3 miscarriages - Initially skeptical of TCM but now a happy mom

Two years ago I became pregnant. All the dreams that go along with a pregnancy came to an end when at 11 weeks I miscarried.  My husband and I were told by our doctor that it is very common to have a miscarriage and to keep trying, so we did. Again, I became pregnant and tried to keep the dreams at bay until we passed the 12-week mark. We didn’t get there, and miscarried again at 11 weeks. This one had chromosomal abnormalities. We were referred to the fertility specialist in town and had some genetic screening done. The tests showed we were both “normal” and didn’t carry any genes that would cause our problems. We were told to try again. We became pregnant a third time. This time our dreams of a baby ended earlier, at 6 weeks when I miscarried again.

During this time a friend of mine had suggested Traditional Chinese Medicine and Acupuncture to help in our fertility battle. I listened to the advice which was only one of many suggestions made to me by obviously caring friends. I filed the advice in the back of my brain as my husband and I needed to make decisions about how many times we would allow ourselves to lose our dreams through the loss of a baby. Having been raised in a family where western medicine ruled supreme and all other treatments were frowned upon I had difficulty taking my friend’s advice.

After the third miscarriage we again saw the fertility specialist, Dr.Hudson, who made some suggestions for the next time we tried to become pregnant. Among them was to take low dose aspirin, vitamin C and to try acupuncture! Well, now I had a western medical doctor suggesting acupuncture. At first I was sceptical, primarily because of the losses that we had already experienced.

We decided to wait to get pregnant for the next six months. Part of the reason was to give my physical body a rest, part was for our emotional selves to rest and part was to see what difference the Traditional Chinese Medicine and Acupuncture would make on my menstrual cycle.

I began seeing Stephanie Curran in December 2003. She took a long history of my medical experiences as well as asking a lot about my menstrual cycle and the different miscarriages. I began a treatment course of acupuncture once every two weeks and a herbal formula to help regulate my body. Weeks later my cycle was more regular and through charting my basal body temperature I could see changes with regards to the different phases of my cycle. As we got close to the spring time and closer to the idea that we might like to begin trying to get pregnant again, Stephanie adjusted my treatments to acupuncture once a week and three different herbal formulas, one for each phase of my menstrual cycle.

In late May of 2004 I became pregnant again. I felt apprehensive but also excited knowing that I was taking charge of my body and having an active role in trying to maintain my pregnancy. I continued to see Stephanie once a week for the first 20 weeks of my pregnancy. She changed my herbal formulas to one that was designed to support a pregnancy. She suggested that I had made it over the difficult time so perhaps it was time to stop seeing her. I was nervous to stop, but confident that she was the expert in this area.

It is now 37 weeks into the pregnancy and everything has gone very well so far! The doctor’s are happy with my progress and I am considered a “regular” pregnancy and am not considered “high risk” in any way! My husband and I are amazed that after the emotional journey we have been through we are finally close to welcoming our little baby into our family.

I believe that everything happens for a reason; sometimes those reasons are unknown to us. I believe that the changes that I made that were suggested by the fertility specialist and my journey in Traditional Chinese Medicine with Stephanie are the reasons that I have been able to carry this baby to term. I feel so thankful to Stephanie for not only her expertise in fertility, but for her emotional support in this sometimes difficult journey.

I recently called Stephanie again to resume acupuncture. I have been retaining water and my blood pressure was beginning to rise. My friend who suggested acupuncture before, again suggested that Stephanie might be able to help me with my blood pressure. This time I jumped at the suggestion. I have been seeing Stephanie once a week for the past three weeks and my blood pressure has gone down dramatically. I can only attribute this to the acupuncture! Once again I must thank Stephanie for her support in helping my body adjust to the amazing changes that come with pregnancy!

JS (mom of a gorgeous little boy)