Shame, Guilt, Infertility and Fertility: What Do They Have In Common?

via ovusense.com

"Shame, Guilt and Infertility – what do they have in common?

Here are two very common definitions of shame and guilt:

Shame – a painful feeling of humiliation or distress cause by the consciousness of wrong or foolish behavior.

Synonyms: humiliation, mortification, chagrin, embarrassment, indignity, discomfort

Guilt – the fact of having committed a specified or implied offense or crime.

Synonyms: culpability, guiltiness, blameworthiness

Here is one, very standard definition of infertility:

Infertility – the failure of a couple to conceive a pregnancy after trying to do so for at least one full year. In primary infertility, pregnancy has never occurred. In secondary infertility, one or both members of the couple have previously conceived, but are unable to do conceive again after a year of trying.

Or

Diminished or absent ability to conceive.

What does this mean to you?

Is this about how you feel or what you think?

Infertility & Feelings

We know that our feelings are not facts. We know this in our heads. We do. We know a few other things as well. We know that our feelings are powerful and come from way deep down inside. Our feelings come from our core values; even ones that we cognitively believe are erroneous.

Our feelings become self-fulfilling prophecies. We feel it. We proclaim our feelings. We declare them. We argue about how real they are. How strong they are. We convince ourselves that are feelings are us. We feed them. We are our feelings and if they don’t fit exactly right, we become them..."

Read more here:

http://fertility-news.rmact.com/path-to-fertility-blog/shame-guilt-infertility-and-fertility

Infertility and the psychological impact on couples

"...A number of studies have examined stress and mood state, as predictors of outcome in assisted reproduction techniques. Most of these researches support the theory that stress and depression is directly linked with lower success rates among women pursuing infertility treatment. 

I have personally found this true in my clinical practice. Generally I have observed that happy to go lucky and relaxed patients, who do not have much pressure on them seems to get pregnant easily with IVF / ICSI or even with IUI.  The success rates of patients who are under stress, social pressure or negative in their thinking seems to be low and they often have to undergo  multiple attempts, before getting a positive result.

On the other hand psychiatric diseases like depression can cause infertility. Depression could directly affect infertility due to the physiology of the depressed state which is characterized by elevated prolactin levels, disruption of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and thyroid dysfunction. The result is these women or men do not produce eggs or sperms  as  required..."

Learn more >>

Article Source | Photo Source