The music was soothing, but all I could think about was scratching my cheek. It itches. Oh, God, I really need to scratch it. Must. Not. Move. Arm. Oh, yeah. Can’t. Move. Arm. I couldn’t move my arm because there were needles sticking out of it. And out of my forehead, my scalp, my feet, my legs . . . AND my groin.
So call me “kooky”–and many have–but yesterday, I made a bold, impulsive decision to try acupuncture as a means of aiding our fertility efforts. This was a huge leap for me. I eschew chiropractics and herbal cures. I don’t have any faith in homeopathy. Yet, despite my avowed skepticism about these practices, I really do think there is a powerful mind-body connection. I go to yoga. I try to use positive visualization when I can. And I desperately WANT to believe all the success stories I’ve read about acupuncture helping to cure infertility.
So that’s how I found myself in Dr. Ahn’s office, trying not to flinch as he deftly moved around my body, sliding hair-thin needles into my skin while making polite conversation about his dog–and where I grew up. To make matters even worse, there was a very young, ill-at-ease physical therapy student observing in the room with him. The poor fellow seemed more nervous than I was, and when Dr. Ahn and I began talking about my menstrual cycle, I think the kid blanched (though I can’t be sure, since I had to keep my eyes closed to avoid the alarming sight of a long needle poking out of my forehead).
As it turns out, after Dr. Ahn finishes putting about 20 needles in your skin, he likes to leave you alone in the room. To think. To relax. To meditate. For 20 minutes. With 20 needles in your body. After having a mini panic attack, I used my yoga breathing to calm down, and then I practiced some visualization techniques. Actually, the time passed very quickly, and only one of the needles hurt going in–and felt sore afterwards. After Dr. Ahn’s assistant took the needles out, Dr. Ahn and I talked about how this process works. It seems to have something to do with energy in the body and blood flow–and things like that–though it’s still a little unclear to me. I guess I’ll just have to be on pins and needles until we know whether it worked.