Boost Fertility with Natural and Complementary Therapies

Tricia Blechman of Manhattan Beach, California, was 36 and ready to expand her family when doctors discovered her reproductive system had shut down. Her 3-year-old son had been diagnosed with glycogen storage disease, a condition that required around-the-clock care. After more than two years trying to come to terms with her son’s illness, and catering to his every need, Blechman was emotionally and physically spent. 

“My doctor was giving me the maximum dose of medication and I still wasn’t producing enough eggs,” says Blechman. “I went through three rounds of in vitro fertilization (IVF) and never made it past egg retrieval.” But it wasn’t until Blechman visited a mind/body therapist that she realized how depressed and stressed she had become.

Blechman is one of a growing number of women who turn to complementary therapies in their quest for conception. In fact, according to a recent survey, nearly one-third of infertility patients supplement conventional medical treatment with some form of complementary therapy. And while there is little or no scientific proof of the efficacy of these alternatives, their popularity is a signal that patients want more control, says Alice Domar, Ph.D., executive director of The Domar Center for Mind/Body Health in Boston, Massachusetts.

Read on to learn about just a few therapies that are taking center stage: