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My Story

Hi there, welcome to my blog. Yes I am a drama queen and yes I have been deemed “infertile” by a few of the medical experts in the great State of Colorado but that hasn’t made me give up my quest to have children quite yet. My husband and I have been on the emotional roller coaster of infertility since March of 2009 when I stopped taking birth control after being on it for ten straight years. I have been keeping a journal since the start of this process and thought I would share it with all of the other incredible women out there who may be going through the same thing or similar thing that I am. At age 28, I have been diagnosed with Premature Ovarian Failure (POF). With no history of fertility problems on either side of my family and normal periods before going on the pill, I was left to accept that I have this condition and that there is no medical explanation for it. Since receiving this diagnosis from a fertility specialist in May 2009, I decided I simply wasn’t going to accept that I wasn’t going to have children with my own eggs. I jumped into the world of Eastern Medicine, worked with an Endocrinologist and even went on a fertility diet trying to get my ovaries to start functioning normally. The conclusion I have come to is this…..having Celiac Disease (Gluten/Flour intolerance) and continuing to eat flour throughout most of my childhood and part of adulthood caused my body to produce anti-bodies that have now started attacking the organs/glands in my body. After a visit to an endocrinologist in December 2009, it was determined that I have ovarian antibodies which are essentially antibodies produced by my body that only attack the endocrine system. No doctor has actually confirmed my self diagnosis that the Gluten Intolerance caused this but Celiac Disease is an auto immune disorder and any auto immune disorder can cause your body to attack itself. I am currently waiting to see a Reproductive Endocrinologist to see what the next steps for me will be. I have read that doctors can try and stimulate the Pituitary Gland to get your Endocrine System running again or that you can be given steroids to help restore ovary function. I am hoping to receive one of these treatments in the near future but only time will tell. In the past 10 months, I have watched many of my close friends become pregnant while I remain a sad statistic. This blog contains my thoughts as I struggle through the process of figuring out what in the world is going on with my body and how I continue to try to stay upbeat and positive about my fertility and enjoy my life. I hope that my blog can help others would love to hear from other women going through the same thing, inspiring stories or anyone who just needs encouragement. I know and understand how difficult every day can be once you have received the POF or infertile diagnosis and want you all to know that I am here for you. Please note that some of you may feel I am sharing to much information (TMI) and for that I am sorry. If you want to read my blog…you get all the details. You never know what will be helpful to someone else right? God bless everyone and I wish you luck on your fertility adventures:0) Remember mind over matter!

My intent is to raise awareness of the issues. Please do not rely on this or any other article when making decisions that will affect you and your health. These are things I have decided to try after much research.
I am sorry I have to even ask, but this research stuff is starting to get expensive. I am just asking for $1.00 donation for posts you feel have helped you. I will use all donations to help fund my research and doctors appointments and of course report back to you. Baby dust to all of you and dont worry we will all find a way to have children.

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Save the carrot shaving from your juicer and make carrot cake or carrot muffins yummy! You can also save them to put in a salad.




Infertile – a horrible word used to make women who are already feeling bad about themselves want to jump into a pool of chocolate fudge and eat their sorrows away only to realize that not only can they not get pregnant but now they don’t fit in their clothes. A word so easily tossed around by doctors that they don’t even realize they are saying it and a word that you never under any circumstances should google unless you want your brain to explode.

Sunday, July 31, 2011

A Very Unlucky Squirrel and Some Research

Ok, so today started off badly. I got up late and was rushing into work. I was about half way to my office when I squirrel ran out in front of my car. I am one of those types of people that doesn’t really want to kill any of God’s creatures if I can help it so I swerved and missed the clueless animal but almost hit the person next to me and got a honk and the finger for my good deed. Why is it that when someone honks at you, you automatically get defensive and pissed off? I just don’t understand why, but that is one of the quickest ways to get me going….and not in a good way. I pull myself together and was feeling pretty good about the fact that I didn’t wave the same gesture back at the driver next to me and was relaxed and ready to start my day as I pulled into the parking garage. As I was getting my things ready to get out of the car, I looked down and realized my husband’s keys (car, house, garage,etc) where in my purse. Of course! I had to drive all the way home to give him his keys, so he could get into our detached garage and drive to work. You see, he has an extra car and house key but unfortunately we didn’t think to make an extra key for the door leading to the garage!! Don’t worry, I will be taking care of that this weekend. So here I sit trying to shake off the morning and relax. I decided to make an appointment for hypnosis in July. I am extending it out that far because it is $300 for the first session and I am going to break that up between a few paychecks. I am after all, saving for IVF and want to be practical.




I have been doing some research…ok I admit it, I haven’t stopped focusing on it…but at least my husband thinks I have :0)

Visualization

Doctors willing to work with high fsh’ers

http://thefertilesoul.com/chinese_medicine/?p=15

trying to decide if I should go back on my hormones

getting hit on by someone clearly over the hill instead of the hot buy in line at the grocery store

need to take adrenal supplement

reduce sugar intake

need to balance endocrine system

1) Nutritional status – the reproductive system, like the rest of our body, has certain nutritional requirements. Most of my patients are asked to avoid sugar, wheat, and dairy. They take nutritional supplements specific to their TCM pattern of imbalance. Most women with high FSH or poor ovarian reserve take supergreens like wheatgrass, royal jelly, and Co-Enzyme Q-10, to name a few.

2) Blood flow – a woman of age 40 typically has five times less blood flow to her ovaries than a woman of age 20. This dramatically impedes the attention that the ovary requires during the follicles’ all important growth phase, the 90 day process before ovulation in which the quality of the egg is determined. The follicles insist upon adequate oxygenation and circulation to function efficiently (i.e., with a healthy egg, capable of fertilization and implantation.) I teach women exercises which redirect the circulation to the ovaries. And, as always, their bodies respond.

3) Hormonal balance – the endocrine system is a delicate interplay of the reproductive hormones, stress hormones, and emotions, in symphony with each other. This system operates via feedback, which means that anytime you introduce an outside hormone into its influence, it shuts that system down. Synthetic hormones can’t cure hormonal imbalances, they can only override them. The endocrine system is the most sensitive bodily system which requires the perfect balancing act of multiple factors, inside and out. Like all other mammals, our bodies do not want us pregnant when our endocrine systems are stressed. At our retreats, we employ natural techniques to rebalance the hormones. These methods gently encourage the reproductive system to operate efficiently, while reducing the internal stress response. When we abide by nature’s own directives, an internal order awakens inside, and automatically knows the rules.

http://greenglasslove.blogs.com/out_damned_egg_out_i_say/2005/03/_high_fshthe_be.html





ADVANCED MATERNAL AGE, POOR OVARIAN RESPONSE, POOR EGG QUALITY DIAGNOSIS

Femoral massage to increase blood flow to the ovaries and uterus

Supplement the diet with wheat grass juice

Royal jelly

Co-Enzyme Q-10

Supplements to boost the essence – dong chong xia cao, tu si zi, fu pen zi, gou qi zi, che qian zi, wu wei zi, lu jiao jiao,

DHEA and L-Arginine can be used for Kidney yang vacuity without heat signs.



RECIPE: Fertile Soul Cookies

July 10th, 2010

The sweet healing properties of these cookies help soothe symptoms of PMS. Oats calm the heart, while coconut nourishes yin fluids like semen and cervical mucus.

Yields 12-15 cookies

Cooking time: 15 minutes

1 cup brown rice flour

½ cup tapioca flour

½ cup shredded unsweetened coconut

¾ cup rolled oats

½ tsp xantham gum

¼ cup melted clarified butter/ghee

1 teaspoon vanilla

½ cup agave nectar

¼ cup dark chocolate chips

¼ cup pumpkin seeds, crushed

1/8 cup goji berries

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine flours and oat, coconut and xantham in a bowl. Next add melted butter, vanilla and agave nectar mixing until thoroughly combined. Finally add chocolate chips, goji berries and pumpkin seeds and chill in the refrigerator about one hour. Drop spoonfuls of dough unto lightly greased cookie sheets. Bake for 15 minutes, remove from oven, and leave on pan for an additional 5 minutes.

Tags: cookbook, Cooking for Fertility, Dr Lewis, Kathryn Flynn, Rande Lewis, recipes, The Fertile Soul

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Chocolate Mousse with Tofu and Avocado



Dark chocolate has numerous health benefits, including it’s arginine content, which encourages blood flow to the uterus and ovaries. Tofu is a healthful alternative to whip cream and eggs, and it preserves the creamy texture of this delicious mousse (along with the avocado). Using a low glycemic sweetener is important to stabilize blood sugar levels, and it is important for energy level, metabolism and balanced reproductive hormones.



Preparation time: 5 to 10 minutes

Serves 4 to 6



10 ounces dark chocolate, melted

1 package silken tofu

(optional: 1/2 an avocado)

2 to 4 tablespoons agave syrup

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

2 teaspoon vanilla extract



In a blender or food processor, puree the tofu (and optional avocado), along with the agave, vanilla and cinnamon until perfectly smooth. Add the melted chocolate and mix until fully combined.



Pour mixture in a bowl, and let sit in the fridge for at least 4 hours.

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Reading Materials/Other Items That Have Helped Me

  • Inconceivable
  • Making Babies by Sami S. David, MD & Jill Blakeway, LAc
  • pre-seed Fertility-friendly Intimate Moisturizer
  • restoring fertility - yoga for optimal fertility dvd - you can feel it working!
  • Taking Charge for Your Fertility by Toni Weschler, MPH
  • The Infertility Cure by Randin Lewis, Ph. D.