Patient Cases

Female Infertility  

Patient Presentation
Sally, a vital, attractive 39-year-old secretary, had been trying to get pregnant for 2 years.   Her husband’s sperm tested normal, but Sally’s hormone levels showed that she fell in the perimenopausal range.  Because of her test results, Sally had been told by doctors that she was not a likely candidate for insemination or in vitro fertilization.  

Examination and Diagnosis
I found Sally to be almost obsessed with getting pregnant.  She was anxious about her age, about her hormone levels and about her egg production.  She was desperate to be told that acupuncture would enable her to get pregnant since her ‘internal clock’ was painfully reminding her of the passage of time.  Her brittleness and excessively intense emotional state provided an important clue to her underlying condition.   In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), we consider strong disturbances in the emotions to be a potentially important cause of disease.  In Sally's case her obsession had resulted in a disharmony that had interrupted the smooth flow of Qi energy throughout her body, the domain of the Liver organ system. 

Treatment
I treated Sally once each week for three and a half months with acupuncture, electric stimulation and moxibustion (a heat therapy that consists of applying incense-like burning herbs placed indirectly on acupuncture points).   With the arrival of each menstrual period Sally was devastated, but she persisted in receiving acupuncture treatments.  After 2 months Sally came to her acupuncture appointment in tears because her doctor told her that her recent blood work indicated that her Follicle Stimulating Hormone (FSH) levels were “too high” for conception.  I counseled her that in fact she might not be able to conceive. However, I also reminded her that if lab results were the final word on the subject, when a woman reaches menopause and all of her blood work verifies that status, why then is she told to continue to use contraception for an entire year post menstruation?   Clearly hormone levels can fluctuate and the results of a single blood test are not definitive.  Sally decided to continue her weekly treatments with me.

Treatment Results
I met Sally in the treatment room before her 15th session.  She was gowned up and ready for treatment, but rather than waiting on the table, she was standing somewhat awkwardly next to it.  I asked her if she was all right and from behind her back she produced a huge bouquet of flowers.  She happily announced:  "I’m pregnant!"  And today she is the mother of a healthy son.

Out of the dozens of clients who have come to me over the years with infertility issues, two proved unable to conceive.  For almost all of the women who have sought my help, however, TCM has proven to be remarkably effective in treating gynecological issues.

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