I began working as a housekeeper and nanny three months ago and the couple I work for also have a girl. Jessica, come in that does deep cleaning once a month. So, the first time I met her we got to talking and we both had very similar tales of infertility. The only glaring difference in our stories is that she's slightly overweight because of being very active and eating a strictly healthy, organic diet while because of insulin resistance/estrogen dominance I am 105 pounds over my maximum ideal weight and I've gotten pregnant twice(though the pregnancies themselves weren't successful).
Jessica and her husband had been trying to get pregnant for two years and they'd done everything they could medically to achieve pregnancy, and she'd been on the pill before they started TTC. Jessica hadn't had a cycle in that two years that hadn't been started by provera. So, as a last resort she told me they'd decided she was going to try acupuncture to get her hormones balanced. The chiropractor that does the acupuncture told her that she has had success in helping previously infertile women achieve pregnancy usually within two cycles (or eight acupuncture sessions). Jessica didn't believe her even when she had her first natural cycle start on its own a month later.
I didn't see her until last week and she told me that she successfully conceived after that cycle. Now, I find this amazing because Jessica had high testosterone and estrogen levels and very low progesterone. So, within 4 weeks of doing the acupuncture weekly, her hormones regulated and she got pregnant. She's still in shock and not quite ready to believe she's pregnant despite 2 ultrasounds. I think this is evidence enough to make women consider this a valid therapy to assist them when TTC. My husband and I talked about it and decided that we will try it if I'm not pregnant by this time next year with clomid though I was really pushing for the acupuncture instead.
Now, onto Lunaception. This is something that I've heard about occasionally but never put much credence into. I know I've mentioned the site Naturally Knocked Up before, and about a week ago I found a link on her site to an article she'd written on natural aids to PCOS. As I read the article I noticed, yet again, mention of Lunaception and moon cycling. The purpose of Lunaception is that before electricity and modern society, women's cycles followed the moon phases. They would menstruate at the new moon and ovulate at the full moon. Now that sounds rather simple, doesn't it?
The problem is with modern society that we don't sleep outdoors in perfect darkness with only the moon or firelight as the only sources of light. There are a few things you can do to practice Lunaception.
- Sleep in a completely dark bedroom. If you can see your hand in front of your face, it's not dark enough, so do what is necessary to make the room so dark you can't see your hand in front of your face. Eliminate any and all sources of light, even electric alarm clocks, so if you have to have one find some fabric dark enough to cover the face of it.
- If you get up during the night to use the bathroom or for any other reason, install red or orange low wattage light bulbs in the rooms that you go into. This mimics natural sources of light and won't cause early ovulation.
- On cycle days 14 to 16 you get a dim white (and I mean WHITE) nightlight and turn it on only for those 3 days. This mimics the full moon and stimulates the body to produce the hormones necessary for ovulation.
- Within 3 months, your cycle should regulate to match the moon phases you are creating and if pregnancy is achieved, you should continue to sleep in a completely dark room throughout your pregnancy.
- This is more of a tip than a step to Lunaception, but you should go to bed by 10pm each night so you can reset the natural biorhythms of your body. If you go to bed at the same time each night, it will help regulate your cycles faster.
I just started practicing this last night, but this is what I did to start trying to get my cycle to match the moon phases, though if you follow the steps I just listed, you don't absolutely have to match your cycle to the moon phases because you are actually matching your cycles to a night light. First, I downloaded an app on my Palm Pixi that tells me the moon phases and when they occur. The next full moon is May 5th (and in my opinion a great night for it with all the Cinco de Mayo celebrations). Second, I have to eliminate any and all sources of light in our bedroom at night. We already had room darkening curtains, but to guarantee no light coming in, I duct taped them to the metal frame around my window then duct taped a couple of black trash bags on top of them, and put up a pair of thick curtains on the curtain rod.
So, my husband and I go to bed at 10pm every night, but he was shocked by how dark it was. We have our computer in our bedroom so I shut it down because it creates extra light in there. We turned off our light and it's completely dark for a couple of minutes until we both notice that the tower to our computer still has a light on it, so rather than unplug it, I just put a sleep mask on because I'd spent hours trying to get the room completely dark and I was frustrated that I'd missed something. We both slept better than we probably ever have. Now, I'm not hoping it will work this cycle, but I'm not sure what to hope for. I'm not going to match up to the moon phase exactly because I'm already 16 days into my cycle, with no hope for ovulation.
I am seriously considering just postponing ending this cycle until the next new moon so that I can be on track with the moon phases. That's easier for me than most women because I do not have regular cycles and I control mine with progesterone cream, so all I have to do is postpone when I start the cream and stop it the day before the New Moon. Until then, I'll sleep in complete darkness and hope that I am doing the right thing. I haven't done much research into Lunaception but most of the results show even women with PCOS regulating their cycles within 3 months. I'm not going to hold my breath but anything can help.
And, maybe if I do both the acupuncture and Lunaception, I'll get some results.
