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.

Cathleen McCauley L.M.T.

By Cathy McCauley, LMT, NCTMB

Spring has officially sprung and a multitude of signs show the season is upon us. Take a walk through your neighborhood and you see crocuses blooming and green buds taking shape. The earth is fertile and bursting with life.

With spring here, it’s the time for rejuvenation and cleansing. The longer days bring a renewed boost of energy. With spring, you receive the opportunity to release any stagnation that has accumulated during the winter and start fresh in mind and body. You can look ahead and make plans for the coming year.

A Chinese proverb says, “Make your whole year’s plans in the spring, and your day’s plans early in the morning.”  The proverb comes from the fact that farmers sow their seeds in early spring to ensure a good harvest and highlights the importance of being proactive.  Applying this concept to fertility, you can see the importance of starting early in taking care of your reproductive health. When you begin to pay attention to your bodies’ rhythms, cycles, signs and symptoms, your chances can increase in creating a fertile environment.

If you haven’t been as proactive about fertility as you’d like, spring is the perfect time to make plans for the future. It might be time to talk to your doctor about a fertility blood work up to determine what’s really going on with your hormones. You could make an appointment with a nutritionist to overhaul your eating habits to be more fertility friendly or take a yoga class to learn some breathing and relaxation techniques for stress reduction.

Click here to learn about the Fertility Awareness Check-Up available from Fertility Centers of Illinois for just $90

Also, the concept of spring cleaning our bodies can become an important ritual. You need to clear out the toxins and rejuvenate any stagnate energy in the body to boost immunity and increase fertility health. Since spring is the time for new beginnings, it’s a good opportunity to experience something new. Acupuncture helps balance the energy in the body and stabilize the organs and bodily functions. Reiki, a gentle form of vibrational energy healing, helps restore harmony in the body, mind and soul and clears emotional blockages. Fertility massage focuses on opening up the abdominal and reproductive organs to promote the immune system and assist in blood flow. Massage also greatly reduces tension and helps you feel great.

In the spring, people begin to feel better as the temperatures increase, the sunlight shines and the world turns green. Pour some of that warmth and light into your reproductive health to invigorate and rejuvenate your personal fertility journey.

We’re here to guide you along your path and hope to see you soon!

 by Beth Heller, MS RYT

Chicago has had an amazing winter and a very early spring.  This past week has found us meditating on flip-flops…in March!

 While it’s super fun to slip on a pair of summery wedges and paint our toenails pink, open toed shoes and flip-flops aren’t the only reason to pay attention to our piggies.  When it comes to the holistic view of fertility  feet occupy a place of honor.  If you’ve ever had fertility acupuncture you know that many of the points that support the reproductive system are located in the feet and ankles.  Reflexologists assert that the feet literally provide a map of the body and that we can use foot manipulation to impact different physical organs.  Yoga, too, teaches that healthy feet are important for better menstrual function, dispelling toxins and improving immunity.

So what’s so special about our feet?  In yoga, the feet are seen as the foundation of our being that is connected with the earth.  The most basic of yoga poses, mountain pose, challenges us to simply stand and find balance from our feet to the top of our head.  If we close our eyes in mountain pose, we can visualize the outlines of our feet on our yoga mat…literally our footprint in the world.  One of the strangest things for the new yoga practitioner is exercising in bare feet rather than sneakers.   Postures are practiced barefoot to maximize our awareness of our feet.  Yoga postures also stretch and stimulate different points on the feet that are associated with different organ systems in the body.

Symbolically, the challenges of fertility lead us away from our feet into our head as we spin our mental wheels searching for the silver bullet that will blast us past “trying” time into mommy time.  Our feet, particularly when we practice yoga asana, bring us home from our imaginings and projections to the here and now.

On an energetic level, the feet are associated with our first chakra.  Chakras are energy wheels located along our spine and each chakra is associated with both physiological functions and spiritual life-lessons.  On a psycho-spiritual level the first chakra is associated with security, trust and our sense of belonging.  Physically, the first chakra governs our immune system, gut health and lower back.  The feet are also very important for the flow of apana energy, the energy current in our body that moves downward from the pelvis to the soles of the feet, governs the menstrual cycle and the ability for our body to dispel toxins.

So, be kind to your feet.   Try not to cram them into uncomfortable shoes and make sure they  are frequently touched or nurtured.   Here are some tips for fertility-friendly feet:

1.  Shake hands with your feet once a day.  To do this, take your fingers and thread them between your toes (pinky finger between pinky and second toe, ring finger between second and middle toe, etc.).  Once your fingers are threaded, gently squeeze and massage the ball of the foot.   Repeat on the other side.
2. Keep your feet warm.  Cold feet mean decreased circulation.  With summer coming we face “air conditioner freeze syndrome.”  Keep a pair of fuzzy socks in your bag or desk for the days when you feel like you work in a refrigerator!
3. Experiment with reflexology, the science of foot massage.  Either see a professional reflexologist or try out “reflexology socks,” that actually outline the different areas of the foot and their associated organ system.
4. Try yoga.  If you’re a runner or walker, your feet may need a good stretch.  Time spent in yoga class in bare feet can help feet become more flexible and improve circulation to these important fertility “organs.”  Click here to view our upcoming Yoga for Fertility schedule for DC Metro and Chicagoland.

When we begin a yoga or meditation program we want to jump straight to the “meat:”  how and when will this practice create peace of mind?  If after two sessions we have not achieved at least a semblance of calm we label ourselves a failure.  We can’t help it.

Traditional meditation training involved little instruction and relied on the arising of tranquility and insight.  In his book “Diamond Mind:  a Psychology of Meditation,” master teacher Rob Nairn notes that Western meditators often don’t come as easily to the natural arising of insight and will often use the practice of meditation to suppress psychological process instead of promoting it.  So Nair’s approach is to emphasize making “friends” with the mind and developing an attitude of playfulness towards practice.

Meditation is a process that balances concentration with letting go.  We practice over and over again allowing ourselves to be fully present in each arising moment.  Why?  Because it’s only in the present moment that a new understanding can arise.  Everything but the present is ruled by either memory of the past or imagination of the future.   This is a very important point for those of us who are trying to conceive.  That journey can be so encumbered by past disappointments and future fears and hopes that the present is almost completely obscured.  Together, though, with the help of breath and awareness we can begin to carve out a moment of “now” in which peace can arise and deep healing can occur.

For today, let’s try to sit in the now.  Don’t freak out if you feel like your mind is a Niagara Falls of emotions and thoughts.  This is NOT failure, it’s success!  You have become aware of your mind. As you continue to practice this awareness will grow and mature until you learn that you are actually a peaceful, content being experiencing a roller-coaster ride of experiences.  Here’s a very simple technique for staying present:

Sit quietly, either in a comfortable cross-legged position or in a chair with your feet flat on the floor and your spine straight.  Close your eyes and place one hand on your lower abdomen.  Inhale deeply through the nose and feel the breath move down into the belly, expanding and moving the hand outward as if you’re filling up a balloon in your tummy.  Exhale through the nose, feel the belly begin to  deflate as you softly count the number “10.”  Inhale again, and with the exhale softly say to yourself “9.”  Inhale, exhale 8…and so on down to “1.”  As you count down from 10 to 1, feel as if you are consciously unwinding the forward momentum of your mind.  Feel as if you are a car exiting the highway and slowing down to a country road where you have time to look at the beautiful scenery and be present.   Once you begin to practice this technique daily you may find that after you’ve counted down your ten breaths you’re happy to sit a bit in peace.  Enjoy!  That’s the present moment.

If the exercise above was challenging, don’t despair!   Pulling Down the Moon will be offering a Mindfulness for Fertility class in conjunction with the psychologists of Fertility Centers of Illinois starting April 28.  Stay tuned for registration info and details…

by Beth Heller, M.S.

Nutrition was a big topic at this year’s American Society for Reproductive Medicine conference.  Concepts under discussion included the potential role of inflammation in both male and female fertility and the possible value of antioxidants like resveratrol and omega-3 fatty acids in reversing damage done by environmental toxins.  Another very simple yet compelling idea was presented by Dr. Gil Wilshire from Missouri.  Dr. Wilshire contends that many women, even obese women, are not getting sufficient nutrition for good fertility.  Put simply, the typical low-fat, USDA Food Guide diet that we have all been programmed to eat, is low in essential nutrients like omega-3 fatty acids and fat-soluble vitamins that are essential for our body’s health and reproduction.

Dr. Wilshire was preaching to the choir on this one.  That the poor quality of our modern diet – from the over consumption of fast foods and overly processed meals, to the belief that “low-fat means healthy” – puts all of us at risk for less than optimal nutritional status  is a cornerstone of our fertility nutrition programming at Pulling Down the Moon.  What was especially compelling, though, was Dr. Gil’s use of the concept of “feeding up” in his discussion.  This idea is old as the hills but almost universally accepted in the medical community:  women get pregnant when they are “feeding up” rather than paring down.

The female body is keenly aware of “energy balance,” an evolutionary mechanism that ensures the survival of the human species.  When calories are scarce, bodies begin to shut down non-essential body functions…like reproduction.  Food, however, is much more than calories.  It is also the way our body gets essential nutrients like vitamins, minerals and fats needed for healthy body function.  If a woman is consuming a diet rich in calories but poor in nutrients, she can become malnourished.  Hence an obese woman who lives on processed foods can have plenty of calories but still be “starving.”  And the slender woman who has been told by her fertility doctor to gain some weight in order to conceive may benefit more from shifting to a highly nutritious diet and lowering the intensity of her activity than from simply packing on pounds.

Rather than “feeding up,” we like to say that women get pregnant when they are “nourishing up.”  Importantly, the process of nourishing up can take place without the gain or loss of a single pound.  It begins with a very healthy diet and  good digestion so that essential nutrients are not only present, they are being absorbed and assimilated.  Calorie counting is secondary to this objective, even for the obese woman who needs to lose weight.  In general we believe that certain nutritional supplements  (including a high-quality prenatal vitamin, a probiotic to support digestion and omega-3 fats) can help support the objective of “nourishing up” but the focus should be a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, lean protein, minimally processed grains and healthy fats.

We also know that nourishment can come in many ways – including the nourishment of true relaxation that comes with yoga practice, nourishment through channeling chi throughout the body during an acupuncture session or the healing touch of massage and reiki.  Changing the intensity and intention of our exercise program from “burning and racing” to “energizing and strengthening” can also make a difference.

At a high-tech conference like ASRM it was encouraging to see nutrition on the table, so to speak.  It was clear, however, that nutrition will never get the attention of research dollars.  Many more people attended the class on Pre-Implantation Genetic Diagnosis (PGD) than the class about nutrition.  Doing nutrition research is complicated and funding is scarce because unlike drug research, where there’s potential to patent and produce a pharmaceutical drug that will make billions of dollars, a healthy diet can’t be patented and won’t make anyone rich.  Conflicts of interest are everywhere.   Governmental agencies that are charged with making nutritional recommendations are also charged with protecting the economic interests of food manufacturers.   Our national nutrition association, the American Dietetic Association, is partnering with companies like Coca Cola to get women to drink more Diet Coke in order to prevent heart disease.  Yikes!

So what are we to do?  In the face of misinformation we must begin to live the truth and spread the word.  Have you made changes to your diet that fly in the face of the Dietary Guidelines for America?  Have you switched to full fat dairy and sworn off fat-free yogurt?  Have you switched to a more nourishing lifestyle through yoga, acupuncture or other practice?  If you have, please share your stories and we will feature them in our blog and on via social media.  Send your storied to beth@pullingdownthemoon.com subject line:  Nourishing Up.  You can include your name or let me know that you’d like to remain anonymous.

by Beth Heller, MS RYT

Yoga poses are a mystery in my book.  We go to yoga class, stand on a mat in our bare feet and proceed to bend and twist our bodies until we take on a completely different shape.  What are these shapes?  Why on earth do they make us feel so good?  Why are they such a gift when we are experiencing life and health challenges such as infertility?

There is a lot of information about the physiological benefits of yoga.  Clearly, yoga postures are good for our bodies.  Stretching tight musculature improves our posture, strengthens our digestion and makes our muscles strong and supple.  Hip opening postures feed blood to the uterus and ovaries, backbends stimulate our nervous system and free our respiratory system from chronic tension, and twists “wring out” toxins and stale fluid from body tissues.  But aren’t postures just physical exercise?  The answer is yes, and no.

In his master work Light on Yoga, renowned yogi B.K.S. Iyengar explains that names of yoga poses are significant and symbolize the process of evolution.  There are poses named for plants (tree, lotus), poses named for insects (locust, scorpion), poses named for fish, reptiles and higher mammals like dog and camel.  Some are even named for legendary Hindu heroes and even gods.  The point is, Iyengar says, that while we perform yoga asana we assume many different forms, from the lowliest to the most exalted, and recognize the Universal Spirit that runs through them all.   Mr. Iyengar asserts that it is this unspoken presence of the divine that begins to work on the body of the yogi, causing new discipline and spontaneous healing to occur in diet, cleanliness and character.  What a fascinating thought – and how nice to think that tapping into something greater than ourselves is just a down dog away?

Over tea last week, Joyce, a fellow yoga teacher and friend was discussing her yoga practice when she added another dimension to my musing.

“The postures,” she said, “are the constant and I am the variable.  When I move into a yoga pose that I practice regularly, the pose is the same but depending on my state of mind, what I ate for dinner the night before and my present mood it’s a unique experience every time.  When I am tense, my down dog is rigid.  When I am sad I am reluctant to do backbends.  Because the postures encourage me to breathe and reflect, I see how my life affects my body. “

So, while in some ways these insights make the mystery even deeper, my appreciation of yoga asana is ever expanding.  These insights remind me that while yoga for fertility is trendy and hip openers are indeed great for fertility, the roots of this practice run far deeper than we will ever imagine.  And for this I am truly grateful.

Check out our brand new video companion to our book, Fully Fertile. This easy to use practice is great for any level, designed to support your body’s fertility and, with faithful practice, connect you to this universal healing awareness.

by Beth Heller MS, RYT

No, this isn’t another chirpy post about the power of positive thinking or the law of attraction.  While there are potential fertility benefits to both of those things, the positive I’m talking about here is the little plus on the pee stick or the positive lilt in the nurse’s voice when she gives you the news that your beta hCG has just doubled.  This post is also about the apprehension I’ve seen behind the eyes of my yoga students when they share their good news.  One hurdle cleared – “I’m pregnant!” – but another looms ahead…that tenuous first trimester.   This anxiety is magnified if their journey has been a long one or if a previous “positive” ended in a negative.

Having experienced multiple miscarriages and other assorted disappointments, that odd mix of joy and terror during the first twelve weeks of pregnancy is something I know way too well.  I spent most of the waking hours of my first trimesters taking my basal temperature incessantly to make sure it hadn’t dropped, bracing myself to see blood on the toilet paper every time I went to the bathroom and subjecting every ping I felt in my abdomen to a thorough Google search.  Is there anything we can do to make this time bearable?

Absolutely.  I’m assuming that you’ve been taking pretty good care of yourself on the road to pregnancy, so now is definitely not the time to pull off that road.  Keep on doing what you’ve been doing to stay happy, healthy and balanced.  In case you’re so freaked out that you can’t remember what those things were, here is a checklist for staying positive, figuratively and literally, during the first trimester:

1. Practice your yoga and meditation.   When a woman becomes pregnant during our six week Yoga for Fertility class, which I am happy to report happens quite frequently, we encourage her to stay with the class and the practice during her early weeks of pregnancy.   Researchers hypothesize that stress may contribute to early pregnancy loss, a phenomenon they are calling Pregnancy Stress Syndrome.  The immune/endocrine imbalances that result from stress may be a trigger for pregnancy loss.  The good news is that population studies show that “tender-loving-care” interventions that focus on reducing stress and helping women feel supported are associated with positive pregnancy outcomes in women with history of miscarriage. As long as the yoga is gentle and the teacher is knowledgeable about what’s verboten during very early pregnancy, you’re good to go.  If you don’t feel comfortable doing yoga, find a meditation or other relaxation class to attend to keep the “ritual of relaxation” going during this time
2. Exercise.  Yes, I did say exercise.  Note that I did not say go for a run or start power lifting, but I did say exercise.  Early pregnancy is a time to stroll and smell the flowers or stretch in leisurely manner.  Gentle (stress again gentle) movement will help to relieve anxiety, mediate the fatigue that often comes along with the first trimester and promote a sense of well-being.  Just keep it gentle (did I stress gentle?).
3. Keep eating right.  You may not feel ready for the full-on prenatal nutrition consult, but it is time to contact your nutritionist and make sure that any herbal or nutritional supplements you have been taking are still appropriate during the first trimester.   If you’ve discontinued dairy, wheat or other potential allergens, this is not the time to add them back in without the support of a skilled nutritionist, but it is time to ensure that any eliminations you have made have not created nutritional “holes” in your nutritional status.
4. Keep getting your acupuncture.  Traditional Chinese Medicine is very useful and has specific protocols for miscarriage prevention.  At Pulling Down the Moon we recommend women receive treatment weekly during the first trimester and then continue monthly or on an as-needed basis for the remainder of the pregnancy.
5. Hands on work like massage and reiki can also help you stay calm and centered.  Think about how your dog or cat melts under your touch when they are anxious.  Make sure, though, that your massage therapist knows that you are newly pregnant and is aware of any contraindicated techniques or points on the body that should not be manipulated during pregnancy.
6. Finally, keep breathing.  When the anxiety starts to creep up, take a deep inhale through your nose and let it out slowly through mouth saying silently to yourself “I’m happy, I’m healthy, I’m whole.”  The instinct is to hold the breath and count the days until week twelve but the reality is that staying in the flow of life will help you focus on something other than your fears.   The breath is a reminder of that flow and brings you back to center.

Stay present, stay peaceful, stay positive.  It will be trimester-two before you know it!   Beth

Note:  Before applying any techniques described in this or any other nutrition, exercise or holistic program an individual should always consult and obtain professional medical advice, including from their doctor.

by Beth Heller MS, RYT

Jivamukti Yoga Co-Founder David Life tells a famous story about his first experience of mula bandha.   Standing in a yoga class with a famous Indian yoga instructor, Life heard the instructions “Contact Uranus!”

Contact Uranus?  Did he wander by accident into a Star Trek convention?

It took Life a while to understand that his teacher was saying  ”contract your anus,” the basic instructions for initiating mula bandha, a very powerful yoga technique for fertility.

I don’t hesitate to tell you this story because if you’re experiencing infertility you’re no stranger to embarrassing descriptions of things that are happening (or not happening) below the waist.  You can likely rattle off words like “semen” and “cervical mucous,” “vaginal probe” and “post-coital.”   Now, believe it or not, your fertility yoga practice is going to take you there, too.

Mula bandha is an energetic practice that stabilizes the pelvis and sacrum and tones the pelvic muscles.  While Life’s teacher suggested contracting the anus, mula bandha is actually more subtle. In women the action of mula bandha is the contraction of the vaginal and cervical muscles, similar to a Kegel.  If you’ve never heard of a Kegel, you can get a sense of this muscle action by imagining that you are urinating and must contract your pelvic floor muscles to stop the flow of urine.

On a physical level mula bandha tones the muscles of the pelvic floor.  It is great preparation for pregnancy where these muscles experience strain which can lead to urinary incontinence.  But mula bandha is more than just a muscular contraction, it is also an energetic contraction.  On an energetic level, the practice of mula bandha is grounding and helps conserve life energy (prana) in our body.    Mula bandha also clears congestion at the root chakra, also called muladhara chakra, which is concerned with safety and survival.  Mula bandha literally lifts  prana up from the root chakra to the second chakra.  The second chakra is called the svadhishthana chakra and is concerned with sexuality, creativity and fertility – so you can see why this might benefit fertility.  Mula bandha is also said to sever the brahma granthi, the energetic knot at the base of our spine that represents resistance to change, so if you’re feeling stuck or afraid, this work is for you.

To practice mula bandha, sit comfortably in a chair with your feet on the ground.  Slowly inhale and begin to engage the muscles of the pelvic floor (ie. as if you are stopping the flow of urine) over a count of five.  I like to use a visualization of an elevator going up (floor 1, floor 2, floor 3, floor 4, floor 5).   Exhale as you release the contraction slowly and feel the elevator descending floor by floor.  Check in with leg and buttocks muscles to make sure you aren’t tightening them.  Repeat 10 times.

With practice it will become possible to hold mula bandha for longer periods of time, while going for a walk, while doing your yoga, while talking on the phone.  Practiced regularly and with attention mula bandha can bring many gifts.

by Pam Policastro, L. Ac.

Eastern medicine views the individual as a whole being with body, mind, and spirit interconnected and supported by an underlying energy system.  Good health depends on a balanced circulation of Qi, or vital life energy, throughout the body.  Keeping this concept in mind, I will now discuss the TCM(Traditional Chinese Medicine) view on physical exercise.

First of all, there’s the sweat.  In Chinese medicine one of the functions of the Heart is to control body fluids.  Sweat is considered the “fluid” of the Heart, if you sweat a lot you are actually unbalancing the Qi, or energy, of your Heart.  In the case of perspiring too much and losing too much fluid, you are creating a deficiency of the Heart, which can prevent this organ system from functioning well.  What does this mean in terms of fertility?  The Heart and Kidney energies control the process necessary for female fertility.  The Heart “governs” the blood and is an integral part of the production of blood, therefore contributing to nourishment of the endometrium and embryo.

Then there’s the issue of the tendons and ligaments.  These areas of your body are dependent upon sufficient blood from the Liver to nourish them.  Strenuous and excessive exercise, such as intense aerobic and running workouts, is hard on the joints(tendons and ligaments).  When you overwork your joints, the Liver must send more blood to help restore them, and on a continual basis this depletes the Liver’s energy.  The Liver is a very important organ in terms of women’s fertile health.  This is because blood is stored in the Liver, especially when the body is at rest.  Some of this blood must be passed onto the uterus before preparation for pregnancy or menstruation can occur.  If the Liver Blood is deficient, then menstruation may be scanty, infrequent, or missing…compromising fertility.

Chinese medicine sees intense physical exercise as spending precious internal energy that is very difficult to replace, and not creating true health.  It is also detrimental to fertility. Wouldn’t  it make sense then, to pursue a form of “exercise” that actually increases life-enhancing energy instead of using it up?  Meditation, Qigong, Taiji, and Yoga have been shown to create positive changes in the areas of the brain linked with emotion as well as increase immune function and blood flow as well as decrease blood pressure.  PS…these more holistic forms of exercise support healthy fertility.