Reflexology + Faith + Me

This blog post is going to be controversial – and not everyone is going to appreciate it.  That’s ok.  I am sharing my research, not trying to offend people, but if I do, I apologise in advance.  All I can say is sometimes the Truth is not the answer we wanted to hear… It wasn’t for me.

Faith + Me

Let me tell you about what I believe – I believe in God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit. I believe in heaven and hell. I believe that we will go to one or the other when we die.  I believe that Jesus died on a cross, a cruel and painful death.  He was a sacrifice that God gave to save us from going to hell. I believe that Jesus rose from the dead. I believe that God has power over sin and death and sickness and that he does heal.  I believe that God does speak to Christians today through other Christians and through his bible. I believe we can pray to God and that he does hear us and does answer us one way or another.

Just before the IVF cycle started I went to see a reflexologist for a few sessions.  I did this because I had seen a lot of noise on the forums about it helping to get the all-important BFP (Big Fat Positive) during IVF treatment,  that and acupuncture.  I couldn’t wrap my head around acupuncture which seemed like a silly way to go as I am already sticking too many needles in myself each day, and also that seemed too way-out and Chinese / Voo-doo for my liking.  They don’t believe in the same God I do, so this Chinese medicine thing – although widely propagated as a miracle cure to infertility – is out for me, but reflexology seems much tamer. So long as the reflexologist is a Christian it should be fine – they won’t be practicing the spiritual side of things will they?  It’s just a healing massage technique right?

Instead of doing too much factual research I chatted to friends and family who have had it / done it / are in the medical field.  I didn’t get a bad vibe on it from any of them so I went ahead and booked my first appointment.  I arrived still  a bit wary and asked lots of questions.  The chart on the wall demarcated areas of the feet associated with organs of the body and had all sorts of fire, water, earth, ying, yang stuff on it.  In the corner of the room there was a plastic anatomically correct model of a man with lines down him, this I was told were the meridians that the energy flowed through and that blockages in the energy would cause an imbalance which causes feelings of un-wellness, anxiety or emotional distress. There was a definite feel for me that this was an alternative therapy… alternative to western medicine.  While in the room I prayed against any consequence of the using this alternative therapy and continued with the treatment.  Thinking back now that’s like standing in front of an oncoming train and praying that God would protect you from the consequences – sometimes the stuff I pray for is just so illogical.

The therapist told me that she had also struggled to fall pregnant, and then someone suggested that she try reflexology and she was pregnant in 2 months.  Once she had the baby she then learned reflexology herself and started practicing.  Hah – so this does work, awesome I am in the right place for a miracle – God will do a miracle through reflexology right?

I asked God to give me a clear sign if this wasn’t of Him – of course I didn’t look too hard – I wanted to continue with the treatment especially seeing as it has worked for others I know, and I was enjoying it.  I avoided my bible a bit, in church I was hoping to be massively convicted during worship – I wasn’t, I was hoping that someone would come up with a prophetic word against it, they didn’t.  So I carried on seeing the reflexologist.

I attend a fertility support group that is run by a lady who goes to Rosebank Union Church and the group met towards the end of April.  A pastor, John N, came to pray for those who wanted prayer.  This man prayed for one of the ladies in the group who had been on the fertility road for 7 years, and she fell pregnant naturally the very next month. 

I was really hoping for a “glory moment” with the “man of power for the hour”.  I should totally know better.  Christianity is not about hype or emotion. Jesus never whipped the crowds into a frenzy or manipulated people based on their emotions.  John gave me a warning – he said  “the number one cause of infertility is witchcraft.”  Okay Whoa, hold on a minute buddy – are you telling me I am mixed up in some funky stuff?  I am a bible believing, church attending, community serving Christian here – I am not involved in coven meetings and magic - I was offended, and I wanted to write this guy off as a kook – but he went on to say that this is not the type of witchcraft he was referring to.  Its much more subtle, part truth, part poison - you don’t even know it’s happening.  “Its like a spider web of small threads that eventually covers you and cuts your intimate personal relationship with God.  Feel disconnected from God? Feel like there is no connection in worship?  Feel like the word is dead when it used to be alive?“ I could kind of tick all those boxes. “There is a spiritual blockage and its caused by a spirit, other than the Holy Spirit interfering”. Examining this honstly, post moretem, I could identify with some of what he had said -  if this is the number one cause of infertility then let me tell you I would like to be rid of whatever it is, big or small in my life, so I am willing to overlook the offense and check my life out.  John just prayed a simple prayer over me, that all the ties of witchcraft would be cut loose and bind me no longer.

Of course the first thing that popped into my mind while mulling over all this on the drive home was the reflexology. Have I gotten mixed up in something contrary to the Truth I believe? At what cost? I needed to do some real research – not just popular opinion but some real checking and digging and heart searching. 

So here is what I found – I have quoted the website references at the end of the article so that you can have a read for yourself.  This next section is only the facts from sources that I would say are reputable, and any of my additional comments or thoughts have been added in in brackets and italics. Let me just say this – I am not condemning anyone who has been for reflexology or practices reflexology.  I am stating why I don’t think reflexology is right for me given what I believe.  Every action has consequences – good or bad, and I think we should know the facts about the stuff which could have consequences.

What is Reflexology

Reflexology is a holistic therapy which aims to benefit the body, mind, emotions and spirit. It is said to work by unblocking 'energy channels' running up from the foot to an organ affected by malfunction or disease, allowing the free flow of 'life energy' necessary for healing and good health.

The common denominator in most theories of reflexology is the concept of some form of 'life energy' (ch'i, prana, vital force etc) and some therapists believe that the channels of this energy connect with the chakras or energy centres prominent in the Hindu philosophy of yoga.

Reflexology originated at about the same time that Acupuncture was enjoying a period of prosperity in China. As in the case of Acupressure and Acupuncture, Reflexology sprung up from the breeding ground of Taoism and Buddhism.  Taoism is a pantheistic religion, this means a non-belief in the person of God.  Taoist schools traditionally feature reverence for Laozi, immortals or ancestors, along with a variety of divination and exorcism rituals, and practices for achieving ecstasy, longevity or immortality.

 (I do not like the sound of that… )
 
The Tao is “The Way”  and the Tao radiates cosmic (universal) vibrations which filter onto everything and everyone and which infiltrate and preserve every-thing. Tao radiates a spirit known as "chi" or "ki" (energy vibrations). They say Tao is not confined to heaven but is in everything and this 'god' and his spirit, the chi energy, permeate everything, as well as the human body.

(The only spirit I want permeating my everything is the Holy Spirit)

The chi energy moves in 12 meridians. Six meridians run down the left side of the body and six on the right, just beneath the surface of the skin. Six meridians are YIN (passive, female, dark) and six are YANG (energy, male, light). Each of the YIN meridians is coupled to YANG channel in the hand or the foot.
Sickness is caused by a disturbance or blockage in these channels. This results in an organ receiving too little YIN or YANG. Tao's preserving strength, his spirit, namely chi energy, cannot reach a particular organ as a result of the blockage. Remove this blockage and the balance between the YIN and YANG is restored.

Paintings on the foot of the Hindu god Vishnu, possibly representing reflex points, suggest that the technique may have been practised in ancient India. Others have noted inscriptions on the foot of a reclining Buddha in Burma; these may represent energy centres but appear as rows of regular squares quite unlike today's reflexology charts

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Reflexology + My Faith

I am not loving what I have found.  This kind of throws out a whole lot of things that I thought were ok.  From a Christian perspective, realise that many therapies, including reflexology, have their basis in the concept of life force, vital energy, ch'i (yin and yang), prana or one of the other terms used for this 'energy' at the heart of eastern healing arts and therefore is inextricably reliant upon a non-Christian belief system.

Colossians 2:8 See to it that no one makes prey of you by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the universe, and not according to Christ.

Whilst some therapists might wish to disassociate themselves, it is difficult to see what is left of the therapy once you have removed its spiritual essence – all you have now is a therapeutic foot massage.  It seems unlikely that there could be any harm in a therapeutic foot massage except that:

1. The diagnosis of blocked energy channels by means of palpation and the identification of painful reflex areas or sense of grittiness, are said to be due to the presence of crystals (probably calcium) in the reflex points. There does not, however, appear to be any scientific evidence for this. Could it, therefore, be divination rather than diagnosis? 
2. The concept of meridians in traditional Chinese acupuncture was formulated several thousand years ago, before anatomical dissection was practised. Again, there is no anatomical or histological evidence for these and the pattern by no means conforms to anatomical structures now revealed by dissection.  So where did they come from?
3. Alternative therapists widely promote the holistic approach towards healing including body, mind and spirit. Christians would agree that this certainly is the ideal but if spiritual healing is involved it is essential to ask the question, 'by which spirit?' - only the Holy Spirit being acceptable to Christians.
4. In order to make these healing practices acceptable to Christians and Westerners, the Chi or Prana powers are described as magnetic rays or cosmic energy. These innocent sounding terms describe a wolf parading in sheep's clothing. The 'spirit' involved in Reflexology, although given attractive sounding names eg. "energy emanations from the earth", "magnetic rays", "energy", is a demonic spirit (cringe). Those who consult reflexologists allow this Taoistic spirit to influence their lives. The Bible opposes this in Ephesians 4:27: “Do not give the Devil a foothold”

I have to say that the last one made me cringe but the first one clinched it for me. When I read that I could understand how it could be that I have allowed a subtle yet not less dangerous thread of witchcraft into my life.  Demonic, Divination, Witchcraft are all strong supernatural words. Am I not going off the deep end a little but here?  They have horrible scary connotations.  I don’t like this stuff.  I don’t want to read it / hear it / believe it.  I want to believe that everything is nice and useful for good.  I also want to believe that God is going to come through for me and answer my prayer, the miracle of the positive pregnancy test at the end of the month.

 But let’s go back to what I said right at be beginning.

I believe in Heaven and Hell.  If there are Miracles which proclaim Gods Glory,  then there must also be forces that want to stop the miracle with evil so that God doesn’t get the Glory. If there are angels that protect us there must also be the opposite of angels,forces, that want to harm us.  Some people, depending how crazy /charismatic they are may call them Devils, Demons and Witchcraft.  Are they maybe not just brave and bold enough to be calling a spade a spade? Am I a sugar-coat-it Christian.  Maybe.  Not today – not with this!

For me there are too many “unknowns”.  I can’t be comfortable that Reflexolgy is based on anything other than unbiblical beliefs.  It just doesn’t stand up against the bible the Word of God, the word I trust as the Truth.

Deuteronomy 18:10 – 12 Let no one be found among you who ... practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, 11 or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead. ¹² Anyone who does these things is detestable to the Lord; because of these same detestable practices the Lord your God will drive out those nations before you.

EEEEK!!! There were some harsh consequences for the Israelites who practiced this stuff. Luckily we can come to Jesus and ask him for forgiveness, but there still may be consequence. The Israelites didnt have that option when Deut was written! What would my consequence be if I continued knowing what I now know.  I cant - I cannot risk it.  What if the sins of the father are passed on to the child (Exodus 20:5) What if my child is affected in some way and bears the consequence of this.  At what cost am I prepared to get pregnant?

·         http://www.cmf.org.uk/publications/content.asp?context=article&id=247

·         http://www.jivannadi.org.za/Reflexology.htm

·         http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taoism

·         The Bible

If you are concerned and want prayer like I had, please contact me and I will arrange something

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Day 3 IVF Cycle

Yesterday I started the hormonal stimulants. Up until now it’s been the hormonal antagonist Lucrin (blocks the pituitary gland from releasing hormone making messages to the body).  Now they put back the hormones in the quantities that they want them for optimal egg production.

Lucrin is an easy injection.  Fostimon, which is the follicle stimulating one, is also been pretty easy, but every time the meds change I get a knock out headache.  I am trying not to take any medication.  Usually a headache comes on, tension or sinus induced, and I just knock it flat with prescription pain pills (myprodol/tramacet/synap forte).  This has always been my modus operandi – and something my GP has instructed me to do the last time I ended up in his casualty with a migraine.

So bring on yesterday’s Fostimon induced headache, nay Migraine! – This is how it all went down.

I arrive at 6am for my day 2 blood test at Morningside Medi Clinic who have a 24 hour Lancet lab, and are just up the road from work.  The sister, who withdraws a shed load of my blood, refuses to give me the injection – they are not insured for that.  I injected myself at 6:30 am in our office basement, in my car.  I try playing it cool, but by 9 am I pop my first panado, thinking lets nip this in the bud.  1 pm rolls around and I am really in a lot more discomfort so I pop 2 panados and eat my lunch.  2pm and I want to die, but not on the roads, so I excuse myself from work and head home while I can still drive myself home. I am thinking a heat pack and a sleep will sort this out, and I will be able to work on the couch tonight while hubby is at tennis between the neighbourhood barking dogs and the burglar alarm going off next door I didn’t get ANY sleep and the heat pack didn’t help either.  5pm I can see, but I have to pick up a set of keys from a friend down the road who is off to visit her sister in Asia. Off I go, hold baby drink tea… even baby cuddles from the cutest aren’t helping. I drive home.  I cry.  I ring my husband who is supposed to have a tennis game tonight and ask him to please please come home first.  He tells me to have a hot bath – I do.  The head rush from the bath makes it worse when I stand up. I can’t walk or move or bend down without the pain searing through my brain. I am so miserable and curl up on the bed in the dark trying to manage the pain by praying in tongues. 7pm Hubby arrives, takes one look at pathetic me and puts me in the car and off we go to Sandton Medi Clinic. I pull my hoodie over my eyes all the way – the lights form the passing cars are excruciating and when we arrive I huddle in the darkest corner I can find while hubby fills in the damn paperwork.

The triage nurse is learning how to operate the computer system and the super modern blood pressure machine.  He has to leave the room and ask for assistance once or twice, but he is a good medical practitioner.  After what felt like too many questions I get taken through to the ward, find a bed and see a doctor almost immediately.  The doctor prescribes a migraine IV, and I have a small freak out.  I don’t know, with all the injections I have been having what I can take or not.  I make him phone the after-hours emergency number on my BioArt meds schedule and he comes back saying it’s all good and the nurse hooks up the line and gives me an oxygen mask.  A bit later he comes back to say he has decided to add another pain killer – IV paracetamol to the mix.  

It took about half an hour before I felt any pain relief, and when we left the hospital at 10 pm I still had a minor headache behind one eye.  So today, although I woke up pain free - I took myself off to see my trusted Physio, Wendy.  Oh the wondrous touch of trained hands – she is amazing.  Possibly the most painful session I have ever had with her. But really do feel like she sorted out some of those troublesome knots.

So my conclusion is that the Fostimon induced a minor headache but tension in my back and shoulders caused it to spiral out of control.

I start the Menonys tomorrow.  I am seeing my friend, a Dentist, to give me the first one, and we will take along an orange for hub to practice on.  We have been given the use of a house at the Vaal dam for the long weekend – so he has no choice – he has to inject me in the butt with that big huge flippen scary needle.

Oh… and I decided not to go on with reflexology treatment, but that’s a whole other post all on its own.

Day 21 BCP Cycle

We started the Lucrin injections this weekend.  On Sunday morning we set the alarm for 6am, and hubby jabbed me and we went back to sleep again for 2 hours.

I moved the Menace into a Tupperware box in the fridge - there was a block of cheese sitting on top of the little boxes of medication and it just didn’t look right.  What if the cheesy fumes in my fridge penetrate the box and have some kind of effect on my menace??? Oh the mind is a wonderful thing.

I woke up this morning with a headache - mild hangover quality, and am wondering if I am going to have a Lucrin hangover for the next 21 days.  It would seem that almost all the meds cause headaches as one of the side effects.  I am a headache sufferer - if the side effects say headache, then that’s the one I will get - I couldn't even take the pill for contraception back in the day when that was a concern. I hope this is as bad as it will get and they won’t all build on one another,

And slight dizziness, about 2 hours after the injection that only lasts a minute.  I shrugged it off yesterday, but it happened again today so I am thinking it’s related.

Hubby is still wading his way through Easter eggs that I can’t eat.  So I made this chocolate pudding from a recipe that my dietician gave me - it uses avo for the creaminess and dates for the sweetness. I will be deadly honest here - it’s not Geldhof chocolate but it is a substitute that works and satisfies the craving.

Avo and Date chocolate "mousse"

Half avo
3 fresh pitted dates
1 tbsp. good quality cocoa powder
Water as required
2.5 ml vanilla essence

Blend the avo, dates and cocoa powder.  Add water a tablespoon at a time till a good consistency, add vanilla essence.

Blend Blend Blend till smooth.

It is super rich, but doesn’t keep too well, but if you do refrigerate do it in as small container as possible, only for a few days at most, and scrape the top layer off before eating.

So each time you pop a chocolate Easter egg into your mouth say a little prayer for my eggies - lots of and good quality is waht we want, and say a prayer for my self discipline!

IVF Long Protocol - The good, the bad, and possibly ugly

My Purple IVF kit is complete.  I picked up the last of all of it yesterday and it has blown my mind somewhat.  The Huge big fat needles for one of the injections are also freaking me out a bit.  In order to restore my sanity and sense of control, I researched what each one of the things I will be taking is, does and may do to me.

So here it all is, more for me than for you                

The Pill (BCP) Femodene - start on day 1 of the cycle the month before IVF treatment

Dosage – 1 tablet a day

What it does - Femodene  is a low-dose monophasic oral contraceptive with estrogenic (stops ovulation ie the body doesn’t release the egg) and progestogenic (changes cervical mucous conditions to inhibit the implantation of a fertilised ovum)peripheral effects.

Why do I need it? – To regulate my ovulation and make my period predictable before we start this IVF cycle.  I was on Clomid which was making me ovulate more than 1 egg at a time.  This will get everything back to normal before we start with the heavy injectable stimulants.

Side Effects -  breast tenderness, pain, secretion; headache; migraine; changes in libido; depressive moods; contact lens intolerance; nausea; vomiting; changes in vaginal secretion; various skin disorders including pigmentation; fluid retention; change in body weight; hypersensitivity reaction.

Ok, that one isn’t so bad…. What happens next?

Lucrin – Start on Day 21 of the cycle the month before IVF treatment and continue until Aspiration Day

Dosage – 20 Units per day, Injected Subcutaneously in the belly area at 6pm

What it does - Lucrin  causes the pituitary gland to release high amounts of FSH (Follicle Stimulating Hormone) and LH (luteinizing hormone) for several days until its stores are depleted. Since continued use of Lupron prevents the pituitary gland from producing new supplies of FSH and LH, the amount of these hormones being released per day becomes very low after 7 to 10 days. The goal that we achieve with Lupron is to ensure that blood levels of LH are low during the last few days of follicle growth, since we know that high levels of LH can lead to poor egg quality and stimulate progesterone production by the ovaries. A premature rise in progesterone may cause inappropriate maturation of the uterine lining and lead to a lesser chance of embryo implantation.

Why do I need it? My egg quality is in doubt, so the Lucrin helps, alongside diet and reflexology, to get the best eggs possible out on Aspiration Day.

Side effects - hot flashes, vaginal dryness, etc.; however, these often go away after stimulation begins since estrogen levels start going up with gonadotropin treatment.

Fostimon –Only on day 2 and 3 of IVF Cycle

Dosage – 2 powers to one water ampule

What it does - Fostimon injections contain the active ingredient urofollitropin, which is a form of follicle stimulating hormone (FSH).  FSH directly affects the ovaries in women, where it increases the number of growing follicles and stimulates their development. Within the follicles are the developing eggs. FSH also increases the production of oestrogen, and under the influence of this hormone, the largest follicles continues to develop.

Why do I need it? Because this is an IVF cycle we want to get as many eggs out, of good quality, at one time as we can, so that if the cycle doesn’t work, there is a chance of having some embryos to freeze.  In tht way you don’t have to go through the stimulating process again.

Side Effects - Over-stimulation of the ovaries (ovarian hyperstimulation), causing the production of many eggs (see warning section above); Headache; Constipation; Bloating of the abdomen; Pain at the site of injection; Disturbances of the gut, such nausea, abdominal pain, indigestion; Lethargy; Dizziness; Changes in mood; Difficulty in breathing (dyspnoea); Increased activity of the thyroid gland (hyperthyroidism); Nosebleeds (epistaxis); Flushing of the skin due to widening of the small blood vessels (erythema); Itching (pruritis); Breast pain and enlargement; Hot flushes; Fatigue; Urinary tract infection (cystitis).

Hmmm – that’s a lot of side effects.

At the same time as that I also start taking a tablet calledMeticorten

Meticorten – Start on day 2 of IVF cycle and continue until 3 months pregnant

Dosage – 2 Tablets in the morning.

What it does - prevents the release of substances in the body that cause inflammation.

Why should I use it - In patients in which one suspects implantation problems based on an immune tolerance or auto immune basis, Meticortin is extremely valuable to promote implantation an maintain early pregnancy

Side effects – sleep problems (insomnia), mood changes;acne, dry skin, thinning skin, bruising or discoloration; slow wound healing; increased sweating; headache, dizziness, spinning sensation; nausea, stomach pain, bloating; or changes in the shape or location of body fat (especially in your arms, legs, face, neck, breasts, and waist).

Menonys - the Menace -  Start on Day 4 of the IVF cycle and continue till day 8. Doc will advise if to continue after day 9 scan.

Dosage – 3 Powders to 1 water ampoule, injected with a HUGE needle into the upper half of the buttock

What does it do - has the equal activity of FSH & LH. its helps in the maturation as well as rupturing of Graafian follicle (in which the egg is developing), hence it helps for Ovulation.  This stuff gets the eggs to maturity – seeing as there are so many maturing at one time, they need a little bit of help getting there.

Why do I need it?  So the Lucrin is suppressing ALL the hormones but I need the LH and the FSH to actually mature the eggs.  So this stuff puts back the FSH and LH in equal quantities to help the eggs along.

Side Effects - Injection site pain; Lower abdomen tenderness; Fluid retention; Headache; Emotional irritability; Breast discomfort; Fatigue; Multiple births; Severe pain or swelling in lower abdomen or extremities; Shortness of breath; Vomiting or diarrhoea

Day 9 Scan

At this point we see how may follicles are developing on each ovary and wether or not we continue with the injections, and how much to change the dosage.  This is a critical time in the process – if there aren’t enough eggs then the whole cycle can get cancelled.  

Day 11 Scan

We check the eggs again to determine how much they have developed on since the last scan, and decide when the Aspriation Day (the day they remove the eggs) should be based on the size of the majority of the follicles.

The Trigger – Ovidrel

This is an injection used in fertility treatment cycles to help follicles mature and trigger the release of mature eggs from a woman's ovaries following treatment with stimulants prior in the cycle.  Aspiration day will be 24 – 36 hours after The Trigger injection.

So that’s the next 21 Days or so mapped out.  We start with the Lucrin injections this weekend.

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