Supporting Your Partner Through The Challenges of Infertility
Reviewed By: Dr. Prachee Kulkarni, fertility specialist at Ferty9 Fertility Clinic, Kukatpally, Hyderabad
Parenthood is a beautiful experience in life, but at the same time, there are many couples who face hardship and challenges of infertility due to several factors. It can cause depression and bonding issues between spouse that further affect their relationship in the long term. However, proper management of infertility treatment can give hope if you are dreaming of a healthy conception.
When it comes to the fertility journey, you need to have trust, strong bonding, and effective communication with your spouse. So, here we are sharing the most effective tips to support your partner during the ups and downs of infertility treatment. But first, let’s understand the common causes behind infertility issues faced by a man or a woman.
Common Causes Of Infertility In Both Men And Women
Both women and men may face infertility challenges and have problems conceiving. Unhealthy lifestyles and terminal diseases are some general factors that can cause infertility. So, for proper management of infertility, doctors check the reproductive system, find out the problem, and thereby start their treatment. Apart from that, here are some causes of infertility in both men and women.
- Declining age is one of the most common causes of infertility. However, the best age for females to conceive ranges between 20 and 30; for males, it can go up to 50.
- Weight fluctuation (being overweight or underweight) can be another cause of infertility.
- Sexually transmitted infections like HIV (AIDS), syphilis, and vaginitis can cause infertility and are sometimes incurable or life-threatening.
- Abnormalities in the hormone-producing centers of the brain can cause infertility as it stops sperm production in men and ovulation in women.
- Infertility can also be caused by excessive alcohol consumption, smoking, and related terminal diseases.
Suggested Read: 5 Tips for How to Increase Ovulation Naturally
Infertility causes both physical and emotional stress that needs time, patience, and mutual support to cure. Getting female fertility treatments like IVF, IUI, and ICSI can be a crucial step for couples to attain parenthood. However, if both partners believe in their relationship and try to support each other through the challenges of infertility, then the treatment gets easier.
Practical Ways To Support Your Partner Facing The Challenges of Infertility
Communication And Emotional Support During Fertility Counseling
The first requirement for the management of infertility is having open and honest communication with fertility counselors. During fertility counseling, keep the professionals updated on your mental obstacles during IVF treatment procedures. Having effective emotional support and guidance throughout the fertility journey can promote effective results.
For emotional support, you can ask your partner for their wants and needs. Doing so can be a great way to bond and improve your relationship. Besides, if your partner misses an appointment, you should calmly discuss the reason and resolve any type of misunderstanding.
Educating Yourself About Infertility
For better management of infertility, you need to educate yourself about the normal responses, talk to people going through the same issues, or seek professional help whenever needed. Here are a few fertility management methods that couples can benefit from:
- You should be aware of the natural family planning method. If it takes more than 1 year of regular trying to conceive, then you can consider infertility treatment.
- Mark the ovulation period, such as when the monthly menstrual cycle starts.
- Knowledge of fertility medication and treatments can trigger ovulation.
Managing Stress And Anxiety
Stress and anxiety are common issues couples often face during the infertility phase. However, if you want to get the best result through the management of infertility, you must reduce these elements.
Being positive and having a healthy mind can help increase your chances of fertility and achieve your goal of becoming a parent. For this, you can talk to couples who have already conceived by tackling their infertility issues. Remember that it is normal to feel anxious during infertility treatment. So, make sure to spend more social time, talk to your partner, and join support groups to reduce unwanted thoughts.
Suggested Read: The Impact of Stress on Men’s and Women’s Sexual Health
Sharing Responsibilities And Decision-Making
You must share work responsibilities and listen to your spouse in decision-making. It can help you support your partner through reproductive challenges and increase fertility chances. Managing fertility treatment along with work-life chores is essential. Couples should plan for financial needs, get moral support from friends, and commit to the tasks that can be shared with their partner.
A calm and stress-free mind is also considered the key to increasing the chances of a successful conception. So, you must make an effective decision for the management of infertility with emotional understanding, knowing your responsibilities, and having honest communication with your spouse.
Seeking Fertility Support Outside The Relationship
During the management of infertility, you must ensure you accept the emotional challenges and cater to each other's feelings. You can seek help from outside the relationship, like friends, family, or fertility support groups. It will keep you in the presence of people with similar struggles and help in reducing feelings of isolation. You should also contact fertility counselors to manage the infertility challenges with ease and prevent negative feelings.
Coping With Challenges And Setbacks
Not getting positive results after trying natural ways to boost fertility can lead to a stressful life. However, various techniques can give hope in the management of infertility. Dealing with challenges and setbacks, like anger, guilt, sadness, and loss of self-confidence, is obvious during treatment. So, both partners should understand each other’s emotional stress and try to resolve it together. Being positive is the key, and catering to each other’s feelings can be a great choice as well.
Suggested Read: 6 Natural Ways to Boost Fertility
Maintaining Intimacy And Connection
During the stress of infertility and its treatment, couples can sometimes lose sight of what brought them together. By maintaining intimacy and mental connection with your spouse, you can eventually escape this dilemma. You should focus on nurturing your relationship to build a stronger connection with each other. Remember, being physically intimate isn’t the only way to feel connected; leaving racy texts for each other, planning fun dates, and having cuddles are also great ways to provide comfort.
Celebrating Milestones And Achievements
Amidst all the efforts and challenges during the infertility treatment, you must enjoy little milestones and achievements. Whether you’ve started a new IVF cycle, got positive test results, or improved your bonding as a couple, make sure to celebrate these milestones. Having a grateful and resilient mindset can help you a lot to deal with the ups and downs of fertility treatment.
Seeking Professional Help When Needed
During your infertility journey, consulting a professional counselor is crucial for an ideal treatment. You can start by asking your physicians for referrals to local mental health professionals. You can also ask for recommendations for relevant books and articles, along with IVF support groups.
Infertility support groups can offer you great strategies for stress management and life balance through extended discussions. So, make sure to consult a support group that caters to your relationship as well as your mental health.
Practicing Self-Care And Self-Compassion
Infertility causes women to have a stressful life, and various obstacles come in front of couples. But it’s common to have these intense emotions, and only proper management of infertility can help you cope with it. So, at this time, you must prioritize self-care, self-compassion, and supporting your spouse.
Here are the ways to overcome the challenges of your partner with self-care:
- Cater to each other’s emotions, focusing on your career, and fulfilling your hobbies.
- Keep a check on your mental health by practicing mindfulness, taking medications, and engaging in therapy.
- Regular exercises, such as walking, dancing, aerobics, and yoga, can keep your mind and body calm and energetic.
- Eating a healthy and nutritional diet can boost the chances of positive results after fertility treatment.
- Try to accept the situation and be kind to yourself while removing stress and anxiety from your mind.
Planning For The Future Together
Although the infertility treatment alone can take up to a couple of months and, in some cases, even more, you need proper mental and physical support. Discussing your parenthood dreams, planning future vacations, and other things can give a sense of positivity.
Planning for the future according to your success rates is also necessary, as it can help you manage the upcoming responsibilities of parenthood. Planning for more kids should at least have an interval of 24 months or more.
The ultimate goal of your marriage is to live a happier and healthier life and cope with every challenge together. At this time, you need to support your partner with patience and accept the challenges while going through the management of infertility.
Conclusion
It requires an excellent management of infertility that includes emotional support, financial support, stress relief, and whatnot. Being positive throughout the fertility journey brings you closer to your partner for leading a happy life. At this stage, being with your spouse can smoothen the path to solving the challenges of infertility. Besides, supporting your partner by listening to them and sharing the responsibilities together is an effective step in male fertility support, and the same goes for females.
But unfortunately, infertility is one of the biggest challenges a couple may face these days when they plan for a family. However there are several treatments available for infertility, but IVF is the most effective and popular one. You should also not shy away from contacting professional fertility counseling. Ultimately, when you are on a journey to plan a family, no hurdles can prevent you from fulfilling the dream. There is an abundance of options to support you.
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