The unknown can strike terror in us all. And receiving a diagnosis of “unexplained infertility” strikes terror in couples hoping to be parents. This vague but hard-to-hear diagnosis frustrates couples, makes them feel utterly helpless. In fact, it is the best medical diagnosis they can receive. It means there is no physical reason they cannot become parents. Perhaps it helps to look at it this way: You are not infertile—you have the medical proof of that—you simply haven’t conceived yet.
The body has a natural tendency toward health, and nudging the mind toward healthy thinking can make a physical difference. Just as a person can become ‘sick with worry’, so too can a person use the mind to heal with. Hypnosis is the best method for that. Negative feelings such as anxiety, guilt, stress and shame can create emotional conflict, which then affects the body chemically, and cause or compound reproductive problems. Old issues and emotional trauma can strip a woman of her natural confidence and cause her to exist in a perpetual state of ‘flight or fight’. Though the conscious mind resolves to move past the old incidents, the subconscious, or emotional part of the mind may still be living out feelings of betrayal and/or vague threat. As a result the sympathetic nervous system remains frozen, overriding the body’s natural tendency toward balance.
As this condition becomes chronic, the parasympathetic nervous system decides that survival overrides reproduction, and so shuts down the latter, more natural urge. A person in a constant state of stress, often typified by the so-called ‘Type A’ personality, can end up with a variety of stress-related systems. One of these is “unexplained infertility.”
The assault of neuro-chemicals associated with the “fight or flight” response—often triggered by a perceived emotional or physical threat—translates in the body as muscular contraction. This can speed up the cardiovascular system, releasing “emergency” hormones throughout the body. The body is on alarm, energy is directed toward the “fight” or “flight” mechanisms, i.e., the arms and legs, and away from areas the brain considers less important. The reproductive system becomes expendable. When this perceived emergency state becomes chronic, it becomes necessary to calm the runaway nervous system. Hypnotherapy is a highly effective method for enabling women to regain a sense of tranquility and safety essential for conception to take place.
The now-established belief that medical intervention is the only solution to fertility issues causes a premature rush for medical testing. The stress brought on by this invasive protocol alone can negatively impact on endocrine balance. Sadly, women aged 35 and up are now considered “high-risk.” Just hearing these few words can be enough to increase a woman’s already soaring stress levels. And, to state the obvious, stressor hormones are not conducive environments for fertility.
Hypnosis is highly effective in handling the emotional issues that, in 25% of infertility cases, lead to ‘unexplained infertility’. Many couples have come to rely on medicine to ‘do it for them’. The proliferation of women in high stress jobs only aggravates a tendency toward hormonal imbalances.
The utilization of deep relaxation techniques such as hypnosis and acupuncture, along with lifestyle changes such as diet and exercise, can go a long way to restoring hormonal balance. Hypnotherapy is excellent for reducing stress, and instills a sense of control in the client. This in turn enables her to maximize her chances of conceiving naturally and/or increasing the success of medical assistance such as IVF.
Questions? Contact Me.