fertility challenges

In my practice, I see women and men, couples (heterosexual and same sex couples) for natural treatments to improve fertility. I work with couples who would like to conceive naturally as well as with those who are seeking assisted reproductive technology to help them achieve their dream of having a family.
The best approach is to prepare for conception, healthy pregnancy and delivery. We call it in naturopathic medicine –Pre-Conception. Pre-Conception should be initiated a few months before intended conception or Assisted Reproductive Procedures (such as IVF, IUIs, etc).
What does Pre-Conception include?
-Identifying possible causes of fertility challenges in both partners (hormonal testing, general health testing, thorough history during extended visits)
-Implementing treatment after identifying the causes to improve fertility naturally for women and men (it can include herbal formulations to balance hormones, antioxidant/nutrient dense formulation to address sperm quality, nourishing and improving the quality of the female egg reserve, etc)
Low ovarian reserve and low sperm count and quality can be improved through the diet, exercise, correctly formulated botanical, vitamins, minerals, and finding emotional balance. And many other fertility challenges (thyroid imbalances, low progesterone/high estrogen state, PCOS, anovulatory cycles, just to name a few) can be improved through naturopathic protocols.
I have been through fertility struggles myself with my partner. It took us 7 years to conceive our first baby. We ended up doing IVF in Vancouver, Canada. The first course of IVF worked for us. We started preparing for IVF 6 months before the procedure. My husband was taking high quality supplements to improve his sperm quality and count, I was taking herbal/mineral/vitamin supplements to improve my endocrine system (hormones), take care of my follicle health (there are nutrients that follicles use as food), weekly session of acupuncture. Our diet was anti-inflammatory, we both had a routine for exercise.
I see it so often that families who are pursuing assisted reproductive technologies are not informed by their physicians or fertility specialists about the importance of caring for their bodies, their hormones, their reproductive health (including health of the sperm, ovaries, follicles, uterus, etc) before the IVF is initiated, thus, IVF may not have a high success rate and couples end up going through more in-vitro fertilizations many times spending a large amount of money and getting frustrated.
Couples who try to conceive naturally can benefit tremendously from adding natural medicine as part of pre-conception care.
As you can see this topic is vast and very individualized. Improving fertility naturally for women and men is what natural medicine is very good at.
If you have questions about natural approach to fertility, please do not hesitate to schedule a 15 Minute free Phone Consultation.