Here is a non-comprehensive list of home remedies I've tried in the past as well as a few I have not tried but seriously considered during desperate months:
Soy Isoflavones Hips Up
Maca Root Royal Jelly
Baby Aspirin Soft Cups
Plant-based vitamins Evening Primrose Oil
Clary Sage Essential Oil Chiroin
Vitex FertilAid for Women
CoQ10 Fertile CM
It's so easy to get "sucked" into trying things on your own and since all of these are available over-the-counter, it can be tempting to just start trying ANYTHING when desperation sets in.
So here are a few of the "dosings" and recommendations I've found through researching other people's experiences as well as my own.
*I am not a doctor and nothing here is intended as medical advice. These are my opinions, based on research and personal experience (mine and others) and nothing more.*
Soy Isoflavones: Avoid these. I've heard it called Mother Nature's Clomid, because it decreases estrogen synthesis, essentially convincing your body to make more estrogen and possibly increasing the quantity of maturing follicles during the follicular phase. The problem is that there is no standard for quality or anyway of knowing if you are taking enough or too much soy iso. This is especially a no-no if you ovulate on your own. Don't mess up a good thing!
Hips Up: This is exactly what is sounds like. After BDing, you prop your hips up in the air, via pillows, the bed frame, or any other manner you can manage for anywhere from 20-45 minutes. The thought behind this is that it will keep the seminal fluid from falling out. While this might work, remember that sperm are "programmed" to swim against gravity so if you're going to prop your hips up, don't prop them too high or those swimmers might just swim in the wrong direction!
Maca Root: This is actually a food, not an herb, which makes it incredibly safe for just about every health condition I've run across. As far as my research shows, women who are guided to take maca root from their chiropractors and acupuncturists take between 2400-3200 mg/daily. The yellow maca root seems to be preferred for hormone balance. It is available in capsule form, which I prefer given that it tastes like rotten chalk!
Royal Jelly: This is one I've never tried because it sounded so gross. However, perhaps I should have given it a shot! It contains 29 amino acids, proteins, and high levels of vitamins D and E. It's been shown to balance hormones and provides support to the endocrine system. A study on rats showed an increase in the size of cells in the uterine lining. As a result, using royal jelly may help women with thin uterine linings due to extensive birth control use or due to other factors.
Baby Aspirin: Also known as Acetylsalicylic acid, typical baby aspirin dosing is 81mg/day. Aspirin is generally considered safe both before and during pregnancy. It is known to increase blood flow, possibly improving the quality of eggs as well as increasing the thickness of the uterine lining. For women with repeat early pregnancy loss, this is sometimes prescribed throughout pregnancy to avoid small clots that cause fetal/embryo death.
I began my BA regimen in July 2013 after blood work showed I had a small clotting disorder, or "sticky blood" as described in one of the links in the previous paragraph.
Soft Cups: These can generally be found at larger "big box" stores in the *ahem* menstrual product aisle. Or online here. They were originally designed as a disposable alternative to tampons to collect menstrual fluid with "no strings attached". However, women have been using them as a means to keep seminal fluid closer to the cervix in the hopes that more swimmers will have a chance to make the epic journey into the uterus and fallopian tubes. Others (or so I've heard) use them even on their "non-fertile" days because helps with some of the post-coital messiness!
Plant-based vitamins: My husband recently heard a report talking about how most over-the-counter vitamins are synthetically made and not "bio-available", meaning our bodies can't process the vitamins and minerals they contain. In other words, you're buying expensive pee.
If you want vitamins that are actually made from plants, then look at the label. Can you recognize the ingredients? There are 2 companies I am comfortable recommending and a 3rd where "the jury" is still out on my opinion. My absolute favorite is the Life Long Vitality complex available through dōTERRA. The price listed on my site is the retail price. (If you want it wholesale, contact me.) I have found that a half-dose of this is incredibly powerful and have yet to need the "full dose" to get the benefits. The ingredients are familiar ones such as kelp, broccoli, spirulina algae, natural coral, ginger root, etc.
The second company I trust is Thorne. In addition to having an ingredient list similar to the multi-vitamin aspect of the Life Long Vitality pack, they have individual vitamin options, particularly useful for women dealing with food allergies or those who are more selective in which supplements they want to take.
The third company is USANA. My issue isn't so much with their product (infact, their chelated mineral vitamin is one of the only ones I've found with iodine in it) but with their business model. They require you to have regular shipments mailed to your home and options for canceling are limited. I ended up with an 8-month supply and had to CALL them to cancel all further shipments.
Be aware that with ANY good vitamin, there is "bulk". All of these vitamins require you take between 2-4/day for the full dose. As I said, I've done great with the half-dose of the LLV by dōTERRA.
Evening Primrose Oil: My research showed that most recommendations from holistic medical advisors was 1300-2600 mg/day. EPO contains a variety of fatty and linoleic acids. As far as ttc goes, it is best used during the follicular phase (roughly CD1-14) and avoided after ovulation because it can cause uterine contractions--an undesirable thing during pregnancy. It is known to increase both the quality and quantity of cervical mucus.
Clary Sage Essential Oil: There is only one side-effect of Clary Sage that I am SURE was a result of the Clary Sage--libido booster. Oh my!! Clary Sage has really marvelous effects on mood, enhancing natural highs, fighting anxiety and depression, and relieving menstrual cramps. It has estrogenic properties and, like EPO, should probably not be used during the luteal phase when ttc. It should definitely not be used during pregnancy, as it causes uterine contracting.
Chiroin: This supplement is primarily used for women suffering from pcos. It contains carob pod extract, known to reduce insulin resistance. Women who are looking for a natural way to treat pcos may find this works wonderfully and it's very inexpensive--a major plus when ttc!
Vitex: Vitex is an herb native to Greece and Italy and is known for helping women with irregular cycles or short luteal phases. It helps in producing a stronger, more effective corpus luteum (necessary for progesterone production and to sustain early pregnancy). However, vitex is not a "quick fix". Although some benefits from this herb can be seen in 10 days, for many women it can take 6 months or longer, so keep that in mind. If your cycles are regular and your luteal phase is longer than 12 days, this herb is not recommended. Why mess up a good thing?
FertilAid for Women: This is a vitamin-type supplement that contains your standard vitamins and minerals as well as some herbs, including vitex. There is also a version for men. With both versions, keep in mind that changes may take months to achieve. Sperm production takes 3 months, so noticeable increases in quality or sperm will take a minimum of 3 months to achieve.
CoQ10: This supplement, known primarily for its heart-health benefits, has been shown in more recent studies to help with both male and female fertility. For men with poor morphology a study showed that taking 300 mg of CoQ10 supplement for several months showed an improvement in morphology. Another study showed in increase in implantation rates where the male was taking CoQ10. For females, it appears that this nifty little supp can increase egg quality by improving energy production in the cells. Cool, huh?
Fertile CM: This supplement claims to help with fertility in two ways. The first is by improving the quality of cervical mucus and the second is by promoting endometrial secretions that improve the uterine lining, making a healthy implantation more likely.
So what does all this mean? Well, it depends on where you're coming from and how long you've been ttc or what, if any, snags you've run into along the way. From here, you can talk to your doctor, midwife, chiropractor, acupuncturist, etc and develop a plan. But my suggestion (again, I'm not a doctor) is to start with a high quality, plant-based multivitamin. . . even if you aren't ttc.
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