Just as each and everyone one of us is different, every fertility experience is unique.
As a natural fertility practitioner I value this concept and relish the exquisite variety of each and every journey my patients take me on.
I feel so privileged to be a part of helping couples achieve their ultimate dream of becoming a family.
Each and every successful pregnancy and healthy baby fills me with so much joy, and I never take anything for granted.
There are so many lovely stories to share, but I thought I’d start with my latest one.
*For privacy reasons, I have changed the names.
In February 2017 a couple came to me after trying for 4 years to get pregnant. *Cassie was 38 and *Josh 40.
After 5 failed IVF attempts Cassie was apparently told that she was ‘premenopausal’ – her FSH levels were too high, her oestrogen and AMH levels were too low, she was too old and was ‘running out of eggs’.
As always, I took a thorough history and gave them the opportunity to share their fertility journey with me.
They told me that they had started trying to get pregnant as soon as they were married.
They had a 12 week miscarriage and another miscarriage 6 months later (at 14 weeks).
A year later they started IVF, but after 5 unsuccessful rounds they decided to change tack and see what I, as a specialist Fertility Naturopath, could do for them.
Cassie broke down in tears as she told me that she thought she was ‘to blame’ for all of this because her husband had two children from a previous marriage, so she thought he ‘must be fine’.
I explained the fact that it takes ‘two to tango’ and that both prospective parents are as responsible for producing a healthy baby.
I told them that sperm quality fluctuates – there are so many factors going into making healthy sperm, including age, diet and lifestyle.
I asked them both to get some blood tests done and I gave him a request for a sperm analysis which included a DNA fragmentation test.
The results showed me so much!
Josh’s sperm analysis showed a higher than normal level of DNA fragmentation – this can often be one of the many causes of repetitive pregnancy loss / miscarriage.
Cassie’s blood tests were out of optimal range in quite a few areas which would probably have affected her ability to get pregnant and to carry a baby to term.
As part of my treatment strategy, as always, I discussed my “4 Steps to Fertility” with them, and I prescribed specific herbs and supplements that catered to their specific individual needs.
To cut a long story short they diligently followed my “4 Steps to Fertility” advice and within 4 months they were pregnant!
They kept in touch throughout the pregnancy as they needed help with various pregnancy related symptoms.
On the 7th March 2018 I received a very excited call from Josh telling me that Cassie had just given birth to a beautiful and healthy baby girl!!!
Joanne Lipinski – Fertility Naturopath Melbourne
