Advanced maternal age and low ovarian reserve - I'm 40 and Pregnant with twins!

This is an example a Vancouver woman diagnosed with low ovarian reserve, advanced maternal age and male factor infertility (low sperm count and poor morphology). She had a previous failed ICSI cycle before coming to Acubalance. After diet and lifestyle changes combined with  a regime of acupuncture and Chinese herbal therapy, to help optimize the environment for her eggs,  she went  onto to have a very different ICSI result.  It was successful and she s expecting twins.

I'm 40 and Pregnant with twins!

I believe in fate, and I believe it is fate that brought me to Acubalance! My husband and I were already starting our first IVF/ICSI cycle when I had my first appointment with Lorne, but it was a strange set of of events that brought me there. I was out walking the dog one day and got to talking with another lady (a perfect stranger), who just happened to be a nurse as well. I mention this because nurses can get pretty personal very quickly, it is a strange phenomenon :o) When she found out that I was a pediatric nurse, her next question was and always is, do you have kids? I quickly explained that we were going through IVF at that time. She immediately spoke of a co-worker that had just had twins with IVF but attributed her success to acupuncture and a book by Randine Lewis called "The Infertility Cure". She asked for my address and said she would get the book from her and drop it off, and so she did. In the book was a bookmark from Acubalance and from that very moment I took it as a sign and made my first appointment.

I should probably share a bit of our history... I was 37 and my husband was 43 when we first started to try to conceive (we had just met the previous year). We tried for a year on our own before we started testing, only to find out that my husband had a low sperm count, low motility, and poor morphology. ICSI would be our only option, and we were then referred to a fertility clinic. I was also told that I had low ovarian reserve and that my age was a factor, maybe I should even consider donor eggs (not what I wanted). So I was now 40 and starting my fertility drugs when I met Lorne.

I cannot explain the relief that came over me that very first meeting. Lorne was so kind and so knowledgeable, he put me at ease immediately. He thoroughly went through my and my husband's health history, and told me he could help me and I believed him. It was no surprise to me now that my first IVF cycle was not successful, the drugs, the stressful journey, I was such a mess. Surprisingly to everyone around me I bounced back quickly from the disappointment, perhaps it was because I knew that Lorne would help me, he seemed so confident that he could.

With Lorne's assessment we had discovered many health issues that he could help me with and realized that it was all tied in to my fertility issues as well, Chinese medicine has a much more wholistic approach. I had poor circulation, I was cold all the time (even with extra padding if you know what I mean). I didn't sleep much, being a nurse I just assumed that came with the job. I had chronic constipation, I suffered from severe PMS symptoms and my cycle was only 25 days.

Lorne started me on supplements, cooked herbs and of course weekly treatments of acupuncture. I was reading the books he recommended, I started fertility geared meditations CD's and followed the fertility diet strictly. During that time I had sessions with Emilie and Spence too, and I am extremely grateful to them as well, such kind souls. I was on this regimen for 4 months and let me tell you about the results!!! I was sleeping 8-9 hours even after nightshifts. I lost 24lbs, I was now energetic, alert and very calm and confindent, no longer the stressed out basket case from before. My husband said I was a whole other person ha ha! I was now warm for the first time in a long time, maybe even ever. The most remarkable change in my opinion was that I no longer suffered from PMS, at all! No cramps, no bloating, no breast tenderness and my cycle had extended to 27 days, in just 4 months.

It was then time to make our second attempt at IVF/ICSI. I was ready this time! I could hear Lorne in my head saying "I may not be able to increase how many eggs you have, but I can make them better quality eggs". I knew I would be successful this time, and we were! I am 18 weeks pregnant with TWINS!!!
Thank you Lorne, and all the lovely staff at Acubalance!

MW

Watch a news story about her experience - click here