the power of positive thinking

Whilst in the middle of making a goal lists the other day, I realized something quite monumental:

For my first cycle of trying to conceive (february-march), I was completely and blissfully sure that I would get pregnant that cycle.

I did (and I lost it, but that’s a whole ‘nother basket of eggs).

For my fifth cycle of trying to conceive (may-june), I was completely sure that I would get pregnant that cycle, because I was going on a vacation with my husband and had heard of so many women getting pregnant that way (a conception-moon of sorts). I was thinking that from day two of my cycle, because of temperatures were identical to my first pregnancy. Everyday, all day long, I was happy and thinking, “this cycle I’m going to get pregnant.” My mother was likewise convinced, and phoned me daily to tell me that I would bring home a little French baby in utero.

I did.

I lost that baby too, but the point is, for cycle two, three, and four, I didn’t think I would get pregnant. I hoped, but I wasn’t so supremely optimistic and confident – I kept thinking of myself as a broken, infertile woman.

According to the Italian fertility journal, Minerva Ginecologica,

“emotional stress can cause severe upheaval in a woman’s reproductive cycle. Women with fertility problems were found to have very high levels of the stress hormone cortisol in their bloodstream. This is the same hormone that has been found to shut down ovulation in female athletes. The study also discovered that more than 5% of all women experienced disruptions in the menstrual cycles merely because of emotional stress. This can make conception difficult or even impossible for some couples” { source here}

Other studies have also shown that depressed women “were 93% less likely to get pregnant,” and that stress and depression may be a leading cause behind unexplained fertility! { source here } With infertility, or subfertility, or recurrent miscarriages (choose your poison), you naturally experience a certain amount of stress and grief. Those emotions, in turn, seem to influence your body: menstrual irregularities, delayed, impaired, or missing ovulation, increased cortisol and prolactin levels, and a whole host of hormonal changes are among the results. Considering how delicate and finely balanced the reproductive system is, it’s no wonder that stress could play a part in conceiving/implanting/carrying a child!

Holy reproductive revelation, batman!

Is it a coincidence that the two times I got pregnant were the two cycles that I thought, day-in and day-out and with certainty, that I would get pregnant?

Could I have gotten pregnant with the help of positive thinking?

According to one recent study of “infertile” women, positive thinking (meditation, breathing exercises, and cognitive behaviour therapy) made a huge difference – 55% of the study group became pregnant and delivered within a year, as compared to only 20% of the control group!{ source here }

I’m willing to give this a shot – I was already reading about CBT (cognitive behaviour therapy) for my bout with depression last winter, and I had planned to incorporate meditation and yoga into my daily routine.

Want to know something else that’s awesome?

I am CERTAIN that I will become pregnant this fall.

*grin*