Deirdre Armstrong

Fertility Awareness Consultant

• Is it proving harder to get pregnant than you thought?
• Are you are thinking about starting a family in the future and wondering how easy it will be?
• Are you in your late 30's or 40's?
• Did you have your first baby easily and are now finding it difficult to conceive your second?
• Do you want to know more about your body's fertility, perhaps before considering IVF?
• Do you want a natural, reliable method of contraception?

If so then Deirdre Armstrong is a trained and experienced Fertility Awareness Practitioner who may be able to help.

Myth
How many times have you heard that a menstrual cycle should be 28 days and that ovulation usually occurs on Day 14?

This is a myth so widely believed that it has prevented many couples from conceiving easily.

Facts
It is now estimated that 1 in 7 couples have difficulty conceiving.

It takes women in the UK an average of 7 months to conceive their first child. It takes women longer if they are over 30.

Fertility Awareness
The "infertility timebomb" fills the news and assisted conception is in increasing demand, yet, Fertility Awareness a simple system for learning about your body and helping you get pregnant naturally and quickly, gets overlooked.

Deirdre will carry out a comprehensive initial assessment (1 ½ hours) of your reproductive health and teach you the basic principles of Fertility Awareness. That first session may be all you need but you may benefit from one or two follow-up appointments (1 hour). After 3 sessions you will be confident to use the methods on your own.

Deirdre will introduce you to this fully researched and scientifically validated method of becoming aware of your own fertility. Based on the observation of fertility signs, you will be able to determine whether or not you are fertile on any given day. It is an empowering method of pregnancy achievement and an excellent tool for assessing many common gynaecological problems.

Fertility Awareness can reassure you that everything is working well and that there is no need to panic. It can also be a useful aid in the early diagnosis of a number of conditions, which may make getting pregnant difficult. If fertility treatments such as IVF are indicated, a fuller understanding of your own fertility can be a tremendous boost in choosing and managing any treatment.

If medical treatment is indicated Deirdre will advise you on the information to take to your doctor to discuss the next steps and help you take control of the process. She can also direct you towards other appropriate Complementary Therapies such as Acupuncture, Hypnotherapy, Nutritional advice and Herbal Medicine which can help you achieve and maintain a healthy pregnancy.

These case studies illustrate the value Fertility Awareness has had for some of Deirdre's clients:

"Catherine, 30, tried to get pregnant for two years without success. She was about to go to her GP for infertility investigations when she met Deirdre. They established that Catherine ovulated late in her cycle, usually around day 17/18. In previous months she and her husband were so sick of trying by that point that they had usually given up! Armed with this new information Catherine got pregnant 5 weeks later and went on to have a healthy baby girl."

"Mary, 34 has been trying to conceive for 5 years. She and her partner have been told they have Unexplained Infertility. Mary already knew the basic principles of fertility awareness but needed some support. Working with Deirdre it was possible to determine that Mary's progesterone levels were too low to sustain a pregnancy. She found this reassuring because it gave her a diagnosed problem to focus on. She is now trying to improve her hormone levels using Acupuncture alongside traditional medicine."

"Sue, 42 had been trying to get pregnant for two years. She assumed that she was too old and was about to give up. After two sessions with Deirdre she learned that she was still ovulating regularly but that she did not produce much cervical fluid, essential for conception. She used a simple over the counter remedy to solve this problem, eased up on her work schedule a bit and was pregnant 2 months later. At 45 she is now the mother of two healthy children."

Deirdre Armstrong is the mother of 3 year old twin boys. She discovered fertility awareness when preparing for her own pregnancy at the age of 36. She became so interested in the field that she left her career as an NHS manager and re-trained as a fertility awareness practitioner. She set up the first private fertility awareness clinic in Edinburgh at Mulberry House in 2006.M/b>

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