Can Acupuncture Help You Get Pregnant? What about relaxing and taking a vacation? Or what about eating a paleo diet and energy practices like Reiki to promote fertility? Where should one even start when exploring natural remedies to try to get pregnant fast? Some experts swear by acupuncture to regulate hormonal imbalances and improve fertility. Let’s begin with exploring the benefits of acupuncture while trying to conceive.
Acupuncture
Some studies show that acupuncture may improve ovarian function and sperm quality, but ultimately the data about this is inconclusive. People who have tried acupuncture while trying to conceive (TTC) do rave about how it was helpful for them. The goal of acupuncture while trying to conceive is to increase blood flow to the reproductive organs, regulate ovarian function, improve sperm count and mobility, regulate hormones and decrease stress and anxiety. Acupuncture is also deemed safe and painless by many health organizations and professionals.
Studies do show that acupuncture is helpful in reducing stress. Another study showed that people with the diagnosis of infertility had the same stress levels as those who have breast cancer. At minimum, acupuncture could be beneficial to alleviate the feelings and symptoms of stress. The mechanism of acupuncture is to help your body to heal itself by flowing energy to certain organs. When being treated for fertility, the acupuncture needles will likely be placed in your wrist and abdomen.
Working with an expert acupuncturist is a must. Some also have a Doctorate of Naturopath (ND) and specialize in fertility. Finding the right practitioner with experience in treating fertility is key. If you can’t find a ND in your area, some offer online consultations such as Folia fertility and subsequently, you could visit your local reputable acupuncturist with the recommendation from the ND on what organs to target and locations a.k.a “acupoints” to place the sterile steel needles.
It is nice to find a natural fertility practitioner in the specialty that you are looking for. Often times your local OB GYN doctor that you see may not have received training in natural techniques to improve fertility. This was my experience. My OBGYN recommended to come back and see her if I did not conceive after 6 months because I was almost 35. After leaving the 6-month visit all she could offer was IVF, and she said I was not ready for that yet. Luckily, I was able to get myself to a natural fertility specialist and found home insemination which proved to be successful in achieving pregnancy for myself.
Reiki
My personal experience with Reiki has been awesome! I tried it while TTC and I believe it helped me to clear the negative energy out of my mind and body. You will want to be sure you are doing the practice correctly and often. You can either read a book, take online courses or find a local and or remote Reiki expert practitioner. If you do not have a local practitioner, we recommend Glenna by Glenna James , she provides Reiki consultations and offers other fertility support methods such as fertility herbs.
Vacationing to get Pregnant
You will be sure to get all sorts of dumb advice that you did not ask for when you open up to people such as coworkers about struggling to conceive (STC). The most annoying of them will say “you should just relax and stop thinking about it, that’s making it worse and or it’s all in your head. My cousin (or some random person they know) got pregnant on their honeymoon or vacation”. It is inconclusive if stress causes infertility, but it is undeniably true that infertility causes stress! It’s the chicken and egg scenario. Relaxing and reducing stress does feel nice, and will make you feel better while dealing with the major stressor of infertility.
Fertility Diets
There’s always some fad diet like keto, keto-carnivore, celery diet, paleo or whole 30 and who can keep up these days? Or should you just fast? That opens up a whole other can of worms. Traditionally, during intermittent fasting one should abstain from eating for 16 hours. Now Gastroenterologists and experts are saying that you should wait even longer to eat and eat every other day. To be honest, I tried intermittent fasting when I wanted to lose baby weight, and I was so very tired! My husband made me stop doing it because he said I was crabby and hangry too often. I just saw a video on Tik Tok that showed fasting can cause anovulation or in other words you wont release an egg to ovulate that month. Without further research than Tik Tok, my opinion is that intermittent fasting is likely not the best diet while TTC.
One diet that the natural fertility OB GYN told me to try while TTC was the Paleo diet with a focus on “good carbs” and fish and less red meat. I did eventually conceive a few months after seeing the natural doctor and using home insemination. I liked the Paleo diet, I felt more energy and was able to lose that stubborn “pooch” belly fat that fluctuates with my period cycle. I had to give up most bread carbohydrates and cheese. I believe that my “pooch” is from eating dairy. However, now its 2023 and research shows that paleo may not be the best for fertility because of the no bread thing and people may tend to eat more red meat on the diet.
Eating healthy is always beneficial, just be sure that your diet is safe and promotes fertility such as the Mediterranean or Dutch diet. When in doubt, “Go Avo” says the Eat Right Mamma Blog studies show avocados are good for fertility! Studies show that saturated fat from animal protein like red meat may reduce fertility. Saturated fats from fish and vegan sources show to be helpful for fertility.
I hope this blog has helped you in your journey to learn about alternative remedies for trying to get pregnant. I do personally love many of these alternative therapies for reducing stress. It is great to try new things and get out of your comfort zone. After all, when you do eventually conceive and over half of couples with the infertility diagnosis do eventually conceive-your child will stretch you! You may end up learning all sorts of activities from them that you have never tried such as Kung Fu or gourmet baking.
Happy Conceiving!
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