Mind-Body Connection in Successful Fertility Treatment

When you think of fertility treatment, your mind likely goes to thoughts of basal body temperatures, ovulation tests, doctor’s offices, medical procedures, injections, and scheduled sex. While any and all of these may be a part of your fertility journey, a significant component is missing from that list. This list addresses only the needs of the body, but successful fertility – and a significant contributor to infertility – is the mind, or more specifically, the mind-body connection.

What is the mind-body connection?

Our minds and bodies do not exist separately. Our thoughts, emotions, beliefs, and past experiences powerfully affect our bodies. Stress, in particular, affects our hormones our muscle tension and contributes to everything from migraines to high blood pressure, digestive issues to decreased blood flow, and more. It makes sense, then, that our body’s ability to conceive and carry a pregnancy can be directly affected by our mental and emotional health.

How does my mental and emotional health affect my fertility?

Studies have shown that women suffering from stress, anxiety, or depression are half as likely to conceive as those who don’t. Furthermore, the emotional effects of dealing with infertility and treatments have demonstrated the same levels of stress and despair as being diagnosed with a terminal illness! This only adds to the difficulty in conception. Our reproductive hormones are regulated by the same part of the brain that manages other hormones – particularly those dealing with stress. It is no surprise that reproduction and stress are intertwined.

So how does the mind-body connection relate to my medical treatment? Is there any proof?

The good news is that by creating and maintaining a healthy mind-body connection, you not only significantly increase your chances of conception, but you create a better quality of life for yourself overall! When facing medical treatment, and it can be a major component in overcoming infertility – I wouldn’t be a mother of twins without it – it is essential to support your mind-body connection as well as your physical treatment. Medical fertility plans and treatments are boosted by and can only benefit from a plan or program to help create a healthy mind-body connection.

When I was going through IVF 26 years ago, a local Boston hospital started running a study on the effect of mind-body connection methods and fertility success rates. In the years since many studies have demonstrated significant jumps in success rates for conception in those using mind-body methods. In fact, a Harvard University study showed that 55% of women conceiving after following a mind-body practice versus only 20% of those who didn’t. And 76% of those conceiving had done so naturally in 12 months.

Here are some of the ways that a mind-body program benefits you:

• Provide a better balance of hormones (yes, you can have a powerful effect on the hormones in your body!)
• Help you with better decision-making, reducing self-sabotage
• Improve sleep quality and quantity
• Better self-confidence, self-advocacy, and self-care
• Help you have more control over your own emotional and physical reactions
• Improve your relationship with yourself and your body

How can I create and maintain a healthy mind-body connection that meets my needs?

So what are mind-body connection practices? There are many options, such as:

• Yoga
• Meditation – both individual and guided
• Hypnosis – self-hypnosis and hypnotherapy
• Acupuncture
• Therapy or Counseling
• Biofeedback

When you are in the throes of the fertility journey, it helps to have something that meets your unique needs. You may wish to try a variety of methods or use a few together to create and maintain the close mind-body connection that can boost your success levels in infertility treatment as well as improve your mental and physical health.