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Thursday, October 21, 2010

Fertility and Stress

I'm a bit behind with my posting...last week the fertility group discussed stress and its effects on fertility.

I've always heard that stress can have adverse effects on the body, but I was surprised to learn about some of the effects it has on fertility. Some of the fertility-stress facts I learned are that stress:

  • Is the most significant block to getting pregnant
  • Disrupts hormone production
  • Can hinder adequate blood-flow to the uterus
  • Can lead to poor follicular quality
  • Negatively effects the FSH test - can result in false results 
 Those of us who are unfortunate enough to be on the infertility roller-coaster know that it is just that...a roller-coaster. There are good days, bad days, and really really bad days. How do you relax when your mind just won't let you? Here are some of the stress-relieving techniques we learned about:
  • Create positive affirmations, and recite them daily
  • Think positive
  • Meditate
  • Do deep breathing exercises
  • Create a gratitude journal

So what does all of this mean for me? Well, infertility is extremely stressful in and of itself. And that stress causes more stress which, in turn, causes a chain reaction in my body. I really wish I could turn off the worry like a light switch, but I can't. But I WILL make a concerted effort to deal with my stress head on, rather than keeping it all bottled inside.

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