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Can stress cause fertility problems?

Stress has become a part of our colloquial, but seldom do we understand the impact of stress on our health in entirety.

Stress essentially is your body reacting to a situation that it perceived to be a threat, and thus is ushers in a fight or flight response. Unfortunately, with our current stress-inducing lifestyles, a lot of things then lead to the body entering the threat mode.

There are many physiological changes that accompany stress, especially when it is chronic. Too much stress also paves way for physical and mental health challenges, with fertility being one of them.

How does stress affect fertility?

The relationship between stress and fertility is currently debated, as the best gynecologist in Islamabad will also tell you, but the more concerning factor are the lifestyle choices we made in response to stress, as theses can have a direct impact on fertility then.

Moreover, there is a lack of conclusive evidence about whether stress can cause infertility or not, but it can surely affect your odds of getting pregnant.

Few ways stress makes fertility challenging include:

Comfort food

Since stress causes the mind and the body to become very agitated, people then tend to turn to comfort food for some semblance of peace in their lives.

Since comfort food is mostly composite of high fat, sugar, and refined carbohydrates, it then increases the chances of obesity, which has a negative effect on fertility.

Not eating enough

Just as some people go on a binge-fest when they are stressed, others refuse to eat food during the stressful periods. It can then cause them to lose weight, and if the women are already skinny to begin with, it can cause them to become underweight and malnourished.

Just as obesity causes problems with ovulation, being underweight also disrupts the menstrual cycle, leading to irregular periods. It naturally then poses fertility challenges for women.

 

Impaired sleep

Sleep does tend to take a hit when you are suffering from situations of high stress. It is hard to sleep peacefully when your body continues to think it’s under threat. The constant avalanche of thoughts and the racing heart naturally make slumber harder.

When you are unable to get sufficient rest of the requisite 7 to 9 hours, you are at a greater risk of chronic health issues like diabetes, heart disease and obesity.

Obesity, unfortunately, has a grave impact on fertility, as it upsets the hormones that control ovulation, making conceiving a challenge then.

Lack of proper sleep at night also interferes with the precarious balances of hormones in the body. It can then disrupt the menstrual cycle, which naturally does not bode well for fertility then.

Furthermore, staying awake at night when pregnant and in your first trimester can also increase the risk of miscarriage as well.

Turn to smoking

Smoking is a renowned stress management technique. People then start to indulge greatly in it, chasing the slightly reprieve each cigarette brings.

However, smoking carries immense health risks, especially for women’s fertility. It can increase the risk of blockage of fallopian tubes, the pathway by which egg travels, which naturally has a grave impact on fertility.

Smoking also increase the odds of miscarriage, alongside decreasing the chance of a successful IVF.

A vicious cycle

For women who are already stressed and are trying to have a baby, things can become bleaker, as the lack of conception then increases the stress levels in their body, which then decreases their odds of conceiving.

They can then become trapped in this vicious cycle, with their mental and physical health taking a great hit. Hence, if you are suffering from chronic stress, talk to a mental health expert about it.

Also, if you manage to reign your stress levels in but still face fertility issues, then consult your doctor at Medicare Cardiac & General Hospital  rather than becoming stressed again.

Eleena Wills
Eleena Wills
Hi, I’m Eleena Wills. Being a writer and blogger, I strive to provide informative and valuable articles to people. With quality, constructive, and well-researched articles, one can make informed choices. I cover a wide range of topics, from home improvement to hair styling and automotive.
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