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Are you considering detoxing before getting pregnant?  Many women are now committing to cleanse programs in order to rid their body of dangerous toxins and chemicals that may be passed on to the growing fetus.  Detoxing can be very beneficial when done properly and under the guidance of a care provider.  It can help to balance your hormones by getting rid of endocrine disruptors in the body, allowing for easier conception and a healthier pregnancy with less complications.  

Aviva Romm writes a terrific article sharing the positive and negative sides of detoxing before conceiving.  You can check out her article here!  She also outlines the benefits of doing a preconception test for your toxic load and gives helpful information on how to detox appropriately.  Most importantly she suggests beginning your detox 6 months prior to beginning trying to conceive, allowing 3 months between once the detox has ended and becoming pregnant.  As well as listing helpful information on how to detox in a healthy manner.  

From a Chinese Medicine perspective detoxing can be beneficial prior to becoming pregnant.  However, the process the body goes through to eliminate toxins and chemicals can be depleting for the body’s resources, namely, qi, yin, and blood.  It requires the liver to work in overtime and can put added stress on the yin organs.  Qi, yin, and blood are the very resources we need the most to conceive and maintain a healthy pregnancy, and postpartum phase.  This 3 month window after detoxing can allow your body the necessary time to build optimal qi, yin, and blood before conceiving.  Feeling our best right before pregnancy leads to a healthier pregnancy and healthy baby!

During the last trimester of pregnancy, often occurring during week 34 to 36 your baby will settle lower into the pelvis and ideally in a ‘well-flexed anterior position.’  This optimal position, is back to belly, chin to chest, hands in lap, creating an optimal position for labor.  However, occasionally the baby will be malpositioned or show as malpresentation in the fetus.  The baby may be present as posterior and/or breech, all of these positions may cause complications during labor putting both the mother and baby at risk.
Your midwife or doctor will examine your belly through palpation, a vaginal examination, or an ultrasound to determine the position of the baby and move forward with the necessary treatment protocol.  Traditional Chinese Medicine is very effective at making sure baby is in the proper position for labor!  In the event that your baby is breech, Chinese Medicine can be used to turn a breech position in utero.  This is done by using a specific acupuncture point known as Bladder 67.  This is the last point on the bladder channel located on the pinky toe.  Moxibustion will be administered by your acupuncturist in treatment for 20 minutes on each side.  Your acupuncturist will then send you home with a moxa poll to apply moxa on yourself for 10 days.  This protocol is the most effective alternative treatment for treating breech positioned babies!  

Do you suffer from menstrual cramps, headache, fatigue, irritability, or breast pain and swelling during your period?  These symptoms are a sign that something bigger is at play, and that your menstrual cycle and uterus could use a bit of love.  Acupuncture is great to regulate the menstrual cycle by promoting a healthy flow free from pain and discomfort.  It can also help to bring you cycle to an optimal 26 to 32 days and helps to bring your hormones back into their natural balance!  This month give acupuncture a try for a pain free period!

Check out this great article from Aviva Romm on her steps to a pain free period!

https://avivaromm.com/pms/

One of my favorite parts of spring is going to the farmers market, getting fresh local produce and cooking delicious in season meals! Below are three recipes I’ll be making for my first outdoor BBQ that are chock full of ingredients that are wonderful to support your liver during the changing of the seasons. And as an added benefit I’ve added several ingredients that will also help those that suffer with springtime allergies!

Roasted Beets in Coconut Oil

Ingredients:
4-5 large beets
1 bunch chopped parsley
2 TB sesame seeds
1 TB coconut oil
2 TB olive or avocado oil
1 tsp. apple cider vinegar
1 tsp. pure maple syrup
Salt and Pepper

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Wash beets. Take coconut oil and rub in hands to
warm up, rub oil over beets and place in foil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, wrap beets completely in foil and place on sheet pan.

Place pan in oven to roast for 1.5 hours. Test beets by placing small knife into the largest beet to confirm they are done. Depending on your oven they may need more or less time.

Meanwhile, make dressing; take olive or avocado oil and whisk in salt, pepper, vinegar, maple syrup, and parsley.

Remove from oven and let cool. Once cool, rinse beets to remove skin. Place on cutting board and dice into ½ inch cubes. Place cut beets into bowl and stir in dressing. Top with sesame seeds and serve.

Springtime Salad

Ingredients:
2 cups strawberries sliced
4 cups fresh spinach
½ cup slivered almonds
2 tsp. red wine vinegar
2 Tb avocado oil
1 Tb chopped red onion
1 tsp. chopped fresh ginger
1 tsp. honey

Directions:
Make dressing by whisking vinegar, oil, onion, ginger, honey, salt and pepper. In a separate bowl place spinach, almonds, and strawberries. Toss with dressing and serve.

Hearty crackers

Ingredients:
½ cup hemp seeds
½ cup sunflower seeds
½ cup pepitas
½ cup chia seeds
½ cup brown rice flour
½ tsp. garlic granules or 1 clove fresh garlic
½ tsp. salt
1 cup water
1 tsp. pure maple syrup

Directions:
Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Place seeds in a food processor, grind into coarse flour. Place seeds into a large bowl and add flour, garlic, and salt in a bowl, stir to combine. Add water and maple syrup and stir to combine. Let sit for 3 or 4 minutes until water is completely absorbed.

Place parchment sheet on baking sheet and take ½ of dough on center of cookie sheet. Flatten to ¼ inch thick into a circle or rectangle. Score dough to size of preferred crackers.

Bake for 25 minutes, remove from oven and gently pull crackers apart and flip. Bake for another 25 to 30 minutes, remove from oven and cool completely.

I like to serve mine with hummus and olives!

Mindfulness is defined as achieving a mental state of focusing one’s awareness on the present moment. So often in our day to day lives we are continuously bombarded by schedules so busy that they leave us emotionally, mentally, and physically depleted. This type of fatigue can really take its toll on our general well being and make it difficult to practice mindfulness.

As I was thinking of what I would like this blog to be focused on I was reflecting back on my busy week and realizing how I allowed myself to become unnecessarily stressed over things that didn’t warrant a stressful reaction. My body was physically showing me that I was not practicing mindfulness by breaking out in an allergic reaction on my skin. I felt completely depleted by the end of the week. How could I have been more present, cultivated more calm energy around me and allowed myself to be peaceful? I chose to start this week fresh by eliminating what wasn’t serving me or bringing me joy. I chose to practice mindfulness this morning by taking my new puppy for a long walk on a beautiful spring morning. This left me feeling refreshed and eager for the day ahead.

We often think of mindfulness in a meditation practice or yoga practice, but really it comes into play during all of our daily activities. For example, we can practice mindfulness while eating to promote better digestion, when driving to work, (we all know we experience road rage more often than we like to admit), when we’re at work, spending time with our families or friends, and when we’re out spending time in nature. These daily practices of checking in with our awareness can anchor and ground us, helping our souls feel more nourished each day. It will also help to calm our minds, decrease inflammation, and stress which in turn will nourish the adrenals and calm our parasympathetic nervous system.

I hope you can find more ways in your life to cultivate this mindfulness on a daily basis to live a more enriched life.

Morning sickness is common experience for many women during the first trimester of pregnancy, often the thought, smell, or look of certain foods can send you running for the bathroom or waste basket.  Morning sickness for most women will subside by week 12 to 14, but may sometimes last as long as week 17 or in extreme cases throughout the whole pregnancy.  

Acupuncture is very effective at treating morning sickness, even the most severe cases!  By using acupuncture points like Pericardium 6, Kidney 21, or Stomach 44 it will help to relieve nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain or cramps, and bloating as well as calm the mind.  Stomach 36, Zusanli, is a very nourishing and tonifying point to harmonize the stomach and spleen and encourage optimal digestion as well as build immunity.  Ginger tea is another great option to use food as medicine to treat nausea and vomiting, helping to alleviate discomfort and descend stomach qi to treat counterflow.  Some women find drinking water with honey, lemon, and apple cider vinegar is also beneficial.

Ear seeds are another effective way for patients to prolong the effect of the acupuncture between treatments by applying these to specific acupuncture points as needed.  It’s important to make sure you are getting all the nutrients you need especially during the first trimester, have you also considered bone broth?  This is easily digested, helps to promote healthy digestion and is full of vital nutrients!  Though morning sickness may be a normal part of pregnancy, there are multiple ways to combat this uncomfortable experience so you feel strong and healthy during this wonderful phase of life.  

In both Chinese medicine and Western medicine blood plays a vital role in our health. Blood is both nourishing and moisturizing and requires the vital function of qi to help it circulate throughout the body. Acupuncture can help nourish blood, encourage the circulation of qi and blood and help the body build the quantity and quality of our blood. In Chinese medicine qi and blood share a strong relationship: “Qi is the commander of the blood, and blood is the mother of qi.” Therefore when one is impacted the other will follow.

Did you know the foods we eat play a major role in turning nutrients into blood! A healthy diet includes foods that work directly to nourish and build our blood, and for women this cannot be more important! Due to inadequate diet, emotional stress and overwork our resources are constantly being depleted each day, especially during our monthly cycles. Blood deficiency is one of the most commonly seen pathologies in women from a Chinese medicine point of view. (It’s important to note that according the classics in Chinese medicine, menstrual ‘blood’ is not the same as blood flowing through your entire body.) Symptoms from blood deficiency include scanty periods, late periods, or no periods at all. Other symptoms include dry skin, hair or nails, poor memory, blurry vision, fatigue, headache, loose stools, insomnia, vivid or excessive dreams, anxiety and depression.

In Chinese medicine it is said that to build blood we must nourish both the spleen and the kidneys. The spleen and stomach represent the earth element and work together to transform the food we eat into blood. The kidneys house our essence or jing, which strengthens the bone and marrow to make blood. (Red blood cells are created in the bone marrow.) Interestingly enough, this connection of the kidneys and bone marrow’s ability to make blood was formulated in the Qing dynasty many years before Western medicine was ever introduced in China!

Below is a list of foods that nourish the blood, many of which may already be in your pantry. You will find that eating intentionally to replenish your resources need not involve trips to specialty grocery stores. I am always interested in what else you are learning about your health and well-being. Don’t hesitate to share!

Grains: Barley, corn, oats, rice, sweet rice, wheat, bran
Vegetables: Alfalfa sprouts, artichokes, beetroot, button mushrooms, cabbage, celery, Dandelion leaves, dark leafy greens, kelp, shiitake mushrooms, spinach, watercress, wheatgrass
Fruit: Apples, apricots, avocados, dates, figs, grapes, longans, mulberries
Beans: Aduki, black soy beans, kidney beans
Nuts/Seeds: Almonds, black sesame
Fish: Mussels, octopus, oysters, sardines, tuna
Meat: All red meat- especially bone marrow and liver (beef, pork, sheep)
Dairy: Chicken eggs
Herbs/Spices: Nettle, parsley
Condiments: Amasake, molasses
Beverages: Soy milk

Exercise is vital for optimal health and wellness in our lives. It is important to consider how this can change during our life cycle, not only our monthly cycle but also when planning to start your family, while you’re pregnant, during the postpartum phase, and menopause cycles of life. Whether you have just decided to begin trying to conceive, or you are receiving care for infertility, or using reproductive assisted technology to become pregnant appropriate exercise is very important. In this blog we will discuss how Traditional Chinese Medicine views fertility and how to support this process to support your journey to conception.

According to the Huang Di Nei Jing, the ancient Chinese medical text that is the foundation of oriental medicine written over 3,000 years ago, “for conception to occur, there are certain requirements, namely, strong Kidney qi, the arrival of Tian Gui [regular periods], Chong and Ren are open and flourishing, and Yin-Yang connection.” This means that once a woman has a regular and balanced menstrual cycle, sufficient blood, energy, bodily fluids, and a strong constitution she may become pregnant. This balance is deeply affected by the choices we make everyday, this includes the type of exercise we choose to do, the foods we eat, our sleep, mindfulness activities, and stress we experience daily.

What does healthy exercise for promoting fertility look like?

You may have seen specific classes particularly dedicated to pregnant women where you work out, maybe at your gym, yoga studio, or pilates studio. Just as it is important for pregnant women to be cautious of over exerting their bodies, it is just as important for women to consider the intensity of their work out when trying to conceive. Because sufficient qi and blood is required for conception and intense workouts consume yin fluids, qi, and blood, we must adapt the type of exercise we choose to do. For example, running, bikram yoga, cross fit, HIIT workouts to name a few all require a lot of energy and will cause you to sweat excessively and deplete your energy and body fluids. This is just the energy and resources your body needs to become pregnant and to provide for your growing baby.

The best types of exercise when trying to become pregnant include gentle yoga, yin yoga, pilates, walking, and low impact training without allowing your body to become overly fatigued or sweating too much. Limit activity to around 30 minutes a day. Always remember to make sure your doctor has approved your activity if you are receiving fertility care from a licensed practitioner and that the exercise instructor is aware of your goal. This will keep your keep your qi in check, your Chong meridian flowing with blood free from stagnation or obstruction, and your yin and yang in balance.

So enjoy yourself exercising, just do it properly.