How Holistic Fertility Works: The Bucket, The Hose and the Glasses

Chances are you're reading this because you are trying to have a baby.  Perhaps you've been trying for a while, in which case you may have earned an unofficial "degree" in infertility now know a little too much about the endocrine system, fertility medications and Assisted Reproductive Technologies.  On the other hand, you may be brand new to the process and just "wetting your beak" in the choppy seas and swirling tides of Dr. Google.

At Pulling Down the Moon, we like to keep things simple.  Although our practitioners are all grounded in western approaches to infertility treatment, we can simplify what we do to three basic concepts:  the bucket, the hose and the glasses.  Basically, it's all you really need to know about what we do.  Let's take a quick look.

The Bucket:  All holistic methods share a common understanding that there is a life force that animates all living beings.  Names for this force include prana, chi, qi, vital energy etc.  The basic concept is that we need a "full bucket" of life energy to have optimal physical and emotional health.  Activities that fill the bucket include deep breathing, nourishing food, sufficient high-quality sleep, healthy exercise, time in nature, loving relationships, yoga/acupuncture/massage and a bunch of other lovely things.  Activities that drain the bucket include stress, overwork, poor sleep, anxiety, perfectionism and negative emotion.  Therapies at Pulling Down the Moon like acupuncture, massage and yoga help fill the bucket and plug the leaks by bringing into focus lifestyle habits that drain life energy and creating a new and supportive environment for self-nurture.

The Hose:  Now let's refine this a bit.  A garden hose can be used to direct water to the places it is most needed to grow a fertile garden.  For optimal results, we want to make sure the hose is not kinked, that it is aimed at the right areas and that it delivers the right amount of water at the right time.  Here's where the expertise of your practitioner comes in.  Our Fertility Enhancing Massage (FEM) Protocol, for instance, is based on our observation of hundreds of fertility patients and targets common objectives for fertility enhancement including lymphatic drainage/detoxification, increased blood flow and tissue oxygenation and deep musculofascial/tension release.  Traditional Chinese Medicine, on the other hand works by identifying imbalances in the flow of life energy and using tools like acupuncture, herbs, moxabustion and electrostimulation to redirect and balance the flow of energy.  Our Yoga for Fertility class uses a therapeutic model to bring awareness to different "bodies" that can impact fertility and employs specific postures and practices to promote optimal hormonal and physiological function.

The Glasses: Now this concept is perhaps the most woo-woo of what's on offer at Pulling Down the Moon but is perhaps the most powerful.  All of us wear a set of glasses when we observe the world.  The "prescription" in these lenses are unique to each of us and reflect our past experiences, our hopes and dreams and our deepest fears.  All of the services we offer at Pulling Down the Moon are also designed to help you polish your glasses so that you see life with more clarity and have a deeper sense of who you are and what you wish to achieve - even beyond achieving a pregnancy.  When our glasses distort the present moment we can make choices that impact our ability to conceive and our ability to be happy.  We become unable to embrace our lives and spend precious time wishing to be anywhere but here in this moment.  And, when we cannot see clearly where we are we can't really know what steps we need to take to get where we wish to be.  When we spend time polishing our glasses (a.k.a. our mindset) we become stronger, more powerful and - yes - more joyful.

This simple explanation isn't to say that the work we do in each of our disciplines is simple.  It's not.  It's deep and unique and can help you tap into a deep source of power...and yeah, it can also optimize your fertility and help you conceive.