Stress can play a major role in your overall hormonal cycle, and even your fertility! It may seem like a simple thing but it can play a very large role in your overall health. When you are struggling with any sort of hormonal imbalance, irregular cycle, painful cycles, or to conceive. Stress NEEDS to be addressed.
Stress influences your cycle and hormones in 2 ways.
When you are experiencing a higher than normal level of stress in your life it will start to impact your pituitary gland and its function. This is the gland that drives ovulation through FSH and LH. Stress ultimately reduces the release of both of these hormones, which can cause you to miss ovulation!
These cycles are referred to as anovulatory cycles. During this cycle you will still experience a period or flow, but have not ovulated and do not make progesterone. Both are essential for a healthy menstrual cycle and for one to conceive.
Cortisol is another hormone that is increased when you are experiencing stress. Short term release of cortisol has life saving effects. However, long term it will be detrimental to your overall health.
It will cause one to become more insulin resistant, for one’s immune system function to be reduced, and will hinder ovulation and ovarian steroid production! Again, it really impacts your cycle health, and your ability to become pregnant.
Knowing this, when your cycle has become irregular, or if you have been checking to see if you ovulate and are getting a negative result, you need to address the level of stress in your life!
Stress levels can be better managed with:
- gentle exercise, movement
- better sleep
- stretching and fascial release, aka Bowen therapy
- Acupuncture and massage sessions
- dropping things that no longer serve you
And meditation!
I have a FREE fertility meditation on YouTube that you can use to help you to reduce your stress and to aid with proper ovulation! (372) FERTILITY MEDITATION OVULATION PHASE-DAYS 5-14 - YouTube
I have also developed my own set of mediations that you can purchase that you can use to help you reduce stress while trying to conceive here: Angel Fertility Meditations from Dr. Stephanie Farwell Naturopath, Bowen, Reiki (stephaniefarwellnd.ca)
References:
1.Lara Briden. 2017. 2nd edition. Period Repair Manual. Natural Treatment for Better Hormones and Better Periods.