Case 1 – A Holistic Approach
Sandra, aged 36, had been trying to conceive for one year after already having a child 5 years earlier. Her general health was good but there was a lot of stress in her life as she had just started her own business as well as looking after 5 year old daughter. She had a fairly good diet and had always done a lot of exercise. Her husband was also in good health, travelled regularly for work and was very active.

At the first appointment, as there was nothing obviously out of balance with Sandra, Helen gave her a mixture of herbs to nourish and support the nervous system and to help her relax. Helen advised more relaxing forms of exercise rather than the strenuous training regime she was currently on.

At her second visit, Sandra was feeling much more relaxed and not getting stressed out so easily. Her husband’s sperm had been found to have poor motility at a recent hospital visit. Helen had a look at their diet and decided to do a hair mineral test for her and her husband to check for the presence of any heavy metals or other reasons for their difficulty conceiving.

After a further 3 months of treating both Sandra and her husband, she fell pregnant and had a great pregnancy. She came to Helen before the birth and together we formulated a birth plan using herbs to help her through the delivery. She had a successful home birth and used only the herbal remedies for pain relief and to maintain her stamina throughout labour. Sandra now continues to use herbal medicine to help maintain her health and energy levels and checks in with me every 4 to 6 months.

Case 2 – Herbs and IVF Treatment
Barbara, 46 had one child already, although it had taken 5 years to conceive, and she had been trying for the previous 2 years for another baby, but so far had been unsuccessful despite having two IVF treatments. She came to Helen for herbs to help support her through another IVF cycle.

Barbara was very careful about her diet, did not drink alcohol or smoke and exercised regularly. Her husband had a low sperm count but did not wish to have any treatment. Helen decided to focus on making sure that Barbara was in the best possible health for her next IVF treatment to give her the best chance of success. She had also started acupuncture treatment with another member of the fertility team.

Helen prescribed a simple mixture of herbs to help nourish and support Barbara and to prepare her for the next IVF cycle, which she altered slightly in the run-up to the treatment. Her consultant was pleased with the quality of eggs that Barbara produced and she implanted one embryo as a result of the treatment which she carried to full term.