Conceiving Naturally - Against the Odds - The Role of Hormones

If you're new to this blog and trying to conceive, I would encourage you to read the sections you missed, in order.

Series Intro
1. Prayer and Submission
2. Finding the Right Doctor
3. The Role of Hormones (you're on it!)

Sections to come:
4. Diet - Hers
5. Diet - His
6. Herbs, Extracts, and Supplements
7. Exercise
8. Chiropractic
9. Acupuncture
10. Massage
11. Timing: Ovulation Calculators, Ovulation Predictor Test Kits, and the Rhythm Method
12. The Fun in Trying :)

If you are trying to conceive naturally, and you have not had your hormone levels checked, it is time. 

I would also like to remind you that this is my own personal experience.  I am not a Doctor or Naturopath or Dietician.  I am just a girl.  A girl who's gone through PCOS and infertility, only to prove that it is indeed possible to not only get pregnant naturally, but to be cured of PCOS.  Medical websites will say, "although there is no cure for PCOS, there are effective treatments..."  This was unacceptable to me.

So, after step 1, and 2, I was told I had Polycystic Ovary Syndrome.  If you click PCOS, you can educate yourself on the array of wonderful things that 1 out of 15 women experience.  My Doc could tell me without an ultrasound that I had it, but I got one anyway.  The images showed my ovaries were irregularly shaped with what looked like a pearl necklace of cysts all the way around them, being worse on my left.  Interestingly, most of my aches and pains are worse on my left side.

She scratched over the surface of the remaining steps that I cover and will cover, which hey, most doctors wouldn't even touch.  She had to inform me that after all that, chances were I still wouldn't be able to get pregnant, and if by some chance I did, miscarriage was probable.  Of course, there were drugs which would "help" as well.  Oddly, I felt relieved.  I finally had some answers and a gentle reminder from God that He is the great physician.

Now that I was armed with the knowledge of what was happening in my body - that my hormones are way out of balance and I have PCOS - I threw myself into the VAST research that is balancing hormones.

My dear friend Jaime asked my once, "What in the world did we do before we had our babies?"  "We tried to have them," I said. 

The next section will cover diet.

Conceiving Naturally - Against the Odds - Finding the Right Doctor

So, I've been slacking on the blog.  Thanks for still following.  Lately my online activities have been strictly inboxes, pictures, iChatting with the hub, and oh yes...Pinterest.  Oh my law.  I feel creative just looking at everyone else's creativity.

Diving back into the Conceiving Naturally Series.  Here is what we've covered/will cover:

Series Intro
1. Prayer and Submission
2. Finding the Right Doctor (you're on it!)
3. The Role of Hormones
4. Diet - Hers
5. Diet - His
6. Herbs, Extracts, and Supplements
7. Exercise
8. Chiropractic
9. Acupuncture
10. Massage
11. Timing: Ovulation Calculators, Ovulation Predictor Test Kits, and the Rhythm Method
12. The Fun in Trying :)

So very many Doctors.  How in the world does one find the "right one?"  I don't have the perfect answer for you because we each have different desires and things that are most important to us when it comes to our health.  This step was a snap for me because I got a great recommend.  You would think in DFW metroplex, one would have a superfluous amount of choices when it comes to a doctor ... nope.  Not when it comes to finding an MD or DO that prescribes holistically first ... it's feels a little like looking for a republican in Portland.  In fact if you google "republican in portland" your computer will crash.  If you don't "know a guy who knows a guy" then google is your friend.  Here are some helpful searches:

-Holistic Doctors (your town) - Natural Doctors (your town) - Doctors who prescribe supplements (your town) - Holistic MD or DO (your town)

If you want to venture off the MD/DO territory and see a ND (Naturopathic Doctor) well alright!  I think googling "ND (your town)" goes without saying.

These searches will most likely lead you to some sites that have reviews and ratings.

Sometimes finding the guy who knows the guy is easier (and better) than finding the guy via the world wide web of confusion.  If you don't have a chiropractor, I suggest getting one.  Chiropractic is a step we will cover later and they usually know and refer patients to other doctors who have similar philosophies.  Other sources would be massage or acupuncture clinics, and health food stores.  Even small mom-and-pop health food store owners and employees can be a HUGE help.  Most of them I come across have been around town longer than your friendly Whole Foods Market and are staples in the community.  They have history, therefore, they know people.  Just ask.  They love what they do and will love to help you.  I can almost guarantee it.

If you live in a small town with like 1 doctor who hasn't even heard of Centrum Silver ... well my advice to you would be to put some mileage on the ol' tractor.  Your health is worth it. 

Once you have found one you think might be a good fit, you probably want to go in for a consultation before turning your arm over and letting them into your veins.  You can bring a list of questions if your memory doesn't serve you correctly.  Treat it like an interview.  You know what you want.  Don't be shy about asking where they stand on it.  Better to not to be surprised a couple months later when they suggest a new drug that they've only tested on mice that snakes wouldn't even eat.

Dr. Nina Cahan in Coppell, TX is who I ended up hiring as my doctor.  That's right.  You're the boss.  They work for you.  You have a choice and you don't have to settle on any old candidate just because they have initials after their name.  She showed me her closet of supplements that she prescribes and I swooned.

I think it best not to put words in your mouth, so I will just advise you to make a "conception" plan like you would make for the birth of your baby.  I don't think I'd be putting words in your mouth by saying the obvious question to ask is at one point the Dr. suggests medical intervention, and what kind.  What steps have you, and will you take before you consider this?  Will you consider this at all?  Sit down with your husband and discuss what's important to you both, and what you would like to ask.  I suggest your husband go with you to the doctor as much as possible in regards to conceiving and when you do get pregnant, it is important for him to go with you to your prenatal appointments.  Here at Super Natural Mommy, we love and support the daddies too.  It's not all about you.  This is an important lesson to learn as soon as possible ... especially once you are a parent.  You are in this together.  The savior has already been born, so pretty sure yours won't be an immaculate conception.  Just sayin'.  I mean, she was carrying God incarnate and she was still given a husband.  Their voice matters and the more that sinks into your soul, the more supernatural you will be.

Okay.  You're ready.  Go find that Dr. you can put some trust in.  If at any point they start venturing off into an area you aren't comfortable with, speak up.  Don't compromise your health.  If they suggest something you hadn't planned on doing, research it.  Think/pray about it and tell them you are doing so.  If you have conflicting views on something you just can't budge on, see if they will come to your side to see how it works out.  It may give them time to research it too.  Newsflash, you aren't perfect and neither is your doctor.  It should be a working relationship based on mutual respect.  If it isn't.  Seek another.

Go to the next section: The Role of Hormones

Conceiving Naturally - Against the Odds - Prayer and Submission

Let's dig in to Part 1 of my Conceiving Naturally Series - Against the Odds.

Click here to go to the series Intro if you missed it.
1. Prayer and Submission (you're on it!)
2. Finding the Right Doctor
3. The Role of Hormones

Sections to come:
4. Diet - Hers
5. Diet - His
6. Herbs, Extracts, and Supplements
7. Exercise
8. Chiropractic
9. Acupuncture
10. Massage
11. Timing: Ovulation Calculators, Ovulation Predictor Test Kits, and the Rhythm Method
12. The Fun in Trying :)

PRAYER AND SUBMISSION

If you are a praying person, hopefully this is a given first step in trying to conceive (TTC).  If you aren't a praying person, I still hope that you will read on and keep an open mind.

As I have said before, this is my own personal journey into motherhood.  I am not the keeper of the universe, therefore can not make promises that will guarantee you a bun in your anxiously waiting oven.

I was desperate for a child for a long time.  I thought about having one all the day long.  The desperation part was not healthy for me.  Each passing month the test was negative was only another month without a baby to me.  I do not recommend this mentality.

Letting go while still longing and striving toward the goal.  Is this possible?  Yes.

This is absolutely the hardest part, which is precisely why I wanted to cover it first. This is not simply a first step I took and moved on.  This needed to continue on.  Like an anchor in my soul.

If you don't have any faith, you can most definitely ask for that.  In my personal walk with the Lord, I have come to understand that He wants me to admit my weakness and just let Him be the all powerful One that He has always been, is, and always will be.  So.  No faith?  Ask. Hmmm...still none?  Keep asking (maybe throw in a patience request while you're at it).

Tim and I began "trying" early in our marriage.  We decided to put on the "let it happen when it happens" mentality and just kinda watched the calendar with one eye.  From the start we prayed together and looking back through the last 5 years I can see how prayer has truly been like sweet incense (Psalm 141:2) moving through each and every turn and phase of our marriage.  There's just something about being in your husband's arms, right?  Well, add him praying over you to that and notice life's tensions fade a little.  We prayed that God would give us a child in His perfect time and we trusted Him.  Over time, this prayer was harder to pray without a big "BUT" after it ... followed by pleading, and often tears on my part.

Exactly a year before we got pregnant, I truly surrendered for the first time.  Tim was working in Natural Gas fields during this period and was gone a lot.  I was alone in my room, unable to sleep and letting myself drown in the sorrow of my utter barrenness.  It's easy to look back now and kinda chuckle, thinking myself pathetic ... but those moments were raw and real when I was very much in the middle of them.  In my brokenness I heard that small voice simply say, "Read Psalms."  Delayed obedience is disobedience so I reached for my Bible, cracked it open in the middle, and started with Psalm 1 ... figuring I'd know when I got the message trying to be sent.

I was running through the Psalms and came to an abrupt halt when I slammed into this wall of a passage from Psalm 17:14-15

"...from men by your hand, O Lord,
from men of the world whose portion
is in this life.
You fill their womb with treasure;
they are satisfied with children,
and they leave their abundance to
their infants.
As for me, I shall behold your face in
righteousness;
when I awake, I shall be satisfied with
your likeness."

Wow.  Stunned in silence.  I was completely struck with a lightening bolt.  I felt hot and found-out.  I read it over and over and through the tears (you will find that I am quite the teary lady) admitted that I had been putting my treasure in FUTURE children...not even ones I had yet.  I was under the assumption that I would find satisfaction in a gift from God instead of God.  I was floored that He would care enough to meet me face to face and bring this to the surface.  After a long talk with God, I slept soundly ... and when I awoke, I was satisfied with His likeness. 

That was a turning point in our journey of trying to conceive.  It changed the way I looked at my present and future with Tim.  Maybe it would only be us.  Maybe we would adopt.  Maybe we would have children biologically.  Whatever the circumstances, they were not going to be my treasure.  A child was not going to bring me ultimate satisfaction.  It was time to surrender the reigns along with the metaphorical whip I had taken to my own (and Tim's) backside a few times. 

This did not mean all my heart's desires and longings went out the window.  God gave me my heart and those yearnings, my passions, my imagination.  I would continue to envision myself as a Mommy some day and we still earnestly prayed for children and continued on with the other 11 parts of this series toward our goal of conceiving naturally.
 
If you need a little help in the praying department, here is one you might start with...and may I suggest prior to your first big step: take a deep breath, close your eyes, and even get down on your knees.  Your life is about to change.

God,

Help us.

We need you.

We can't do this on our own.

Come breathe your life into us and bless us with a child.

Direct us to the ways and means you have for us to make this dream a reality.

Take the anxiety from us so we are able to enjoy the process no matter how long it may be, not matter what the outcome.
Let our hopes rest in you and you alone.
Amen.

Go to the next section: Finding the Right Doctor

Conceiving Naturally - Against the Odds - Intro

All I ever wanted to be when I grew up was a Mommy.  I remember in 3rd grade filling out one of those beginning-of-the-school-year-get-to-know-you pages and putting down "homemaker" in the blank after the question "What is Your Dream Job?"

I come from a long line of fertile myrtles.  I mean my great-grandmother's name is Myrtle for goodness sakes!  I always assumed I'd be the same and whenever I wanted - I'd pop out a baby.  Twas not so.

I only have my personal experience. God's timing in regards to Motherhood is different for all of us, so I can only share how TTCN (trying to conceive naturally) happened for me and my husband, Tim.

Soon after we married I was diagnosed with PCOS - Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome.  These are tiny cysts that appear as though there is a pearl necklace around your ovaries.  This stacks some major odds against conceiving naturally, and if you are lucky enough to get pregnant, now the odds are against carrying your pregnancy full-term.  Doctors say PCOS is incurable. 

Good News:  We were able to conceive naturally without the use of any drugs and I carried our daughter full-term.  It took 4 years of trying, but we have a daughter.  Healthy.  Thank you, God. 
More Good News:  The first ultrasound I had once pregnant showed my ovaries to be normal size and there was not a single cyst. 

Four Years.  That amounts to a lot of trying and hoping and waiting...rinse...repeat.  There is a VERY long list of steps we took to get to the point of a positive pregnancy test.

I won't be covering everything in one entry or I would never be finished.  So here is a little Table of Contents in the works:


1. Prayer and Submission
2. Finding the Right Doctor
3. The Role of Hormones
4. Diet - Hers
5. Diet - His
6. Herbs, Extracts, and Supplements
7. Exercise
8. Chiropractic
9. Acupuncture
10. Massage
11. Timing: Ovulation Calculators, Ovulation Predictor Test Kits, and the Rhythm Method
12. The Fun in Trying :)


I may take a break from the Conceiving Naturally series,  but all these parts will be covered in time.