Fertility Acupuncture

Cathy Flynn runs the clinic where a large percentage of her work is fertility related. Her patients range from those who have just started trying to conceive and may have come off the pill and need help to regulate their cycles to those who have been diagnosed with conditions like endometriosis / PCOS, amenorrhea / unexplained infertility ect. Many are preparing to go down the IVF route and acupuncture can be very helpful in this area. Please feel free to contact Cathy in confidence if you have any queries.

How can Acupuncture enhance fertility and the IVF process?

  • Assists in normalizing hormones to increase the number of follicles
  • Regulars the menstrual cycle helping patients know when they are ovulating
  • Improves ovarian function to produce better quality eggs
  • Calms the body & mind, reduces stress & anxiety levels
  • Reduces side effects of assisted reproductive hormonal treatments such as bloating
  • Strengthens the body's immune system and decrease the chances of miscarriage
  • Increase the blood flow to the uterus in turn creates a thicker uterine lining
  • Decreases uterine contractibility which will reduce cramping and improve the chances of implantation

When is the best time to start using Acupuncture in preparation for IVF?

It is best for the preparation to begin three months before IVF treatments begin. This is based on the knowledge that natural follicular selection takes three months and it also takes three months to make new sperm. However if less time is available acupuncture can still be helpful. In this time, the goal of the acupuncturist is to improve the function of the ovaries to produce good quality eggs or sperm.

The treatment method is varied, depending on the patient's individual diagnosis and factor of infertility. At the clinic, some patients have seen results of decreased FSH levels, resumed regular menstrual cycles, improved sperm parameters, reduced stress levels and positive pregnancy tests.

Can acupuncture help with male fertility?

Almost 50 % of all cases of infertility are associated with a male factor. The clinic treats both male and female patients for fertility related disorders.

What is the Paulus protocol?

This is a German study carried out in 2002 showed that 42.5% of the women who had IVF with acupuncture treatments became pregnant, versus 26.3% of the women who had IVF alone.