Did you know that 76% of infertility patients experience anxiety?
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​You're not weak, and you're not alone if you've experienced anxiety in your fertility and pregnancy journey, it can be an extremely stressful time.​
People argue whether stress can cause infertility, and the trouble is, that no studies so far can prove anything because of the above stat. People who are trying to conceive will very likely become stressed if they weren't already.
You've probably heard the classic 'war zone' argument too. That if stress causes infertility then women in war zones wouldn't be able to get pregnant. And yes of course women have got pregnant in war zones, but for those that might have had other things already as barriers, the stress may have prevented them from getting pregnant.
Here's a non-fertility example. Some people who smoke their whole lives never get lung cancer, and other people who smoke for a short time do get lung cancer.
Every person is different, for some people getting pregnant is easy, and for others, sadly it isn't. And for the latter, we do need to consider that stress can be playing a part.
And before I go on, please know. This isn't to make you feel more stressed or for you to internalise blame. Everyone is different, our past and our genetics. Some of us have had more stressful lives, childhood traumas (divorce for example fits into that category it doesn't need to be a bit T trauma), and therefore cope with stress differently too.
It just means we can get informed, and make stress relief a priority on our journey. More on why and how below.
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But first I want to explain why the industry is getting it wrong by focusing just on the physical body, and not stress.
It starts with, "You wanna get pregnant? Great, let's get your body ready"...
The team of people you might see, the doctors, specialists, nutritionists, naturopaths, physiotherapists, and even your pilates instructor, will all bring that focus back to the physical body.
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​You'll be told to track your temperature, your ovulation window, your cycle length, your physical pain, and your cervical mucous. ​
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You'll be told the ideal window to use your physical body to get pregnant, the vitamins you need to take, and the ideal amount of exercise.
Don't get me wrong, the physical body IS important. Surgery may even be necessary on your journey. But the physical body is ONE part.
And I'd argue, that if we don't get the mind, the self-care, and the mental health part right, everything we try to do to heal or balance the physical body may not work.
And when it doesn't work, we're told to double down. Find more vitamins, and more diet shifts, just to try and get in 'optimal health'.
And I put that in quotes - because again, 'optimal health' in this context is generally only focusing on the physical body. When health is our whole selves.
We MUST start with the mind, the nervous system, stress relief and management tools. Why?...
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​Because chronic stress (which the fertility journey can create even if it wasn't there first), results in elevated cortisol, which throws off our hormones.
Nervous system dysregulation (for example when we're constantly in fight/flight) affects the endocrine system, which is responsible for hormone regulation and reproductive health.
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It can even affect nutrient absorption. This is why vitamins and guided nutrition won't work properly if we're operating from a place of stress.
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​I truly believe that everyone's journey can be easier if there is, as much if not more, focus on nervous system regulation, stress relief, mental health, and self-care.​
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Starting with this as our focus might mean skipping strict diets, or drawers of expensive vitamins because again they might be in place to try and fix a hormonal balance that nervous system dysregulation has caused.
All of this is not to add more stress to the fire, I promise!
It's to make sure you're informed and to let you know that stress relief doesn't need to be complicated, but it should be a priority.
And it's important to note that most people won't remove stress and anxiety completely from the fertility and pregnancy journey. So know that this isn't our goal, and you aren't broken for feeling this way.
A regulated nervous system isn't absent of stress and anxiety, it can ride the wave of it, and not stay in fight or flight (this is our goal).
So to start - make sure you download your free guide - 5 minutes daily to boost your fertility and nurture a healthy pregnancy
And you can get started in this short and sweet mini -course to nervous system regulation and stress relief tools to help you boost fertility, nurture a healthy pregnancy with less anxiety, and prepare you to be an amazing parent.
Louise xx
Louise Fitzgerald is an Intuitive and Mindfulness teacher, who supports people to boost their fertility and nurture a healthy pregnancy with less anxiety and more joy.
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