I have low ovarian reserve and 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 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 “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, 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 at 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 discovered many health issues that he could help me with and realized that it was all tied into my fertility issues as well; Chinese medicine has a much more holistic approach. I had poor circulation and 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 meditation CDs and followed the fertility diet strictly. I was on this regimen for four months and let me tell you about the results! I was sleeping 8-9 hours even after nightshifts, I lost 24 lbs, and I was now energetic, alert, and very calm and confident, 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!