Mood swings, tender breasts, food cravings, fatigue, irritability, skin problems, bloating and depression….

Many women dread the last week of every cycle because of how irritable and miserable they feel. Chinese medicine has been treating premenstrual symptoms for thousands of years and here at the YinOva Center we have drawn on this traditional wisdom to help modern New Yorkers address their PMS simply and effectively. Many of our patients are surprised and thrilled to find out that PMS can be solved and that they don’t have to put up with feeling moody and uncomfortable every month.

Recently Parents TV came to our center to interview me and talk to one of our patients about using Chinese medicine to treat PMS and below you can see the video

In Chinese medicine uncomfortable symptoms before the period are related to Liver Qi Stagnation and by this we mean that stress and fatigue cause qi and blood to circulate less well and our livers to function sluggishly resulting in hormonal transitions that are not smooth. At the YinOva Center we use a combination of weekly acupuncture to move qi combined with a natural herbal formula to help balance hormones, gently and safely. Your herbs can be specially tailored to suit your particular symptoms so, for instance, if you suffer from breast tenderness we can add qing pi (Tangerine Peel) which can really help. Likewise if  abdominal bloating and gas is a problem we can add mu xiang (Costus Root) to help move qi in your abdomen.

Most of our patients find they need to take the herbs for three months to bring their body back into balance after which we wean them off and, like Suzanne in the interview above, they usually find that their premenstrual symptoms are much more manageable.  Likewise we suggest weekly acupuncture for the first three months followed by a treatment once a month for a further two months and as Suzanne says in the interview this is usually enough to make a permanent change.

There are also plenty of things you can do to help yourself. Here is the advice we give our YinOva patients about tackling their PMS :-

• Get regular exercise. This moves qi and blood and smooths hormonal transitions.
• Eat plenty of vegetables, particularly cruciferous vegetables and leafy greens.
• Prioritize unsaturated fats such as olive oil and whole grains such as brown rice and oatmeal.
• In the week before your period avoid alcohol, coffee, salt and processed foods.
• If you feel irritable take Vitamin B6 (50 – 100 mg)
• If you suffer from breast tenderness take Vitamin E (400mg).
• If you suffer from bloating take take Magnesium (400mg)
• If you feel weepy take Calcium (1200mg)

Today’s blog is written by YinOva Massage Therapist, Nicole Kruck, LMT. Nicole is certified in Women’s Health and Reproductive Care with a specialty in Fertility Enhancement and Maya Abdominal Massage.

Nicole writes: Before I went to school to study massage, I did not want to know what went on under my skin. I felt I would have to be responsible for taking care of my body if I knew what was under there. However, a miracle occurred when I began to study anatomy & physiology in massage school. I realized I was completely fascinated with this incredible group of systems. I learned that all these system’s main job is to create homeostasis at every moment within my body. My misconception was that my body’s  functions were dark and mysterious when actually they were my best friend.

Life under the surface is like snorkeling the under water. The beauty of the sea weed like intestines, the grace of a ray moving through the water is like a uterus with her fallopian tube & ovary wings, the blowfish is like a stomach expanding and contracting protected by the ribs; the amazing process of ovulation, digestion, breathing or the action of one heartbeat are all created by thousands of continuous actions taking place under the skin.

I have realized in the course of my practice that many of my clients think like I used to. One of the reasons I love my work is that I am able to teach people to explore some of the networks under their hands when I show them their own abdominal self care massage. For a woman to actually feel a part of their uterus through the abdomen can shed tremendous light on what sometimes felt dark place “down there”. As you begin to open up the areas around the reproductive organs the dams that once restricted vital fluids such as oxygenated blood, hormones and lymph are opened to bring back proper balance. Clients are also excited to find that they can manually support elimination by massaging their large intestine which is simple to palpate through their skin. As you learn to massage your abdomen you will find it creates a rippling effect through out all the organs and systems of the body to bring about improved functioning.

It is proven fact that simple touch can nourish our entire system. As we seek ways to bring greater healing to ourselves I offer you one of greatest tools I have experienced right here in your own two hands. Just like Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz when she finds out that it was always in her power to go home, you can also find great power in your own hands to heal yourself.

I hope you will join me on the journey to explore down under the skin of your abdomen to illuminate a wondrous new world.

Join me and Holistic Nurse Practitioner Cathy Lipsky December 5 at the YinOva Center form 1pm-5pm. If you can not attend I am also available for private Maya Abdominal Massage sessions.

This week I was interested to read a new study in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology which showed that ear acupuncture can significantly reduce low back and pelvic pain in pregnant women. You can read the full text of the study here. This is not the first research study to look at this. In fact in 2005 I was interviewed by ABC news about a previous study in the British Medical Journal that also showed acupuncture can help with pregnancy back pain. You can watch that clip here.

Up to 1 in 5 women suffer from back and pelvic girdle pain in pregnancy. Usually our patients complain of pain in the low back and buttocks although some patients also feel discomfort at the front of their pelvic area. Some women also experience radiating pain down one or both of their legs. Most women tell us that the pain gets worse if they have to stand for a long time. In 7% of women the pain continues after they have given birth becoming a chronic lower back issue.

At the YinOva Center many of our pregnant patients are keen to avoid medication, if possible, and so they choose acupuncture as a gentle and safe way to treat their pain. We usually use a combination of ear acupuncture as described in this recent study and local acupuncture as outlined in the previous study. The local acupuncture works in three ways – the needles act on the nervous system to interrupt the pain signal, the combination of needles causes the body to release chemicals which act as natural pain killers and by needling the spasms we get the knots in the muscles to release.

In the recent study the patients only received ear acupuncture which has a long history of efficacy in China and has been found in clinical research to initiate an endorphin release. 152 women, in late pregnancy, were divided into three groups one of which had small acupuncture needles held in place by tape and retained in three ear acupoints for one week. Another group received sham acupuncture and the final group acted as a control and received no acupuncture at all although they were instructed to rest and take painkillers if necessary.  81% of women in the ear acupuncture group reported a significant reduction in pain as oppose to 59% of the women in the sham acupuncture group and 47% of the women in the control group.

Acupuncture is a time-tested therapy for pain relief and because it has few side effects is one of the safest ways of releiving pain in pregnant women. Most of our patients get relief from the combination of ear and body acupuncture and usually feel much better after 2 or 3 treatments. Other helpful treatments include gentle stretching exercises as well as massage by a qualified prenatal massage therapist and we usually suggest that women do one of these in conjunction with their acupuncture treatment.

I recently wrote a blog entry that was all about influencing the sex of your baby. All that talk about X and Y chromosomes prompted one of my patients to ask me about Fragile X syndrome. She had just been diagnosed as a carrier for this disorder and wanted me to help her sort through her options.

What is Fragile X Syndrome?

Fragile X is a genetic disorder and is the most common cause of inherited mental impairment and cognitive problems including some forms of autism. It is caused by a mutation of the FMR1 gene on the X chromosome. The mutation turns off the production of the FMR1 protein which in turn affects brain development. People with Fragile X suffer from mental impairment which can take the form of anything from very minor learning difficulties to severe cognitive problems. They may be hyperactive or over sensitive to stimuli and they may have short attention spans. Physically people with Fragile X may have a long narrow face, prominent ears, enlarged testicles and loose joints. Approximately 1 in 2000 boys suffer some kind of mental impairment due to Fragile X. The disorder also affects girls but the incidence is lower and the symptoms tend to be milder. This is because girls have 2 copies of the X chromosome whereas boys only have one. This means that girls have 2 copies of the FMR1 gene so if one is mutated a girl has another copy of the gene to fall back on. Boys only have one X chromosome.

What does it mean to be a carrier of Fragile X?

Fragile X syndrome is carried on the X chromosome. Since men (XY) and women (XX) each have at least one X chromosome, both parents can be carriers.

If a father is a carrier, he can only pass the gene defect to his daughters, since he transmits a Y chromosome to his sons. All of his daughters will inherit the gene, but as far as anyone knows this inherited defect will be in the premutation stage which means that if a daughter inherits Fragile X from her father she will not be symptomatic although she can pass the disorder on to her children.

If a mother is the carrier, she can pass the gene defect to either her sons or her daughters, since she contributes an X chromosome to each. If, as a woman, you are a carrier you have a 50% chance of passing the gene on because you have two X chromosomes and only one of them is affected. So if you are a carrier you may not pass on the defect at all or you may just pass on the premutation or your child could inherit the full syndrome. Sons who have fragile X are at high risk of intellectual disability but daughters who receive the fragile X gene may appear normal because the have two X chromosomes and only one is affected.

If you are a carrier how is risk assessed.

A simple blood test can establish if you are a carrier of Fragile X and the degree to which this mutation is likely to cause problems for your child. Geneticists classify the gene mutation into three categories based on the number of repeats of a pattern of DNA called CGG repeats. Individuals with less than 60 CGG repeats have a normal gene. Individuals with 60-200 CGG repeats have a premutation which means they do have a small risk of their child suffering from Fragile X syndrome and that risk is directly related to the number of CGG repeats. Parents with over 200 repeats have a full mutation which causes fragile X syndrome.

As for my patient. She fell into the middle ground in that she had the premutation and so was at a small risk of passing on Fragile X. Fortunately we live in a time when we have access to good genetic testing and advice. Her doctor was able to reassure her that, because the number of CGG repeats was low her risk of passing this disorder on to her child was minimal. An amniocentesis at 16 weeks was able to confirm her doctor’s prediction and she was relieved to hear that her baby was just fine.

Although it’s scary to find out that you are a carrier for a genetic disorder such as Fragile X, it’s important to find out more about your own situation. You may find that with a combination of genetic and prenatal testing you , like my patient, receive reassuring news.

I enjoyed this video by Alice Eve Jones performing an extract from her book, What I Thought I Knew. In it she describes how, after a long struggle with infertility, she was told she was in menopause, only to find out that she was pregnant. Recently Dr. David and I were consulted by a patient in her mid-thirties who was told she was menopausal and that she should give up all hope of bearing her own child. She’s now four months pregnant. Miracles do happen. In fact they happen all the time.

Thanks to Njemile Carol Jones, an fabulous acupuncturist in Maryland for sending me this link. Njemile specializes in OB/GYN with a particular specialty in treating infertility. So if you are looking for an acupuncturist in the MD or DC area she would be an excellent choice.

FIFTEEN MINUTES WITH THE “FERTILITY GODDESS,” JILL BLAKEWAY

In the new tome Making Babies: A Proven 3-Month Program for Maximum Fertility (Little Brown) acupuncturist and herbalist Jill Blakeway, who specializes in fertility and women’s health, teams up with reproductive endocrinologist Sami David to demystify the often fraught process of getting pregnant, covering everything from sex ed 101 to common causes of infertility and how to overcome them. Called a “fertility goddess” by the New York Times, Blakeway spoke to us about her approach to alternative medicine, her patients and how men play into the equation.

Why did you decide to write this book now?

Dr. David and I have collaborated on patients for six years, so this book grew organically out of that relationship. We were frustrated that patients were being given unnecessary medication and undergoing needless procedures, and we were having great success at helping people get pregnant more naturally. Click here to read more on the W website.