We are exposed to a wide range of stresses including work, school, social situations, family drama, among others. It has long been known that stress is linked to health conditions like high blood pressure, heart issues, and certain mental illnesses, but it might come as a surprise that stress can impact your fertility. In addition to stress making it more difficult to stay generally healthy, stress can also impact your reproductive hormones, making sperm creation, egg availability, and ultimately implantation more difficult. Knowledgeable fertility specialists can provide guidance for navigating stress, and they might be able to help you develop a plan specific to your growing family’s needs.
The Science of Stress
As soon as things begin to pile up, and you start to be stressed, many different things happen in your brain at the same time. The most important for our discussion today is that cortisol levels rise. Cortisol is a hormone strongly associated with the feeling of stress and often arises in situations where we might feel afraid of the future, concerned about social situations, or overwhelmed by tasks. While cortisol is not all bad, and has many useful implementations in the body, sustained high levels of cortisol can lead to adverse health effects.
Cause and Effect
When cortisol levels are sustained in the body, the reproductive system is inhibited. The endocrine, or hormonal system, of the body is like a telecommunications office. When the body is functioning normally, the reproductive department is free to continue producing its hormones as needed, calling the reproductive organs and preparing the way for conception, but as soon as signal from cortisol is received, the reproductive department is put on hold. This slowing down or pausing of the reproductive system can negatively affect the fertility of both partners. For health and well-being reasons, as well as fertility, it is crucial to regulate your stress levels.
Navigating Stressful Situations
Stress can be a difficult beast to tackle because it often arises from many places at once. However, through a systematic evaluation of stressors in your life, and addressing stressful situations in a piecewise manner, you can be more in control of your cortisol levels. Some strategies for decreasing stress include journaling, meditation, regular exercise, keeping your spaces clean, and speaking with loved ones. In addition, receiving therapy may also be a good option for some people to develop strategies for stress management. Most fixes to stress are not immediate, and require time and routine to really take effect, so stay consistent with the stress management techniques you’ve chosen and see how they impact you over time. If they’re not working after a few weeks, trying something else might be helpful but speaking with your health care provider will be a great way to understand how stress impacts you personally.
Final Thoughts
While your concerns about fertility might be a stressor in and of itself, reducing other stressors in your life can be a great way to rule out issues that might be contributing to a lack of fertility. Navigating stress and fertility can feel complicated without help, so that’s why we suggest speaking with a trusted fertility provider to better understand the relationship between stress, fertility, and health.
