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How can sitting quietly help me have a baby? Well, read on!
Medical research studies on women show that when they meditated regularly there was a significant increase in their pregnancy rates.
How? Being fully aware of the present moment without the lens of judgment, seems to help women relate to their infertility and IVF treatment in new ways.
Overall fertility issues are put down to 35% from the female, 35% by the male and then there’s that x-factor where modern medicine just doesn’t know yet why some of us can and some of us can’t.
We can help with all three!
HOW MEDITATION CAN HELP
Meditation can be done in many different ways.
Think of meditation as a way of being on your own quietly, eliminating the stream of jumbled thoughts that may be crowding your mind and causing stress. It helps you re-connect to yourself and slows down your heart rate. It has been scientifically proven to make us happier with our lives, and deal with what happens better. So it can be invaluable with dealing with TTC!
Stress has been proved to negatively impact getting and staying pregnant for women. It also impacts male sperm quality and erectile disfunction. Recent medical research points to lower mental stress resulting in higher pregnancy rate.
MEDITATION HELPS US COPE
Trying to get pregnant (we try to avoid the word infertility) is often a silent struggle. Couples trying to conceive report feelings of depression, anxiety, isolation, and loss of control. I know I had some of these feelings.
Depression levels in patients with infertility have been compared with patients who have been diagnosed with cancer. So if you have been feeling low, don’t blame yourself. Meditation and other kinds of stress relief can help.
Source: Domar AD., Zuttermeister PC., Friedman R. The psychological impact of infertility: a comparison with patients with other medical condition. J Psychosom Obstet Gynaecol. 1993;14(suppl):45–52.
In another study, women who learnt to meditate showed a significant decrease in depressive symptoms, internal and external shame, entrapment, and defeat. They were much more able to deal with fertility issues.
IVF IS STRESSFUL
In one of the largest studies to date, 352 women and 274 men were assessed in infertility clinics in northern California. It was determined that 56% of the women and 32% of the men reported significant symptoms of depression and 76% of the women and 61% of the men scored reported significant symptoms of anxiety.
THE FERTILITY DRUGS ADD TO ANXIETY
The medications used to treat infertility, including clomiphene, leuprolide, and gonadotropins, are associated with psychological symptoms such as anxiety, depression, and irritability.
“A brief (10 week) and non-pharmaceutical approach such as meditation practice makes it a promising candidate for women' use during first IVF treatment.” See Source.
Feel more sure that meditation is worth a try for fertility? At the very least you'll understand yourself better and have more joy every day.
Read more on the Benefits of Meditation (by me on Green is the New Black)
By Niki Gomez
