Natural ways to bring on Ovulation

[impatient]

Is there anything I can do to help bring on O and AF naturally?

[Shannonk]

I haven't tried it yet because I'm still checking out practicioners in my area, but I've been reading a lot about acupuncture for pcos and fertility and it seems like a lot of women have success with it. The person you choose should be board certified. They should be willing to tailor your sessions to achieve ovulation (and any other goals you may have).

[Mardok42]

The herb Vitex helps to do so for some.

And androgen reduction with various herbs helps for some too.

If you find a set of herbs that contains these two natural chemicals, or just these two as supplements you could have good success.

Apigenin
Quercetin

They are probably the most effective for blocking testosterone.

[impatient]

Thanks for the input. I will look into those herbs/vitamins.

I am intrigued by the acupuncture but I think it's a little out of my price range. I would be willing to try it but the one place I called said that in the beginning they have you come like once a week for $80 a session then once a month after you acheive AF.

[SleepyGirl]

I think it all depends on your issue. Like for me what works is:
-Eating as low GI as I can manage,and taking PGX when I take higher GI meals
-Sleeping with an eyemask for everyday of my cycle except days 12-15 (lunaception)
-Taking Vitex
-Drinking spearmint tea for 5 days early in my cycle
-ground flaxseed every night
-some red raspberry leaf tea after ovulation for a few days
-limiting dairy and wheat (limiting, not compltely stopping)
-Adding tumeric to my meals alot (its an anti inflammatory)
-and of course vitamins with an extra c,b,d and calcium supplement

[SleepyGirl]

Oh and DCI as well!

[impatient]

Sleepy - Thanks for all the suggestions. I have looked up all of them and see most have benefits for someone with PCOS. I am definitely going to try the spearmint tea or ask my doctor about spironolactone. I didn't know I had options about my facial hair (other than waxing or tweezing).

I read about DCI and it said its not good to take with Met, just instead of.

Honestly that lunaception thing sounds a little crazy. My husband even said that when I was telling him about it. But ya know... I am willing to try almost anything. If it works then that is better then spending thousands of dollars on fertility treatments.

This is what I understand:
Spearmint Tea to help with hirsutism (unwanted facial hair)
Raspberry Leaf Tea to help regulate AF
Turmeric to help reduce fat growth (weight gain)
Quercetin to help with sugar (diabetes) also depression/anxiety
Vitex to help with hormones.

Mardok - I didn't see anything detailed about apigenin. What are the benefits of that?

[Mardok42]

From what I have found so far in my never ending quest, Quercetin and Apigenin are the strongest inhibitors (blockers) of the formation of testosterone (strongest in the herb route anyway). Where one is weak the other is strong.

If you want to know the geek stuff here it is.
There are 2 sets of chromosomes that make enzymes to build testosterone from androstenedione, 17 HSD, and some of cytochrome p450. These two compounds, Quercetin and Apigenin, have been found to block almost all of the enzyme paths to testosterone.

Here are the specific enzymes from each of the chromosome sets.
17 HSD

17 HSD type-1
17 HSD type-5


cytochrome p450

CYP2B1
CYP2B6
CYP2A3
CYP2C11
CYP3A4
CYP3A5
CYP3A9

Where one does little the other does much. Such as with 17HSD type-5. Quercetin was one of the strongest herbal inhibitors, where as Apigenin would only do half as much. And at 17HSD type-1 Quercetin is a weak inhibitor, but Apigenin is much stronger.

[SleepyGirl]

Spiro is pretty amazing but I avoid it because Iam going to be ttc soon. I know the lunaception thing sounds weird but it has alot of things backing it up. For example before electrical lights its a known fact that women would ovulate at the full moon and get their period at the new moon. In some less industrialized countries it still works that way, plus its cheap and has no side effects lol. It has always helped me! Theres lots on the internet about it.

For me the reasons I take the things.
-Spearmint tea/ground flax- to keep testosterone at bay
-Red raspberry leaf- To help my uterine lining thicken
-DCI-just because thers so much info saying we are deficient in it
-Tumeric-It is an anti-inflammatory and I heard it helped with testosterone too.
-Vitex-It just helps balance hormones
-PGX to stabilize blood sugar and insulin

[cmschapp]

I have read great things about Inositol or Myo-Inositol and even DCI. Its much cheaper than DCI though. The only question is whether your body will properly convert the inositol into DCI. If it does then it will save you a bunch of money. If not you need the DCI. I hade two periods on my own when i was taking inositol then i ran out and the cycle I am in my temps are all over the place so I defintely think it helped me. I am getting a new order this week.

[sunibaby]

soaked enugreek seeds also help in insulin sensitivity and many use them as met replacement as its completely natural and also no side effects. I also read somewhere on horsegram and its benefits on pcos thou cant exactly recollect the usage etc. has anyone tried it?

[cmschapp]

This is what I read: Some studies also show that serum cholesterol levels in diabetics, and perhaps in others, are reduced by fenugreek. Doses as low as 15 mg per day may produce beneficial effects on fasting blood sugar, elevation of blood sugar after a meal, and overall glycemic control. The use of fenugreek is likely to alter the diabetic patient's need for insulin or other medications used to control blood sugar. This treatment should be supervised by a health care provider familiar with the use of herbal therapies for diabetes. The recommended doses of fenugreek can vary rather widely.

[molly73]

for lowering testosterone.. you may also want to try a combination of licorice root & peony root (in equal doses & you need 5-10g per day)....i just started taking this last week, and i've noticed that my facial hair (did an eyebrow wax) has not grown back like it would have w/o taking this. it also helped me to start a period on my own. here is a link for you to read on a study that was done...

http://medherb.com/Materia_Medica/Glycyrrhiza_-_Licorice_root_and_testosterone.htm

i found this combination in a chinese herb...

[MegzyAngel]

sunibaby - I tried fenugreek for a while...It was more just an appetite suppresant for me to the point where nothing at all was appetizing to eat....I have gone off it for now as im trying other things. Be careful using fenugreek while TTC because if you do become pregnant it can cause miscarriage. The dose i was taking (Following the instruction on the bottle of tablets) was 2 tablets 20 minutes before each meal.

Molly - Im drinking Licorice Root Tea currently. Kind of a strange flavour with a sweet after taste but is nice with a little lemon and honey. Im trying just the licorice root to start off with....The study that was done didn't exactly pinpoint whether the licorice root or the peony root was the one that worked.