Acupuncture and Complimentary Herbals

     Once my first 'roasting' session was over, the Doctor gave me an herbal formula to take three times a day, eight pills per dose with warm water.

 
Xue Fu Zhu Yu Wan was prescribed:
                                              

 

 

 

 

What does it do?

 

Xue Fu Zhu Yu Wan promotes blood circulation to remove blood stasis, promotes circulation of Qi to relieve pain. It is used for chest pain, headache, hiccup, dull red tongue caused by chest tightness due to blood stasis and stagnation of the liver- Qi; irregular menstruation, dysmenorrhea, coronary heart disease, angina pectoris, blood stasis and stagnancy of Qi, dizziness, neurosis, hypertension, sequelae of apoplexy and infantile headache.

 

Ingredients:
Semen Pruni Persicae (Tao ren)
Flos Carthami Tinctorii (Hong hua)
Radix Salviae Miltiorrhizae (Dan shen)
Rhizoma Ligustici Chuanxiong (Chuan xiong)
Radix Angelicae Sinensis (Dang gui)
Radix Achyranthis Bidentatae (Niu xi)
Fructus Aurantii (Zhi qiao)
Radix Paeoniae Rubra (Chi shao)
Radix Platycodi Grandiflori (Jie geng)
Radix Bupleuri Chinensis (Chai hu)
Radix Rehmanniae Glutinosae (Di huang)
Radix Glycyrrhizae Uralensis (Gan cao)

Results:

 

Within the first two weeks of  using the herbal medication and having the 'shock' treatments, the mass on my left lower abdominal area began to get softer. I could actually feel the difference in hardness. Up to this point the fibroid(s) had expanded into the area of my rib cage. I'm sure it had well surpassed the 16cm mark I had reached when first diagnosed.

 

Below is a picture of my stomach at the time I first began Acupuncture treatments (May 18, 2012):

 

 

 

 

 

The huge bulge in the middle from top to bottom was the fibroid mass. Althought I was never in any pain, the fibroid mass was pressing against my bladder, not to mention wreaking havoc on my waistline. I became self-conscious and began wearing larger shirts to cover my mid section. Also, the frequent urination and hint of incontinence was a pain in the ass - I could not hold my wee!

 

As weeks went by, I noticed that my period was getting out of sync. It would start for a few days, then stop. After about a month, my period came along..... but didn't end. The flow was light, yet consistent. The Doctor then suggested that I decrease the dosage of the herbals before. But at this point, after bleeding for a month he recommended that I stop taking them altogether. It appeared that the herbals were a bit strong for my system, causing me to bleed. A break in taking the medication would allow for my system to get back on track. Within a few days the bleeding stopped. Then it started again. I wasn't sure if it was my scheduled period, or just carryover flow caused from my system being out of whack. On and off it went for weeks, but light. I noticed how dark the flow was that was passing out of my body. It didn't seem like normal menstrual flow (for me) and there were lots of clots. So much so, I could feel them passing out of my body whenever I had to void. Before panicking and thinking parts of my uterus were coming out, the Doctor told me it was more than likely the waste particles of the fibroid as it was dissolving. He also suggested that I make an appointment to see my Gynecologist (the one who suggested I have a hysterectomy) just to make sure all is good down under. Amidst the intermittent passage of foreign matter being expelled, I felt fine. I plan to see the former in the near future for a check up, and possibly another sonogram. And if for nothing else, to show her  the success I've had with Acupuncture in shrinking my fibroids without losing my uterus -  I found an alternative to hysterectomy (TCM vs Western Medicine).