by Beth Heller, MS

In a recent clinical study conducted at Pulling Down the Moon we found that women who took our six week Yoga for Fertility class experienced significant reductions in their anxiety levels.  This was very exciting, not just for us but for the women who experienced this reduction in anxiety.

“Allostatic load” (AL) is a term that refers to the physiological consequences of chronic stress and anxiety.  In other words, AL is the physical result of excess chronic stress exposure.  The conditions that lead to AL include repeated exposure to multiple sources of stress and  an inability to “shut down” the stress response in a timely manner.  For anyone who has experienced the challenges of infertility – multiple sources of stress anyone?  - you recognize it’s a perfect recipe for excess Allostatic Load.

To reduce AL it stands to reason that we should try to both reduce the number of stressors we experience and improve our ability to shut down the stress response.  The first remedy, reducing the number of stressors, is challenging.  Between work, relationships and the medical aspects of fertility the stress whammy’s are pretty relentless and often beyond our control.   That leaves the second remedy, learning to shut down or counteract the stress response, as our best course of action.

Enter the vagus nerve.  The vagus nerve runs from deep in the brain down to the gut and is responsible for an amazing array of enervation - from heart to colon.  Specifically, the vagus nerve provides parasympathetic nervous stimulation, our body’s  rest-digest-nest response.  Stimulation of this nerve has been shown to lower heart rate and blood pressure, and counteracts our our body’s stress response.  It has been hypothesized that yoga reduces Allostatic Load by stimulating the vagus nerve.

Yoga stimulates the vagus nerve in many different ways.  Asana (yoga poses) fold, twist and extend the torso, impacting the vagus nerve. Techniques like ujjayi breathing also stimulate this nerve.  In our yoga program we focus both on poses that support fertility and those that stimulate our relaxation response.  And now research shows this may be having a real impact on women’s anxiety levels.

In May and June, you can take advantage of yoga in one of three ways at Pulling Down the Moon.  First, we have two great fertility yoga DVDs:  Yoga Practices for Fertility and our Fully Fertile Companion Yoga DVD for purchase online or in our Centers.  We also have yoga classes in DC Metro and the Chicago Area.  Finally, in our Chicago-area locations we are offering a Three-Pack of 75 minute private yoga sessions for $225 in May and June.  Call or visit our website for more info.

Most doctors agree that the most effective first-line treatment for Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome is diet and exercise.  Eating a low-glycemic diet that helps regulate blood sugar levels and exercising regularly to improve glucose metabolism can help re-start ovulation in many PCOS patients.  However, at the Moon we think this “prescription” is missing something – and that something is stress reduction.

Interestingly, both overweight and normal weight patients with PCOS show altered cortisol metabolism, with PCOS patients showing an increase in circulating stress hormones likes cortisol.   Higher levels of cortisol are not optimal for either overall health or for fertility.  Cortisol can disrupt our menstrual cycle, increase appetite (particularly for sugary foods), promote weight gain, especially around our middle where it is more harmful to our health and impair our immune function.  While experts cannot yet agree why cortisol is higher in PCOS patients, they should agree that taking steps to lower cortisol is likely to improve overall health of women with PCOS as well as their fertility.

Techniques that have been shown to lower stress include:

Acupuncture:  Recent studies have found that the increased muscle sympathetic nerve activity (a sign of increased stress hormone activity) in PCOS patients can be significantly lowered with acupuncture treatment.

Exercise:  We all recognize the stress reduction component of fertility-friendly workouts.  Exercising regularly controls stress and makes us feel better about ourselves.

Yoga/Relaxation Training:  Yoga has been shown to be as effective as cognitive-behavioural therapy at improving psychological and physiological measures of stress. 

Bottom line:  if you have PCOS, by all means continue with your healthy eating and exercise program but consider adding acupuncture to your regimen and taking at least 15 minutes a day to practice yoga stretches and breathing.

A new study was published this week in the Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology which showed that acupuncture can help treat symptoms of depression in pregnant women.  In the study, depressed women were placed into three groups:

Groups underwent 12 treatments over an eight-week period of time and were then asked to take the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression.  Results showed the severity of depression in the acupuncture specific group to be significantly lower than that in both of the control groups.   

This was encouraging news since we are often asked at Pulling Down the Moon what holistic therapies might be available to patients who become depressed during pregnancy or what patients can do if they do not want to take their anti-depressants while TTC or pregnant.  Understandably, many women are concerned about taking or starting medications during their pregnancy due to potential risk to their babies.  Interestingly, research has shown that women with depression tend to have a greater liklihood of developing postpartum depression and they are more likely to have babies with lower birth weights.  For these reasons, it is important to talk with both your doctor and your acupuncturist about integrating their care to make your treatment plan as seemless as possible. 

For information about the study, check out this Wall Street Journal Article:

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704454304575081753471294546.html