As mentioned in a previous post, I recently decided to make an appointment to visit my naturopath. I wanted to discuss my anxiety, possibly hypoglycemia, and general tiredness (although not getting a uninterrupted night’s sleep for about a year might have SOMETHING to do with that! 😉 Ah, the beautiful price we pay to have our children!) Today was my appointment with my naturopath, Dr. S. I’ve worked with him for about two years, and have always had good results after my visits with him. He’s also a licensed acupuncturist, although when I was trying to get pregnant with Baby J and going to acupuncture every other week back in 2006, I had my acupuncture appointments with a colleage of his. But since he is an acupunturist, too, it’s nice to be able to talk TCM (traditional chinese medicine) with him and know that he understands what I’m saying. After describing my symptoms to him, he gave me two things to take.
- I’m already taking a high-quality multivitamin, chock-full of B vitamins, but he thinks I am not absorbing all the vitamins. So, I’m to take my multivitamin BEFORE my meal with a 1/2 Tbsp of lemon juice mixed with 3 Tbsp of water. The good acid in the lemon juice should “prime” my digestion so that I can actually absorb all the good stuff in my multivitamin. And members of our church have an overabundant lemon tree, so I can have all the fresh lemons I want!
- I’m to take an herb called Ashwagandha, which is a kind of India ginseng. The bottle says it is used to “moderate stress, support cardiovascular, immune, cognitive and joint function.” It should help moderate my anxiety a bit, as well as calm my nervous system in general. (I clench my teeth A LOT, and he thinks this might help with that.) I found some interesting websites about this supplement. I’m to take it for 2 weeks, and hopefully that will make a difference. Couple this supplement with enough sleep and continued exercise, and hopefully I’ll start feeling more energetic, despite the night wakings to nurse a hungry baby.
I’m pleased with my visit. He felt my pulses (a TCM diagnostic technique) and said that while my Kidney Yin and Yang were definitely not as strong as they could be, they weren’t as bad as he expected. That was good to hear. He thought I was doing pretty well overall.
I know that my hormones are definitely having an effect in all this. I’ve always had super-sensitive hormones, which is why I utilized TCM in the first place when I was trying to get pregnant, rather than resorting to Clomid or other fertility drugs. My body really likes pregnancy and breastfeeding hormones, and my anxiety problems re-surfaced when Curious J started nursing considerably less. My body has not gotten into its post-breastfeeding cycle groove yet, but it’s also not in a fully-breastfeeding non-cycle groove anymore. I’m in transition. But, eventually, I’ll get back into my normal hormonal groove. And while I love breastfeeding Curious J, it’ll be nice to eventually have that behind me, too. But, no rush. She only has now to have the health benefits of breastfeeding which will last her whole life. And I definitely want to make it to one year. It’s a lot harder than it was with Lyd, but, well, I only have to do one day at a time.
Meanwhile, Curious J is tearing the toyroom apart and desperately trying to stand alone and walk. I just fished a tiny bead out of her mouth. Where it came from, I have no idea. She’s trying to chew the doll stroller, the book on the floor, and my shoe. What a girl! No matter what the imbalance, she’s definitely worth it. 🙂
Not Finished Yet 