Undergoing any fertility treatment can be stressful. IVF, in particular, can be a considerable physical, not to mention costly undertaking. It’s completely understandable to feel a sense of loss when a cycle was not successful. Some call this a failed IVF cycle or an IVF failure, but it’s essential to know that when a cycle “fails,” the “failure” is not yours or a reflection of anything you’ve done wrong. If anything, we hope it’s an opportunity to use what happened in the cycle to learn more about your health.
The word “failed” means “not achieving its end or unsuccessful.” Note it doesn’t say hopeless! Let’s talk about options and the next steps!
Emotional Stressors
Emotional stressors can cause inflammation in the body and negatively impact hormones. How? Our adrenal glands release cortisol, which is known as the “stress hormone.” If there is too much stress over a long period, it can overload the adrenal system with excessive cortisol and adrenaline, suppressing progesterone. Progesterone is the hormone that helps create the optimum environment for embryo implantation.
A recent study showed that it took women 29% longer to get pregnant than women with lower levels of the enzyme. This means that typically, stressful times aren’t the optimal time to conceive, even when going through IVF. In a podcast we did, we walk you through several steps you can take to address this stress to reduce inflammation and prepare your body for a baby.
Ask yourself how your stress levels are. Mindfulness, journaling, meditation, visualization, affirmations, coaching, therapy, EFT, and honesty about the emotional stressors can make a tremendous difference.
Physical Stressor
Too often, factors like low vitamin D levels, thyroid dysfunction, long-term hormonal birth control use, blood sugar imbalance, over-exercising, obesity, or trauma may be missed in creating physical stressors not supportive of conceiving. We believe it’s vital to investigate the following:
Diet: Ensure you are consuming enough fat, ensuring blood sugar is balanced, eliminating processed food, getting enough protein, and consuming foods right for your body (using food sensitivity testing as a guide).
Rest: How is your sleep? Are you getting 7 to 9 hours of sleep per night? Interrupted sleep can lead to blood sugar imbalance.
Exercise: Do you have an exercise plan? We always recommend non-vigorous such as brisk walking, interval training, weight 3x/week, and fertility yoga.
Supplements: Targeted protocol, which includes testing to monitor what is right for your body, is another area that can make a difference in trying to conceive and your health in general.
Missed Healing Opportunities
Every patient, protocol, and doctor are different, and what may be right for you may not be right for another. While we encourage speaking to your physician, advocating for these often missed areas can help put you back in the driver’s seat when it comes to your IVF care and overall well-being.
The IVF process offers many options, and as you now see, you can take steps even before the embryo transfer that can help implantation occur. Knowing your options, advocating for yourself, and speaking with your fertility doctor can bring you that much closer to having the healthy family you dream of.
Book your free Supercharge Your Fertility Discovery call. We’ll develop a personalized plan to help you move forward before your next IVF. Please also visit our Resources page for more information and products to help you on your fertility journey.
Sarah Clark empowers couples to discover how lifestyle and diet can dramatically impact their chances of conceiving. She was diagnosed with premature ovarian failure at 28 and had both her kids with donor eggs. Not until years later did she discover that the root cause of her infertility was a food intolerance.
Don’t forget to check out my Resources page for more information and products that will help you on your journey to getting pregnant.
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