Infertility is a common buzz
word in the media today. Couples of all types are desperate
to conceive and in their desperation are looking now to alternative
medicines for an effective treatment. Chinese medicine is one
of those alternatives that future parents are investigating.
With the recent studies being published out of Britain, and
the past Swedish and German studies indicating that acupuncture
can be beneficial as an ART, assistive reproductive technique,
Chinese Medicine now finds itself at the forefront of the infertility
scene. Traditional Chinese Medicine however has always had a
strong grasp on women’s issues, including infertility.
Most of the focus in the research studies has been on acupuncture
as a sole treatment however TCM, is a complete model of Medicine
of which acupuncture is only one modality within.
This article is written to illustrate some
of the foundational concepts in TCM that are the causes
and progression of infertility.
One of the main concepts in TCM with regard to infertility
is the concept of constitutional weakness. The blunt
nature of TCM information is sometimes hard to hear but is
usually
full of common sense. For example the concept of age
and infertility is exceptionally important. The idea of older
women conceiving
is generally frowned upon due to the waning of general
essence of life. The older you are the less essence you have
left to
pass on to your offspring. Other issues of constitution
have to do with the woman’s parents at time of conception and
what level of essence was passed on to her. Even the health
of the parents at the time of conception plays a huge part in
the ease of conception. The concept exists that hopeful parents
should take one full year to become clean in mind, body and
spirit before attempting to become pregnant. This includes clean
eating, appropriate exercise in body and meditation to create
the correct intention with which to create life.
Another concept is
that of overwork and excessive physical work. Overwork
is in the sense of long hours without
adequate rest, this includes an irregular diet. Excessive
physical work
ie sports or actual work as “on a farm” especially
at puberty can cause difficulty in conceiving later in life.
Excessive sexual
activity at a young age weakens the kidneys which
are the organs of essence. A weakened state
of Kidney energy can lead to the constitutional weakness
that was
mentioned earlier.
Chinese Medicine
also has strong conviction in regard to what are
termed pathogenic factors. One of the most
prolific of these in Chinese medicine is the pathogenic
factor, cold.
It is believed in Chinese medicine that cold can easily
invade the Uterus and thus create an inability to conceive.
If you
think about it, it would be hard to bake bread in an
oven that didn’t have the ability to become warm. This concept always
reminds me of the cliché phrase..”a bun in the
oven”.
This
concept of cold also relates to the excessive
consumption of cold or iced foods. This can also
lead to cold in
the uterus which as we know makes conception
really difficult.
Another concept in TCM that leads to infertility
is one of the stagnation of energy (Qi). This is very common
in our modern world where women are under
great amounts
of stress. Women do not stop to rest during
their menstrual cycles
when
they are losing what is considered the essence
of their energy. Women continue to push until they are exhausted
mentally, physically
and spiritually. This stress and subsequent
exhaustion
leads to stagnated energy and causes all
sorts of imbalances in health.
It truly
is no wonder that infertility and miscarriage
are so prevalent.
Most
complete models of medicine have the concept
that health on all levels is what is
needed to conceive
easily
and then produce
a really quality offspring who in turn will pass
on their excellent
and strong
constitutional essence
to the next generation.
From
this information it is easy to see that while
acupuncture can help many
of these
issues it is not
the only
modality that is required.
Proper
alignment and balance of the body, mind and spirit
is essential
for the
desired result.
Remember;
to be successful seek out qualified practitioners
of acupuncture and oriental
medicine. You can find one
near you by visiting www.nccaom.org.
There are many factors that can contribute to infertility. Energy
levels, age, stress, lifestyle, diet and exercise can all affect
how available the body is for conceiving and nurturing. It is
easy to see that while acupuncture can help many of these issues
it is not the only modality that is required. Proper alignment
and balance of the body, mind and spirit is essential for the
desired result.
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