It's the kind of advice well-meaning friends and family offer if they know you are struggling to conceive: “Just stop worrying about it, and it will happen”. While it's true that stress can reduce fertility, stopping worrying about conceiving unfortunately won't guarantee a positive pregnancy test.
Common causes of infertility in women include: Fallopian tube obstruction. Blocked or scarred fallopian tubes that prevent sperm from reaching the egg are a frequent cause of infertility. A history of pelvic infections, sexually transmitted diseases or endometriosis increases your risk for fallopian tube obstruction.
Most couples will get pregnant within a year if they have regular sex and don't use contraception. But women become less fertile as they get older.
If your menstrual cycle lasts 28 days and your period arrives like clockwork, it's likely that you'll ovulate on day 14. That's halfway through your cycle. Your fertile window begins on day 10. You're more likely to get pregnant if you have sex at least every other day between days 10 and 14 of a 28-day cycle.
Tokophobia is a pathological fear of pregnancy and can lead to avoidance of childbirth. It can be classified as primary or secondary.
Having a history of anxiety, depression, or childhood sexual abuse5 Hearing traumatic birth stories from friends or on social media. Hormonal changes that make it harder to manage anxiety. Psychosocial factors like getting pregnant at a young age, being impoverished, or lack of social support.
It is totally normal to be scared to have a baby. Many women are. Getting pregnant and giving birth to a child is a tremendous event in your life that will bring about life changing circumstances. Many people even doubt that they would be good parents.
It can affect men and women at any time of life. If a woman has OCD during pregnancy or after birth (known as the perinatal period) it is called Perinatal OCD. You may have had OCD before getting pregnant. For some women, pregnancy or birth can be the trigger for the disorder.
Some women develop obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) during pregnancy or after childbirth. This is called perinatal OCD and is more common after giving birth.
Anxiety during pregnancy is also known as antenatal anxiety. Antenatal anxiety is common, and it can affect either parent. If you have antenatal anxiety, you may feel very anxious about your baby's welfare, and seek frequent reassurance that they are healthy and developing normally.
Intrusive thoughts are quite common for new and expecting parents. Some studies suggest that as many as 90% of new mothers experience unwanted thoughts related to their child during pregnancy or shortly after birth!
Intrusive thoughts are often triggered by stress or anxiety. They may also be a short-term problem brought on by biological factors, such as hormone shifts. For example, a woman might experience an uptick in intrusive thoughts after the birth of a child.
Obsessing and ruminating are often part of living with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). No matter how hard you try to ignore them, those negative thoughts just keep coming back, replaying themselves in an infinite loop.
What drives this is underlying anxiety. Common forms include worrying, perfectionism, struggle with making decisions, and excessive control over yourself and others. Keys to coping include getting your rational brain online, using your gut reactions as important information, and taking acceptable risks.
Although it is rare, pseudocyesis (“false pregnancy” or “phantom pregnancy”) is a serious emotional and psychological condition. Psychological factors trick the body into believing that it's pregnant.
You should contact your GP surgery or local midwife service as soon as you find out you're pregnant (before 8 weeks into the pregnancy). It's important to see a midwife as early as possible to get the antenatal (pregnancy) care and information you need to have a healthy pregnancy.
Baby fever is a strong sudden desire for someone to have their own child. This applies to many cultures and may differ depending on the person.
That's natural. Most people fear what they don't know, and having a baby can feel like the ultimate “unknown.” Keep in mind, when you stop feeling guilty over your emotions, you can start getting to the root cause of them.
If your hormone levels or other internal factors are imbalanced and you feel like you don't want your baby while you're pregnant, then you could be experiencing prenatal depression. Most people have heard of postpartum depression which can occur when your hormone levels drop after your baby is born.
What Causes Infertility? Problems with ovulation are the most common reasons for infertility in women. A woman's age, hormonal imbalances, weight, exposure to chemicals or radiation and cigarette smoking all have an impact on fertility.
You could be worrying that you never will. However, there are many possible reasons why you aren't conceiving, including ovulation irregularities, structural problems in the reproductive system, low sperm count, underlying medical problems, or simply not trying enough.