IVF Implantation Help with Qigong

Although scientists and clinicians are still debating about the role of stress in the success of IVF implantation, more and more research is showing that the less stressed a woman is during the IVF process, the more likely she is to have a successful pregnancy outcome. If you’re struggling to keep your stress levels under control as you move toward the implantation phase of IVF, you should consider using qigong, an ancient Chinese practice that has been used to reduce stress and promote health for centuries.

How Qigong Works

Qigong is a form of exercise that can be a little like yoga. The popular form of exercise, tai chi, is actually a form of qigong. Although the practice of qigong is related to martial arts, it is much less high impact. Some forms of qigong are relatively slow and stationary while others are more athletic. Any type of qigong can be helpful in boosting fertility and IVF success, though, especially because the practice can help significantly lower stress levels.

True practitioners of qigong say that it helps one to connect with energy from the environment and to stabilize and control energy in the body. Even if you don’t believe in such a philosophy, qigong can still be helpful to you as it has been proven to lower the physiological indicators of stress, including tension and high levels of certain hormones.

Qigong focuses on several different practices. The most basic practice in qigong that you can use even at your desk or while sitting around dreaming about your future baby is breathing. There are many different types of breathing exercises in qigong, some of which increase energy and some of which reduce stress. Qigong practice, like yoga and other similar practices, combines breathing with movement, which helps release anti-stress hormones in the body. Finally, qigong focuses on meditation and a mind-body connection that allows you to concentrate on your movements and breathing. Developing this type of mind-body connection through a practice like qigong can help you recognize when your stress levels are rising so that you can react in a way that lowers them.

How Qigong Can Assist Implantation with In Vitro Fertilization

Finding out how qigong actually affects IVF treatments is difficult, since qigong is a distinctly Eastern practice and IVF is very Western. However, we do know that qigong lowers stress levels and that lowered levels of stress make for more successful rounds of IVF. One study published in 2000 linked high levels of stress to failed IVF treatments, and another study released in 2005 showed that women with higher levels of adrenaline and cortisol – both of which signal physiological stress – in their urine after a round of IVF were less likely to have a successful pregnancy.

Although no direct studies of qigong and IVF success have been published to date, the links are most certainly there, and the Internet abounds with stories of women who were unsuccessful with their IVF attempts until they started practicing qigong. One qigong studio in Houston actually specializes in women’s health issues, and its site lists several success stories from women who were over the age of forty when they conceived naturally or through IVF after practicing qigong. Most of these women had tried rounds of IUI, Clomid, or IVF before trying qigong, which eventually made their pregnancies successful.

Where You Can Learn

Like other practices of its kind, qigong is very specific and is built on certain breathing and movement techniques. If you’re interested in learning qigong, it’s a good idea to find a teacher in your area at least until you learn the basics. Chances are likely that you can find group qigong classes nearby to your home, and after some time, you can practice at home on your own or with a good video. Qigong is effective enough at reducing stress that it can be helpful to you at any point during your IVF rounds, and it is gentle enough to be practiced even during early pregnancy.

For lots more information about how to increase your chances of a successful IVF, sign up for our free email mini-course from the IVF Success Program.


IVF Stories of Hope

Sometimes the journey to having a baby can be stressful and painful, but hearing stories from other people who have been there and ultimately experienced success can really help you overcome your fears and hang in there. These IVF stories are about real people who went through the same things that you’re probably going through right now. Enjoy the encouragement.

Susanna and Her Long Wait For IVF Success

When Susanna decided to try to get pregnant through IVF, she took a year off of her job as a schoolteacher, hoping to relax, practice yoga, and catch up on some things she’d always wanted to do but had never had the chance to do as she went through IVF. The journey, though, did not go as smoothly as she planned. After her first twenty-seven eggs were harvested, Susanna had to be hospitalized because of Ovarian Hyperstimulation Syndrome.

After several cycles of IVF and more complications, including an ectopic pregnancy that resulted in the removal of a tube, Susannah still didn’t get pregnant, and she had to go back to work. During the summer break a year later, she went through another stimulated cycle to harvest more eggs, and she actually got pregnant. Unfortunately, Susannah miscarried at just six weeks.

Finally, after three years, Susannah went through another IVF cycle, during which she was hypertimuated but had thirty-eight eggs harvested. After another hospital stay, Susannah and her husband tried another egg transfer. This one finally took, and Susannah carried this pregnancy full term and delivered a beautiful and healthy baby girl. After long years of waiting and trying, she and her husband had finally found success through IVF.

Denae’s Acupuncture-Enhanced IVF Story

In 2000, Denae and her husband got married when she was nearly thirty and he was just over thirty. When they couldn’t conceive a child naturally, they found out that Denae had partial PCOS and deformed tubes, which meant that she could only get pregnant through ART. At first, they tried IUI, of which they did five cycles, and then they tried IVF.

After two years of ART treatments, Denae finally became pregnant, only to miscarry a month later. Instead of giving up, she and her husband went on vacation, where they became pregnant on their own. Unfortunately, the pregnancy, which the OB thinks was ectopic, miscarried, too.

In order to cope with her pain and to physically relax, Denae started seeing an acupuncturist. Denae says that the acupuncturist was who really helped her get through her journey mentally and physically, and apparently the acupuncture therapy did help because after another round of IVF, Denae became pregnant. When her HCG numbers weren’t rising correctly, Denae got worried but said that she went back to her acupuncturist to regain physical balance and mental calm.

Nine months later, Denae and her husband had their first child, a boy. Even though Denae had a rough pregnancy and an emergency c-section, she’s ready to try again. Though IVF isn’t an easy process and left Denae physically and emotionally exhausted at times, with the help of her supportive husband and her acupuncturist, she overcame it and is ready to try again for a sibling for her little boy.

For more inspiration and information to help you have a successful IVF, please sign up for our IVF Success Program email mini-course.


IVF Ultrasound: What to Expect With Each One

During your IVF cycle, you will need to come to the clinic several times to check the maturation of your follicles using IVF ultrasound technology. The use of ultrasound techniques enables doctors to check your follicular growth and even confirm pregnancy without the invasiveness of blood hormone tests. The procedure is quick and painless, and should give you an idea of how successful the IVF cycle might be. Read on to find out what you can expect every time you come in for an ultrasound.

Follicular monitoring through ultrasound

Ultrasounds will play an important role in monitoring the growth of your follicles during the ovarian stimulation phase. The follicles are the fluid-filled sacs in the ovary which each contain a single immature egg. The start of the cycle begins with you taking hormone injections to trigger the maturation of several eggs. The eggs themselves cannot be inspected, but a good sign of their growth is the size of their follicles, which can be observed through the help of an ultrasound. A follicle is said to be mature by the time its growth reaches 7 or 8mm. All the doctor needs to do is count the number of mature follicles present, and you can already have a good idea of how your cycle may progress.

You can expect to come in to the clinic for ultrasounds every two to three days of the ovarian stimulation phase. Constant monitoring is important because it will set the date of the egg retrieval. As soon as the doctor is satisfied by the number of swollen follicles and their size, you will be given the go signal to take the hCG trigger shot. This will signal the follicles to release the eggs within 36 hours.

Egg retrieval and IVF embryo transfer

The egg retrieval and embryo transfer will also be guided through the help of an ultrasound. During the egg retrieval, a microsized hollow needle will be inserted through the vaginal walls and through the ovaries until it is located near a single swollen follicle. The follicular fluid (and the egg) are then sucked out through the needle. Don’t worry about the pain involved during the procedure; you will be given anesthesia and will stay unconscious throughout the retrieval.

The embryo transfer is far less complicated and will not require anesthesia or needles. A thin catheter containing the eggs will be inserted through your vagina and cervix until it reaches the upper middle portion of the uterus. This is said to be the best place for an embryo to implant. The embryos will then be slowly pushed out, and the catheter will be removed.

Ultrasound to confirm IVF pregnancy

The last ultrasound you will take during your IVF will occur two or three weeks after the transfer. This is perhaps the most highly-anticipated ultrasound you will have – the confirmation of pregnancy. Although you can easily take a urine test or blood test to see if you got pregnant, only an ultrasound can determine exactly how many babies you are carrying in your uterus. A view of the uterus can be obtained by passing the probe through the vagina (vaginal ultrasound) or over the abdomen (abdominal ultrasound). However, a vaginal ultrasound provides the best view of the uterus because of the shorter distance. At this point of the pregnancy, the fetus has yet to be formed, but the ultrasound can show the spot where the embryo has implanted.


IVF Risk? How to Protect Yourself

For over two decades, IVF has helped a number of couples achieve their dream of parenthood.  However, with IVF, risk is involved on a number of levels.  Frequent fertility injections can sometimes produce mood-altering and physical side effects.  There’s also the slim possibility that the resulting babies might be born with genetic problems or birth defects, especially for women over the age of 35. IVF cycles are also expensive. Fortunately, there are several things you can to lessen the treatment’s emotional, physical, and financial impact on your lives.

The Risk of Lupron Side Effects during Your IVF

During your IVF cycle, you will be injecting yourself with a drug called Lupron. Lupron is designed to suppress your body’s natural hormone production so that the fertility drugs can do their job.  The drug’s suppression of your estrogen production places your body in a state of artificial menopause, and it’s very common to experience menopause-like symptoms at this stage. These include mood swings, headaches, hot flashes, and depression. Some women do not notice the side effects at all, but others find these problems to be uncomfortable and disruptive of their work performance and marital relationships.

You can avoid these unpleasant side effects by choosing an IVF protocol that uses a non-Lupron suppressant. Two such drugs are called Cetrocide and Ganirelix, which act faster than Lupron and are used for a shorter period of time.  If these drugs aren’t available at the clinic of your choice, you can take acupuncture treatments to ease the side effects of the standard long Lupron protocol.  Not only will acupuncture make the ovarian stimulation stage more bearable, it will also increase your chances of conceiving.

Genetic Risk Related to IVF?

One of the major concerns many parents-to-be have is the risk of birth defects and genetic abnormalities. Does IVF increase the risk of genetic problems?

Most experts agree that genetic risks are rare and affect only a small margin of IVF babies. The risk is greater for babies born to women over the age of 35. If you’d like to greatly reduce your chance of having a baby with a genetic problem, you can opt for a procedure called pre-implantation genetic testing (PGD).  PGD screens the embryos for common genetic defects to help the doctor select the healthiest ones for implantation before your IVF embryo transfer.

Financial Risk of IVF

Perhaps the biggest risk of an IVF is the financial one.  But who says you have to be financially destitute after your cycle?  Below are two options that will help you reduce the financial risk.

Shared risk program

Some fertility clinics with high success rates are so confident that they can get you pregnant, they will offer you a shared-risk payment option. Shared risk programs are offered by clinics or independent parties, and essentially mean that you will get some or all of your money back if you do not get pregnant after several IVF cycles.  Before signing up for a shared risk program, make sure you read the fine print and know exactly what you’re getting into.  Be aware of what is covered, what is not covered, how many cycles are included, and how much money you can get back.  Most shared risk programs offer to pay for the treatment but not for the fertility drugs, which can cost up to $3,000.

Do take note that shared risk programs are not always offered to everyone. In most cases, they are only available to “pre-qualified” patients who are likely to conceive during the first or second cycle.

IVF abroad

Countries like India, Thailand, and the United Arab Emirates have world-class fertility clinics that offer IVF and other treatments at only a fraction of the cost of IVF in the US.  Even if you factor in your plane tickets and accommodations, getting your IVF done abroad will save you several thousand dollars and give you an opportunity to visit countries with rich cultural heritages.

For more information about ways to reduce your risks associated with IVF, please sign up for our IVF Success Program mini-course.