I had my first acupuncture session yesterday afternoon.

As I was driving, I passed a sign that said “Acupuncture and Fertility – Free Seminar March 11″ in front of an acupuncture office (are they called offices?) I had never seen before. Of course, it wasn’t the one I was headed to. Who knew there were two on the same road, down the road from me?

My destination was friendly and unassuming, not necessarily professional-looking, but not as new-agey as I had pictured either. Sitting in the reception area, filling out my medical history papers, I realized that the setting wasn’t really matching the image I had in my mind. Perhaps that should have been an indication that my assumptions were a little off.

When I was finished, I went back with the acupuncturist to a room that was halfway between a spa’s massage room and your doctor’s office (one without stirrups, thankfully). We sat and talked for nearly a half hour, going over my medical history, which apparently I completely a little too hastily.

“We’ll be stimulating the area controlled by the spleen….”

“Oh. Wait. You should probably know I don’t have one of those. It was removed when I was 12.”

“Ok. no problem. We’ll also be focusing on the energy from the gall bladder and…”

“Nope. Sorry. That’s gone too. Try again.”

I started to wonder if this was really even taking the afternoon off. How can one stimulate what’s not there? I should probably note here that I didn’t show up looking for a miracle fertility treatment. As the acupuncturist said, “I don’t have a magic needle.” No. My purpose here was to get my body on the same page as my mind – ready and willing to have a baby. Because despite those shots and pills and hormones, I think I took my uterus by complete surprise with that first IVF and frankly, it was none too happy. I want to avoid that situation again and I was hoping acupuncture would help me.

The acupuncturist agreed this was a realistic goal and reassured me that energy is constantly flowing through our bodies, drawing all kinds of vaguely familiar charts and symbols on the back of a piece of paper to illustrate. Just because I don’t have certain parts doesn’t mean there isn’t energy created or flowing in those areas, albeit quietly.

We talked some more, she took my pulse and thought about where she wanted to place the needles. I got semi-naked and laid down on the table under a very cozy but light blanket. (insert the music you think would be playing here) Needles in. No problem. Not painful, but not comfortable either. Then, the electric current.

The WHAT?!?!

Yeah. That’s what I said. She explained why but I was too busy fixating on getting hooked up like a car battery to a little machine next to her. I think it had something to do with providing constant and steady stimulation to the points she had chosen. Oh. So it’s not just to make me feel like there are little hammers tapping at each of these NEEDLES IN MY SKIN????

“Um, this isn’t necessarily pleasant.” I say. This is nowhere near the Zen experience I thought I would be having.

“Oh yeah, didn’t I tell you, it’s not always going to be relaxing.”

“…..”

It’s not like I could get off the table at this point, could I?

Well, time flew pretty quickly and I was able to get some visualization in there (that’s as close as I can get to meditation). Before I knew it, I had spent 2 hours in her office.

Am I going back? Well why the heck not. The way I see it, it still feels like something I can do pro-actively. And there’s this little piece of information to pursuade me. I have two more sessions scheduled before my ultrasound to check my uterine lining – the next one is coupled with a massage. Maybe that will give me a little more of the Zen I was hoping for in the first place.

Post from: Blisstree

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