy’s fertility doctor told her that her eggs were not of a good quantity or quality, and the doctor wanted her to try IVF (invitro fertilization.) Sandy thought that she should try acupuncture first, so here she was.

Sandy told me she also had a lot of upper back problems, with pain constantly radiating down her arms, and pain in the head around the occiput*. She said her feet were also very cold, and that she exercises a lot, and is a runner.

When I took her pulse, I could see she was severely yin deficient*. Her blood and yin were very weak. Her tongue confirmed this diagnosis; it was fiery red and swollen. She also had fire rising. The fire was causing the neck and upper back pain, and the weak yin and blood deficiency was causing the eggs to be weak.

She also had a job that is traditionally associated as very yang. She was an adjudicator/adjustor with an insurance company, and she said it was very stressful. And indeed, she looked exhausted and very stressed out.

I told her my diagnosis, and said that if she really wanted to see improvement, it would take about six months. But Sandy didn’t like that. She wanted immediate improvement.

As I see this pattern quite often, I want to take this opportunity to discuss it. Symptoms do not arise in a vacuum. In other words, the fact that Sandy and her husband were having trouble getting pregnant is just the tip of the iceberg. But she wanted immediate results and looked to acupuncture to work like an IVF program. She didn’t realize that acupuncture couldn’t just change an entire constitution overnight.

Of course, all of us want to see rapid improvement – preferably overnight. But one must try and understand that in order to really see great results, it can take quite a bit of time to really change around the inherited, emotional, lifestyle, and dietary habits that we have accumulated. Unfortunately, deeper, lasting, change just won’t happen that quickly.

Some women seeking to get pregnant do respond very well to just one cycle of acupuncture for 4 to 8 weeks. But in Sandy’s case, because of her severe imbalance, I knew it would quite likely take longer, and that acupuncture alone probably wouldn’t do the trick – she would need to change her diet, learn stress-reduction techniques, and take Chinese herbs and supplements based on imbalances in her blood test results.

Another thing I hear often is, “I’m doing everything to get pregnant!” But in most cases, the woman who says this, is actually not doing everything. They are not taking Chinese herbs, are not under homeopathic treatment, are not changing their diet, and are not in counseling or therapy working on their emotional patterns. She could also be getting energy work or reiki, cranial work, polarity, and many other healthy healing modalities beyond acupuncture.

It makes me sad and frustrated when I’m not able to quickly help a woman get pregnant who deeply desires to, but she just isn’t willing to make the commitment to seriously work on her underlying health issues and emotional imbalances. The reality, from what I have seen, is that most people need to make significant changes in their diet and supplement program in order to see fast and lasting changes.

It’s the initial problem brings them into the office, but they don’t really use the opportunity to work on a deeper level. Acupuncture is only a start, not the be all and end all. In fact, in China, the doctor will first recommend dietary and lifestyle changes prior to acupuncture alone. But here in the U.S., acupuncture is seen similar to a drug that one would take to cure a problem after only a few treatments. Acupuncture actually is very effective, and it’s something I do myself all the time. I believe in acupuncture. I see it work miracles on a daily basis.

I urge you to try it. And then maybe we can also discuss diet and take your blood or hair analysis, and begin to make some changes in supplements as well. You really will be amazed at how much better you are able to feel, and in most cases rather quickly.

Acupuncture and Fertility
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