Unexplained Infertility

Unexplained Infertility and Life Events:

Unexplained infertility can leave you looking for answers – everywhere!  Why are we infertile? This is one of the most  frustrating questions any couple will ask themselves. Through our clinical work here, we have met a lot of women and men experiencing high levels of stress after being told that there is no clear reason as to why they can’t conceive.   Let’s first quickly look at what unexplained infertility means.

Unexplained infertility simply means that there has no clear medical reason that can account for a couples’ inability to fall pregnant ( assuming that they have had frequent unprotected sex over the past 12 months ). This means hormone levels are within normal range,  fallopian tubes are free from obstructions and sperm quality and quantity are within normal ranges.

One of the core differences between Western medical models and TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine) models is the way we account for the emotional impact on the health of a person. Whilst there is no doubt that the West is becoming increasingly aware of the negative impact of stress and stressors on the body, TCM has more than two thousand years of empirical knowledge in relation to how our emotions can interfere with the regulation of our Qi, or energy. In fact, we rarely separate the physical body from the emotional.

To this end, major life events, sudden shocks or even prolonged stress can cause disruptions to the connections between our organs.  This is important for us as practitioners as one of the cornerstones of Chinese Medicine is that everything is connect.  In brief, stress interrupts the way our organs communicate with one another.

So how do we apply this idea that stress interrupts the flow of energy or communication within the body?

Well, the first consultation is an important one. This is where we  love to gather information about our patients in terms of ‘their story’.

“Have you been through a really tough time of late”?   “Have you suffered any major traumatic events over the past few years”?   As you reveal yourself, we gain valuable insight into how well your internal organs are communicating with one another.

Western medicine of course does not acknowledge the existence of the meridians between your vital organs, but acupuncturists do.  At the end of the day both Western and Eastern practitioners are just wanting the best for their patients . How we do that is very different, and that’s not a bad thing.     We know through modern research that acupuncture can increase uterine and ovarian blood flow by stimulating the ovarian sympathetic nerves (1).  Great!! We might use the word channel or meridian and a Western scientist might used the word nerve, but the ned result is what we are interested in. 

If you would like to read more on how acupuncture might play a part in solving your fertility issues, then please click here.

Have questions about how acupuncture may help you?

Use the contact form below to ask a question or to make an appointment. Alternatively, call us now on 3357 3205.  I look forward to helping you on your road to health.

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  1.  Int J Womens Health. 2014; 6: 313–325.Published online 2014 Mar 17.doi: 10.2147/IJWH.S38969 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3962314/; accessed April 13, 2016.