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8 ways I naturally boosted my fertility

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8 ways I naturally boosted my fertility

At twenty (20) years old, I was diagnosed with endometriosis. Endometriosis can be a very painful often debilitating condition in which the lining of the uterus can implant itself outside of the uterus in other areas of the body and on other organs. It can wreak havoc on the life of a patient, and it can cause infertility.

I was rushed to the emergency room for intense pain in 2000. The doctors believed it was appendicitis. Exploratory surgery was performed. My appendix was removed, but it was not the problem.  Endometriosis was found. I had female pain starting from a young age, but I’ve been told by experts that it can only be diagnosed with surgery.

I was told with this diagnosis that I may never have children. I saw an expert for endometriosis, and I had a major surgery to try and remove it all within months of the diagnosis. Unfortunately, my endometriosis was recurrent. It required me to have many subsequent surgeries after that. One surgeon told me I would need “clean up” surgeries for it every 9 to 12 months, or I could consider a hysterectomy. Having a baby could potentially also heal this condition if I could get pregnant, and that was discussed as well. I was in my mid-20s. I was single and in college. My dream of a future family was still very much intact. I wasn’t done fighting. I wasn’t ready for a hysterectomy or a baby, even with the horrible pain.

I moved on for a second opinion.  My new surgeon operated again and then chose to medically induce menopause to stop the endometriosis from growing for approximately 18 months. He used a drug called Synarel. It worked, but at the same time was brutal on my body.  After treatment we hoped the endometriosis was gone. However, my hormonal related troubles weren’t over. I had some severe ovarian cysts, and one was bad enough that it took over one of my ovaries. I had to have one ovary and tube removed. The other ovary was operated on later too, but it was saved.

I continued to fight and recover from each and every surgery. I never lost hope of my dream to be a mom. When I was ready to start a family, we began trying. We tried on and off for about 12 to 18 months. We decided to see a fertility specialist.

Everyone that suffers from infertility isn’t a good candidate for fertility treatments.  I was not.  I was told I didn’t have enough of an egg supply with quality eggs with my prior surgeries and medical history for IVF (In Vitro Fertilization) to work. IUI (Intrauterine insemination) was a possible option with a lower success rate.  We’d never tried it, but we were keeping in mind.

In 2013 after reviewing my medical records, blood tests, and ultrasounds, our fertility specialist recommended using a donor egg as really my best shot and only shot of ever starting a family. She didn’t believe we’d conceive on our own. Even though I knew all along this could happen, I was still devastated. However, one way or another I knew in my heart I’d be a mommy one day. Adoption was something I was definitely open to considering.

Against all odds and still dealing with many, significant chronic illnesses, I’ve now been pregnant a total of three times! All three pregnancies were without any fertility clinic intervention.  My daughter is now four years old. My second pregnancy resulted in a miscarriage around 8 weeks in December 2016. However, we were still encouraged that it even happened again. Now, I’m almost 34 weeks pregnant with a little boy. We truly know God had a huge hand in all of this. These babies are absolute miracles.

So, what else do I believe were the biggest contributors to boosting my fertility?

Eight (8) ways I naturally boosted my fertility:

  1. Acupuncture
  • This is my number one recommendation to boost fertility and conceive naturally. Some acupuncturists also offer fertility herbs that can further increase your chances. I tried those too, but my stomach couldn’t tolerate them.
  • Every time I got pregnant, I either used fertility focused acupuncture or general acupuncture for overall body healing for a minimum of three months or longer. My treatments were several times a month (sometimes weekly).
  • Acupuncture can take time and patience, but it can be beneficial.
  • Read more here on acupuncture and its benefits.  https://destinationcleanliving.com/the-benefits-of-acupuncture/

2. Clean eating

  • I strongly believe that what we put into our bodies daily can hugely influence our health and fertility.
  • I don’t think it was a coincidence that I got pregnant for the first time one year and one month to the day that I went 100% gluten free. I had been 100% dairy free for a year and a half too. I’d mainly been doing the Paleo/Primal diet. I was limiting my processed foods, sugars, etc.  I wasn’t able to tolerate alcohol much anymore, even in small amounts, so that had been reduced too.
  • I’d started eating out much less. I was eating clean meats (organic, antibiotic free, grass fed, etc.). I was eating more organic fruits and veggies.
  • I was also examining food allergies and intolerances, which can make a huge difference as well. I’m still working on that today. 

3. Removal of plastic

  • I stopped drinking out of plastic water bottles. I stopped heating my food in plastic. I stopped almost all plastic usage.
  • Plastic can interfere with female hormones and impact fertility tremendously. Make the switch to safer containers for your water and food ASAP. Read more here about the dangers of plastic. https://destinationcleanliving.com/break-up-with-plastic/ 

4. Addition of Vitamin D, Omega 3s, CoQ10, B vitamins, probiotics

  • I’m super sensitive to all medications, vitamins, and supplements, so I wasn’t able to just start popping vitamins or take a standard prenatal vitamin. For a while I had to do shots at home or in a doctor’s office for some of these.
  • After searching for other options, I found Patch MD. They are vitamin patches that are placed on the skin. They are less likely to cause gastrointestinal symptoms since they bypass the gut. These have been highly beneficial for me. I’ve still had side effects to some of them and required an adjustment period.  Here are links to what I use: https://www.patchmd.com/Vitamin-D3-Topical-Patch.html and https://www.patchmd.com/Omega-3-Plus-Topical-Patch.html
  • With these I got my Vitamin D levels from deficient to above normal. Vitamin D deficiency has been shown to possibly be linked with infertility. Here’s more on the importance of Vitamin D. https://destinationcleanliving.com/vitamin-d/
  • I added Omega 3 with CoQ10. I wasn’t able to tolerate either of these in a pill. CoQ10 has been shown to to help your egg quality and improve fertility.
  • I added the correct B Vitamins, some of which are methylated, for my MTHFR condition. If you’d like to learn more about MTHFR, read this post here. It is something I learned I had about 6 years ago. https://draxe.com/mthfr-mutation/
  • Here are some of my B Vitamins (not all) on Amazon (I take B1, B2, B3, B5, B6, B9, B12). The brands I typically buy are linked here
  • I’ve used several probiotics over the years, but currently I’m using this brand at this dosage once per day. You can buy it here on Amazon https://amzn.to/2EWlV3K . I have also purchased it at Whole Foods Market and Sprouts Farmer’s Market.
  • I strongly recommend talking with your doctor prior to adding any vitamins and minerals to your regimen.

5. Going Fragrance Free

6. Practicing Hypnosis

  • Being a type A++ personality, it is very hard for me to relax. With the addition of chronic pain, my body feels like it is in a constant fight or flight state. When I get my mind set on something, I want to get it done. I have a very high sense of urgency. However, some things in life just can’t be forced or rushed. Fertility is one of those. It can be easy to start obsessing over the ovulation kits and the fertility apps on your phone once you begin trying. It can literally make you crazy.
  • The regular practice of hypnosis (4-5 times weekly for 15-30 minutes) helped me calm my mind and body. It helped me visualize being pregnant again, being healthy again, and being happy again (with or without pregnancy).
  • Even after what I had been through, I did have to believe pregnancy was possible and envision it but not obsess over it.
  • Don’t underestimate this piece of the puzzle. It is very important.
  • Here’s my post on hypnosis if you’d like to learn more. https://destinationcleanliving.com/hypnosis/

7.  Detoxification

  • Our bodies are bombarded with chemicals, medications, pesticides, fragrance, and more every day. One of my conditions makes it hard for my body to detox naturally. Detoxification is something I will continue to do the rest of my life, and I believe it helped my body become stronger in preparation for pregnancy.
  • I do regular colonics (one every few months); here’s more information on colonics. https://destinationcleanliving.com/colonics/
  • I’ve done several liver cleanses over a two-year period; I did mine at Koyfman Whole Body Cleansing in Norcross, GA where I do colonics.
  • I also used the sauna several times per week prior to pregnancy.

8. Exercise (not excessive)

  • I was a three-sport athlete in high school. I lived, ate and breathed sports. My college years are when my health really began to fall apart. Since then I’ve been very limited in my exercise because of my conditions and chronic pain. However, I’ve not let it stop me completely. I always try to keep active, even if it is just walking at a slow pace.
  • Exercise is wonderful in moderation, and I highly recommend it.
  • However, it has been shown that excessive exercise can interfere with fertility and hormones. I recommend examining your exercise routine to make sure it is healthy for your body. If you really want to get pregnant, training for a marathon at the same time probably isn’t a good idea.

I’m not a doctor, but a patient. This is not medical advice; it is my personal experience. Many of these changes were made in an effort to heal my overall body from years and years of chronic illness. I’m still fighting a very hard, uphill battle to get well every single day. I strongly believe each of these factors greatly helped my fertility.

My heart breaks for each and every one of you that have experienced loss, infertility, endometriosis, chronic illness and more related to conception. I don’t know your story, and I certainly don’t know if any of these things will help your specific situation. I sincerely hope some or all of these recommendations help you somewhere along your journey. My prayers are with you to become a mom if that is what your heart desires.

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