When Carla Bergman became pregnant with the first of her three children as a graduate student in acupuncture, the experience inspired her to choose her future area of concentration.
“After experiencing my own pregnancy and learning how effective acupuncture can be for infertility treatment at the student clinic, I decided to make acupuncture one of my main focuses,” said Bergman, a licensed acupuncturist and owner of the newly opened Blue Nest Acupuncture Clinic in Chester Springs, Chester County.
After 20 years of clinical practice, Bergman has found that more than half of her patients seek infertility treatment.
According to the World Health Organization, approximately one in six people worldwide experience infertility.
The majority of the rest of her patients – men, women and teens – are being treated for mental health areas such as depression, stress and anxiety.
“Besides fertility concerns, the main reasons people come to me are back pain and stress,” she says. “Maybe they’re going through a divorce or a big change. They might be struggling.”
customized treatment plan
Bergman works with patients to create customized treatment plans that meet the circumstances of their lives.
“We can’t always prevent the difficulties that arise, but we can learn how to overcome them with more grace and ease,” she said.
With its roots dating back more than 4,500 years to China, acupuncture is the practice of applying needles to specific meridian points in the body to alter energy patterns.
“We can see things energetically before they manifest as illnesses,” she said. “We sense imbalances in the body before they manifest as disease.”
One of the ways that acupuncture helps with fertility is by inserting thin, sterile needles into important acupuncture points to clear blockages and direct energy to the reproductive organs.
“Unprocessed trauma often builds up in the uterus, eventually causing women to develop cysts or fibroids, which can interfere with fertility,” says Bergman. “Acupuncture helps create the receptivity of the uterus that is necessary for life to move through the body.”
women’s health
Blue Nest Acupuncture, which opened in January this year, focuses primarily on women’s health, and Bergman said that in her decades as an acupuncturist, she has seen a huge increase in the treatments available to improve women’s physical and mental health.
At Blue Nest, treatment for any focus area begins with a comprehensive health history so Bergman can customize a plan to meet the patient’s needs. In addition to acupuncture, Bergman incorporates dietary advice, abdominal massage, castor oil packs, low-level light therapy and infrared heating.
A three-month treatment plan of 12 sessions is usually recommended to increase fertility, but Bergman has clients who have seen results faster.
“This year we’ve had two people get pregnant after one treatment,” she said.
Struggling to get pregnant
One of Bergman’s patients, who was struggling to conceive, posted the following comment about her experience on the Blue Nest website:
“I couldn’t believe it when I found out I was pregnant. After 4 acupuncture treatments, I was pregnant without Clomid or IUI. Acupuncture prepared me for this pregnancy and I can’t thank Carla enough for making my dream come true. We had been trying to conceive for almost 2 years after my last miscarriage. After just 2.5 months of acupuncture, I was pregnant!”
Research supported by physician-scientists at Weill Cornell Medical Center supports the potential benefits of acupuncture for infertility treatment as a complementary or alternative form of treatment.
“Whether you’re undergoing IVF or trying to conceive naturally, acupuncture can be very effective,” says Bergman. “I want more people to know about acupuncture.”
Bergman finds her job very rewarding when she sees clients who thought they were failing due to infertility become pregnant through treatment.
“It never gets old,” she said. “It’s a great feeling. I’m so excited and happy that they’re on the path to motherhood.”
The Benefits of Acupuncture in Fertility Treatment
According to the Cleveland Clinic, the benefits of acupuncture include regulating the menstrual cycle, improving sperm count and motility, increasing blood flow to the reproductive organs, and reducing stress and anxiety.
Blue Nest is an acupuncture clinic located in Chester County that also serves people living in Montgomery, Delaware and Berks counties. We treat anxiety, stress, depression, infertility, back pain, menopause, weight loss and more. For more information, visit BlueNestAccupuncture.com or call 484-961-0465.
