When you want a child more than anything else but haven’t been able to conceive, you may feel extremely disappointed and sad. You may have a hard time staying positive but you need to work on not allowing negativity to overtake you. Remember that it takes a lot of courage to pursue fertility treatment, and getting the results you want may be a long process. It’s important to know how to stay positive during fertility treatment.
Having a supportive and compassionate team on your side can make a big difference. You can count on the staff at the Center for Reproductive Health to help you navigate the ups and downs of the fertility treatment process.
Coping With Overwhelming Emotions
Fertility treatment can make you feel emotional and out of control. It’s important to avoid allowing overwhelming emotions such as sadness, anxiousness, or discouragement to consume you. Some ways to cope with overwhelming emotions include:
- Physical activity. Physical activity is a great way to release stormy emotions. Try to fit some form of physical activity such as walking, swimming, or dancing into your daily routine. Quiet forms of physical activity such as yoga, tai chi, or qigong are great ways to focus on the moment and not on emotional turbulence.
- Journaling. Writing down your feelings gets them out of your head and helps you sort through what’s really bothering you. Another approach is to make a habit of expressing gratitude on paper or writing about good things that happen to you each day, which keeps your focus off feelings of negativity.
- Meditation. Meditation refers to several different ways to achieve a state of relaxation. Practice quieting your mind using deep breathing, mantras, or guided meditations.
- Therapy. A trained psychotherapist can help you sort through feelings of negativity and emotional distress and can recommend tools and practices to help you cope with the way you’re feeling.
- Ask for help. It’s important to surround yourself with supportive people. Friends and family members may unintentionally say things that make you feel worse. Know where to go to get the emotional support you need, whether it’s your closest friend, an in-person support group, or an online discussion group.
Negative thoughts can creep in and bring you down. Work on being kind to yourself and interrupting any negative thoughts that you might have. Fertility challenges aren’t your fault. Visualize a peaceful place or a positive outcome and think about things in your own life that lift you up. Instead of dwelling on what may or may not happen, take the time for listening to music, playing with a pet, reading a book, watching funny cat videos, or just relaxing.
Keep Learning About Fertility Treatment
Feeling emotional is sometimes triggered by feeling confused or uncertain, so it’s a good idea to get as much information as you can about what to expect during fertility treatment. Don’t hesitate to reach out to the experts at the Center for Reproductive Health with any questions or concerns you may have.
