I know firsthand just how stressful infertility can be, especially at parties, family meals, baby showers, etc. Below are my notes for the above video, which was filmed live. Download the Instagram App to watch our live broadcasts!
Why the Holidays can be a stressful time…
Dealing with challenging questions at the dinner table such as:
When are you going to have a baby?
How come you don’t have kids yet, you would be great parents?
Everyone has their own path; their own challenging thing they will go through. – Hethir
How to react to these questions – I like to react with humor or sarcasm (that is my personality).
Have a canned response such as:
It isn’t for lack of trying
When God says it’s time
When we are ready it will happen
How Stress Affects Fertility
The body releases adrenaline and cortisol in response to stress. This inhibits the release of GnRH – gonadotropin releasing hormone, the main hormone responsible for the release of all the sex hormones, which alters the release of LH and FSH. This cascade can:
- suppress ovulation
- reduce sperm count
- lower libido
- effect which hormones the liver processes first
‘”We know stress affects the top-tier reproductive hormone, GnRH, but we show, in fact, that stress also affects another high-level hormone, GnIH*, to cause reproductive dysfunction,” said lead author Elizabeth Kirby, a graduate student at UC Berkeley’s Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute.’
*GnIH (gonadotropin-inhibitory hormone) directly inhibits GnRH.
What You Can Do to Reduce Stress Today – 3 Tips
1. How can you reduce the stress in your life literally?
Create a shield of love around yourself = create boundaries
- say no to certain events (baby shower story) or people (client who changed jobs)
- make time for self-care (hot baths, exercise, Self Fertility Massage, etc.)
- spend more time with the people you love who lift you up
2. Change how you react to stressful situations
- easier said than done
- tools – meditation, prayer, yoga, EFT
Even though I am totally stressed out, I completely and totally love myself.
3. Herbs for stress
- Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera): nervousness, stress, thyroid support, adrenal support, endocrine support, hormonal balance
- Motherwort (Cardiaca leonurus): anxiety, easing the heart, PMS, sudden strong emotions
- Lemon Balm (Melissa officinalis): nervous system support, anxiety, calming, generally uplifting (people with hypothyroid should avoid this)
- Church, D. (January 2013). Clinical EFT as an Evidence-Based Practice for the Treatment of Psychological and Physiological Conditions. Article (PDF Available) in Psychology 04(08):645-654. DOI: 10.4236/psych.2013.48092. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/276001959_Clinical_EFT_as_an_Evidence-Based_Practice_for_the_Treatment_of_Psychological_and_Physiological_Conditions
