Affects Of Stress

According to the latest research just published in the Fertility and Sterility Journal, stress really does affect a woman's chance of conceiving.

The research was carried out by Ohio State University, as part of the National Institutes of Health, in conjunction with the University of Oxford, England.

The Research

The research studied women between the ages of 18 -40 and discovered that even young women found it harder to conceive naturally when they were affected by stress. This is even more so for older women who have lower fertility levels already. The scientists looked at women's saliva for the stress hormone marker, alpha-amylase, as well as the better known hormone cortisol. They found that women with high levels of alpha-amylase at their fertile time of the month were 12% less likely to become pregnant. The women's cortisol levels didn't appear to make a difference to their ability to get pregnant. This alpha-amylase enzyme is a marker for adrenalin which gives you a rush feeling or 'fight or flight' reaction in stressful situations. The researchers found that the higher the level of stress the less likely the women were to become pregnant that cycle. According to Dr Cecilia Pyper, the leader of the research team in Oxford, this study is the first one to show a correlation between stress and a reduction in fertility.

Older Women

Older women usually have less fertile days and thus less opportunity to get pregnant to begin with. They are also more likely to become stressed by their inability to get pregnant straight away as they feel that time is running out. This may affect you by setting off a vicious circle for you where the longer it takes to get pregnant the more stressed you get, and therefore the less likely you are to get pregnant that month and so on.

Fertility Treatment

Since fertility treatment is stressful in the first place, both emotionally and physically, it makes sense to try and relax as much as possible. So while you are having the treatment you need to try and do everything that you can to lower your stress levels. You may want to ask your doctor if you can monitor your alpha-amylase levels to see how you are affected. Of course only do this if the answer isn't going to stress you even more!

Table of Contents
1. Affects Of Stress
2. Destress Tips
 
 
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