Local resources for pregnancy loss & infertility...

As a Holistic Reproductive Health Practitioner that teaches Fertility Awareness here in Denver, Colorado, I often find myself talking with women about topics outside of just charting to avoid pregnancy or to get pregnant. Because miscarriage is so common (about 1 in 3 pregnancies end in miscarriage), finding great resources for clients to utilize when this happens is really important to me.

Next week I have the opportunity to briefly talk about the benefits of charting while *TTC (trying-to-conceive) at a Pregnancy Loss & Infertility Support Group offered at Amelia's Mammas. It's on Tuesday, August 26, 2014 at 6pm. Contact Amelia's Mammas to register (donation-based).

Then on Saturday, October 4, 2014 from 2pm-4:30pm I'll be teaching a Natural Conception class at Amelia's Mammas. In this class I always...

  • review how reproduction and conception works (...and I promise it's way better than what your high school health teacher ever taught you!)
  • show how charting can help you better time conception, have a better idea of when to expect a period or a *BFP (big fat positive), and understand what's going on with your overall and reproductive health (...including those mysterious hormones!)
  • talk about natural lifestyles choices as well as alternative therapies that may be useful along the way (...should you really do a handstand after sex?!?)

It looks at the whole person and the whole situation from a holistic perspective. And it's a great place to get more accurate and personal answers to questions than Googling can ever give! Contact me to register ($60).

These are some local resources for pregnancy loss and infertility support in the Denver Metro area:

Online resources include:

What other local resources for pregnancy loss and infertility exist in your area?

*Want to better understand all the acronyms in the fertility and reproductive world (like the TTC and BFP I included here)? Here are all of the ones I've collected in this Say What? blogpost! You're welcome ;)

News on IVF drugs →

When women who are trying to conceive chart their cycles using the Fertility Awareness Method, they can often “see" what’s going on inside their bodies. Charting allows them to determine if they display a normal, healthy menstrual cycle; a normal, healthy ovarian cycle; and a normal, health reproductive hormonal cycle. And there aren’t any side-effects and it’s pretty much free!

The BBC reports that there may be new and safer medication options (specifically kisspeptin) for those choosing to use IVF (invtro fertilization). The current drugs can cause serious side-effects:

  • "About one in every 100 women undergoing usual IVF treatment will develop a severe form of a medical condition called ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome or OHSS. Instead of producing a few eggs as desired, the ovaries go into overdrive and produce lots in response to the potent fertility drugs. While most women with OHSS will have mild symptoms and recover, those few with severe OHSS become very ill and can die."

My next “Achieving Pregnancy using Fertility Awareness" class is this Monday, June 24 at Natal to Nest. If you’re not quite ready to try IVF, come learn more than you ever thought you could about your fertility!

Next Class = Monday, June 24 at 6:30pm

Charting your cycle using the Sympto-Thermal Fertility Awareness Method will help to unravel the mystery so many of us feel about our reproductive selves! 

If you’re thinking about getting pregnant or have been trying without success, why not try charting your cycle! I’ll be teaching a “Fertility Awareness to Achieve Pregnancy" class this Monday at Natal to Nest in Highlands Ranch. Space is limited, so register soon… $60/person (your non-charting partner is encouraged to attend for free).

TTC - Why Charting Your Cycle Can Help You Get Pregnant!

If you feel like your body’s fertility is a big mystery to you, it doesn’t have to be that way! Learning to chart your cycle using the Fertility Awareness Method will help you answer some pretty important questions:

  • “Am I ovulating?" 
  • "Is my period late because I’m pregnant or because I’m stressed out?"
  • "Is this a late period or a miscarriage?" 
  • "Why can’t I get pregnant?" 
  • "Is my vaginal discharge supposed to be like this?" 
  • "How many times do I ovulate each cycle?”

Charting can help you consciously conceive your child, know the optimal time for conception to occur, and have useful information to present to health care providers & alternative practitioners. 

I’ll be teaching a “Fertility Awareness to Achieve Pregnancy" class on Monday, June 24 at 6:30pm at Natal to Nest in Highlands Ranch, Colorado. Register online at Natal to Nest or by phone 303-221-6378 ($60/couple). 

Come find out how you can easily answer all those questions about your body’s fertility!

As simple as period prediction...

While there are many, very “important" uses for charting your cycle using the Fertility Awareness Method such as avoiding pregnancy or achieving pregnancy, it can also be as simple as, “I know when to expect my period!"

This can bring quite a feeling of freedom. No longer will you wonder, “Oh, is that my period?!?" and then a few days later “Oh, wait, is this my period?" If you chart your cycle, you’ll know about 2 weeks beforehand when your period will start, and then usually you’ll know the morning of the day it will start. Pretty cool, huh?

Knowledge is Power! (Or at least knowledge won’t leave you high & dry without a pad/tampon/menstrual cup when you most need it…)

What about OPK's?

When a woman charts her cycles using the Fertility Awareness Method, she’ll rarely need to use OPK’s (Ovulation Predictor Kits). Why?

Well, if she’s trying to AVOID pregnancy, these little strips aren’t designed for that, so she shouldn’t use them… EVER!

And if she’s trying to ACHIEVE pregnancy, the class she took with a qualified Fertility Awareness Educator and her cycle’s chart will usually give her all the information she needs.

OPKs are looking for a hormone called LH that “usually" makes its debut 24 hours-ish before ovulation occurs. Having a positive OPK just means that she “might" ovulate, but doesn’t mean that ovulation took place. While they can be helpful for some women who are TTC, OPKs can also be frustrating if they’re not used correctly. These are some other reasons I’m not the biggest fan of them:

  • They can be pricey! Buying OPKs in a store can be outrageously expensive; online you can find 100 for $30.
  • They are designed for the “average" LH concentration for the “average" woman (and I’ve yet to meet this so-called “average" woman). So there could be false positives and false negatives.
  • Some women test positive all the time. Other women test negative all the time. And a lot of the test results are difficult to interpret.

If you want more information about interpreting your OPK results or (better yet!) want to learn more about your body using the Fertility Awareness Method, contact me for information about upcoming classes or to schedule a private consultation!

Kindara offers Denver/Boulder locals 3 months of FREE Fertility Coaching!

Kindara is an iPhone app that is based in Boulder, CO. They offer women who are charting their cycles using the Fertility Awareness Method a way to enter and record their fertility data. Right now Kindara is in the process of improving the app using a focus group and want YOUR help!

Interested? Follow these links if you’re trying to get pregnant or if you’re trying to avoid pregnancy.

Say What?

Acronyms… love them or hate them… they’re EVERYWHERE! When clients email me questions about their cycles and Fertility Awareness Method charts, I’ve seen much of the lingo below. (And I totally confess that sometimes I’ve had to Google the acronym to find out what it means before I email them back!)

Fertility Awareness Method Charting Specifics:

  • CY = cycle
  • CD = cycle day
  • CF or CM = cervical fluid or cervical mucus
  • EW or EWCF = egg-white cervical fluid
  • CP or Cx = cervical position or cervix
  • BBT = basal body temperature
  • PK = peak day (last day of clear, stretchy, or lubricative CF)
  • O or OV = ovulation
  • AO or NO = anovulatory or no ovulation
  • DPP or DPO = days past peak day or days past ovulation
  • FP = follicular phase (preovulatory)
  • FSH = follicle stimulating hormone
  • LP = luteal phase (postovulatory)
  • LPD = luteal phase defect
  • CL = corpus luteum
  • LH = luteinizing hormone
  • TTA = trying to avoid (pregnancy)
  • TTC = trying to conceive

GYN (gynecological) Specifics:

  • LMP = first day of last menstrual period
  • PMS = premenstrual syndrome
  • YI = yeast infection
  • BV = bacterial vaginosis
  • UTI = urinary tract infection
  • STI = sexually transmitted infection
  • BC or BCP = birth control or birth control pills
  • OC or OCP = oral contraceptives or oral contraceptive pills
  • AF = aunt flo (your period)
  • PPAF = postpartum aunt flo (your period)
  • PP = postpartum
  • BF or EBF = breastfeeding or exclusively breastfeeding
  • Bx = biopsy
  • Dx = diagnosis
  • Hx = history
  • Rx = prescription
  • Tx = treatment
  • US = ultrasound
  • Colpo = colposcopy
  • LEEP = loop electrocautery excision procedure
  • OTC = over the counter

Getting Pregnant Specifics:

  • BD = baby dance (have sex)
  • PG = pregnant
  • PNV = prenatal vitamin
  • OPK = ovulation predictor kit
  • EPT = early pregnancy test
  • HPT = home pregnancy test
  • hCG =  human chorionic gonadotropin (hormone that pregnancy tests look for)
  • POAS = pee on a stick
  • FMU = first morning urine
  • BFP = big fat positive
  • BFN = big fat negative
  • EDD = estimated due date
  • FHT = fetal heart tones
  • MS = morning sickness
  • MC or SAB = miscarriage or spontaneous abortion
  • EP = ectopic pregnancy
  • IF or INF = infertility
  • SA = semen analysis
  • AI = alternative insemination
  • ART = assisted reproductive technology
  • IVI = intravaginal insemination (often done at-home)
  • ICI = intracervical insemination (usually done at office)
  • IUI = intrauterine insemination (usually done at office)
  • ITI = intratubal insemination (done at office)
  • IVF = invitro fertilization (done at office)
  • DE = donor eggs
  • DI = donor insemination
  • PCOS = polycystic ovarian syndrome
  • Endo = endometriosis

Extras:

  • DH = dear/darling/darn husband
  • SO = significant other
  • LO = loved one
  • DD = dear/darling daughter
  • DS = dear/darling son

Did I miss any??? Comment below with ones you’ve found that aren’t on this list!