Moving into Fall 
ARTICLES TO SUPPORT YOUR HEALTH 
    
Dear friends,
 
It is Fall - a beautiful time of year!  We see that nature is slowing down and contracting, preparing to rest, so it is good for us to slow down also.  
 
I am sharing an interesting article which will help you understand how your thyroid works, and five ways it could be adversely impacting your health when it is not functioning well.   
Are you struggling with infertility and received a diagnosis of poor egg quality?  Scroll down below and read a great article that will teach you a lot about this aspect of your reproductive health.  
A poem at the end! 
 
Please check out my new website - www.womanmedicine.com. There is lots of information there that could be useful also on women's health. 
Warmly, 
Molly 

Fall - Harvest Time
The ancient Chinese view was that we should live in harmony with the seasons in order to stay strong and vital. Fall is the time of a plant's energy turning into seed. As humans we experience letting go of what is no longer needed, change, and introspection. We are moving from expansive summer to a more internal focus.  It is a time of harvest and appreciating nature's bounty, and appreciating what we have accomplished during the year.

Over the long winter, seeds lie dormant as life slows down, so that we can renew ourselves from the deepest source. In the spring our energy begins to take root again and manifest as new beginnings, ideas and exciting projects.

Fall is associated with the Lung and Large Intestine; the emotions of letting go, grief and loss; the element Metal; and of dryness. Dryness can be hard on the lungs and sinuses, so we can look toward more moistening foods and herbs which nourish the body's yin. It is a time when we naturally turn toward more warming food and drinks, toward more cooked food and less raw, cooked squashes, pumpkins and stews with root vegetables from the garden. It's also a good time for a balancing treatment for the change of seasons.

5 Surprising Ways Imbalanced Thyroid Hormones Impact Health

by Michelle Pick, NP

When women come to me with extreme fatigue or sudden weight gain, they often know that it could be connected to thyroid functioning. But women who come to my office complaining of constipation, concentration issues, and chronic rashes or hair loss are sometimes surprised when I suggest we test their thyroid hormone levels. They had no idea that symptoms like that could be related to an imbalance in these crucial hormones.
 

 
 
 
 
What Does Poor Egg Quality Mean?

from Unexplainedinfertilityinfo.com 

Every woman is born with all the immature eggs that she will have in her lifetime (approximately one million!), a number which falls to less than 400,000 by the time she has her first period. The remaining eggs lie dormant in our ovaries, waiting to become activated by hormones and finish their maturation during our monthly cycle. Unfortunately, as we age, these eggs start to accumulate internal cellular defects. These defects can cause improper separation of the embryonic DNA as the cells divide, ultimately leading to defective embryos (1).

The energy producing capability of eggs also decreases with age. Mitochondria-the part inside the cell that produces energy, you can think of it almost like the cell's battery-have a decreased ability to produce energy as we age.This creates problems when the egg is released during ovulation, as the egg and supporting cells run out of energy, causing the egg to stop dividing before it reaches the implantation stage (2).

Age, however, is not the only thing that affects egg quality. Environmental factors that eggs are exposed to, both inside and outside of the body, also play a role in egg quality. Eggs take 100 days to mature. During this time they are vulnerable to toxins, chemicals, and any nutritional deficiencies that may prevent optimal maturation. Maternal nutrition during preconception affects which genes are turned up or down, which affects the quality of the egg being produced.

Externally, radiation that we are exposed to from frequent air travel has been associated with premature ovarian aging. Similarly, having frequent x-rays done in childhood (to monitor things like hip dysplasias or scoliosis) may effect egg quality in later years.
 






A Poem by Edward Hays
taken from
Earth Prayers

O sacred season of Autumn, be my teacher, for I wish to learn the virtue of          
contentment.
As I gaze upon your full-colored beauty, I sense all about your at-homeness with your amber riches.

You are the season of retirement, of full barns and harvested fields.
The cycle of growth has ceased, and the busy work of life is now completed.
I sense in you no regrets: you've lived a full life.

I live in a society that is ever-restless, always eager for more mountains to climb,
seeking happiness through more and more possessions.
As a child of my culture, I am seldom truly at peace with what I have.
Teach me to take stock of what I have given and received, may I know that
it's enough,
that my striving can cease in the abundance of God's grace.

May I know the contentment that allows the totality of my energies to come
to full flower.
May I know that like you I am rich beyond measure.

As you, O Autumn, take pleasure in your great bounty, let me also take delight in the abundance of the simple things in life, which are the true source of joy.

With the golden glow of peaceful contentment, may I truly appreciate this autumn day.
  

Molly offers a free 15 minute consultation by phone or in person. 
 Feel free to contact her at:
Molly Greacen,  Lic Ac, Dipl Ac, CH
3625 Conifer Court,  Boulder, CO 80304
303-546-0987
mollygreacen@womanmedicine.com

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