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The Not So Fertile Goddess

~ and here we go again…

The Not So Fertile Goddess

Tag Archives: Meditation

Meditation for FET

02 Wednesday Aug 2017

Posted by thenotsofertilegoddess in IVF#2 with FET

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Tags

FET, IVF, Meditation

sunflower.jpgEight days until our frozen embryo transfer (FET). We’re almost there. I wrote in my last post about my unexpected influx in anxiety and worry about this FET. I’ve been able to significantly reduce that, thankfully, and one of the major contributors to that reduction has been a meditation and visualization program that I’ve been doing daily. This program is specifically designed for the FET process by a company called Circle and Bloom. You can find it here. I’m not affiliated with the company in any way, and I’m not getting anything for this review, but it has been so helpful for me that I wanted to share. What I like best about this program is that it’s designed specifically for FETs so there are different meditations in the series for the various stages of the process. So it really “fits” with what my body is doing at the time. The guided instructions for focusing my attention, progressively relaxing my body, and fertility related visualizations help keep my wandering mind on target and allow me to fully melt into the experience. It’s really been a life saver. They also have a series specifically for IVF, which I did 3 years ago when I did my first IVF. I found both programs to be well worth the money, and I like that they have digital versions so I can listen to them on my phone or other device, wherever I am.

 

One thing that I really like about using meditation is that it helps to reset my mind so that I can leave the panic and “what if’s” behind and find a place of calm. And that is no easy task when you’re going through infertility treatments. In those moments of calm I’m better able to focus on what I’m grateful for and connect with the Divine. I can also more easily take solstice in my mantra: trust, faith, courage. Every day I’ve been reminding myself that worry and lamenting over the worst possible outcome will not change anything. It won’t prevent anything. Meditation has helped my calm my fears just enough so that I can say, “What if this does work…” rather than “what if it doesn’t”.

 

But meditation doesn’t have to be something formal. I think that anytime you find yourself completely immersed in the moment, that is a form of mediation too. I feel the same sense of calm when I’m talking a walk in nature, sitting in the sun, or engulfed in an art project. My husband took me to one of those painting and wine places, where you get a blank canvas and are instructed by a teacher on creating some picture. And there’s wine (which I drank, moderately, without guilt or worry). Aside from when we had to stop and sneak into the bathroom together so that my husband could give me a shot, gotta love this process, I literally didn’t think about anything other than the painting I was creating. It was a great break and so wonderful to connect with my husband for a fun date night. We laughed and teased each other. IVF is so all consuming that we often loose that joy, or at least misplace it for a while. So I’m going to continue my meditations, both the structured FET meditation series and the more fluid “in the moment” pleasures. I think this will help me come to my FET on the 10th holding a sacred space of readiness and welcome for my baby.

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Soaking Up The Sun

18 Tuesday Jul 2017

Posted by thenotsofertilegoddess in IVF#2 with FET

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Tags

FET, Infertility, IVF, Meditation, Vitamin D

natalie-collins-177075I’m lucky to live in a place that usually has clear beautiful blue skies most of the year. It’s what gets me through the colder months. In July the sun is radiant and, well, a little hot. I’m one of those people who spends a lot of time indoors. I have a desk job. But I do love the sun. The feel of the sun’s warm kiss on my skin. It reminds me of my childhood days spent playing in my parents’ pool, and my teen years listening to the waves crash on the beach. Getting out in the sun is good for my soul.

As a psychologist I also know it’s good for my mental well being. Studies have shown that exposure to sunlight, or lack thereof, is related to mood changes. Without enough sunlight we may feel sluggish, down, or even depressed. There’s even a disorder all about this called Seasonal Affective Disorder. What is it about the sun that affects our emotions this way? Well, there are several contributing factors, but the one that I want to call out here is vitamin D. The sun is hands down the best source of vitamin D for our bodies, and Vitamin D boosts our mood. It also does a myriad of other positive things in our bodies and plays a role in several illnesses from diabetes to cancer to infertility (which you can read more about here). So sunshine is good for my mind, body, and spirit, and my fertility.

I had my Vitamin D levels checked prior to beginning IVF. It was low-normal. At my doctor’s recommendation I began taking a vitamin D3 supplement to boost this up a bit. Then my RE suggested I up it even more to help with egg quality, as Vitamin D is also a great antioxidant. Even though I’m now past egg retrieval, I’m continuing to take Vitamin D as I prepare for my frozen embryo transfer and hopefully become pregnant. So now I’m currently taking the recommended prenatal dosage, although the dose varies based on which resource you read. I’m sticking with what the American Pregnancy Association says, which is 4,000 IU daily of the bio-avalible cholecalciferol form of D3.

But the truth is that our bodies are designed to make vitamin D from sun exposure. This is optimal. Now I know there are a lot of sun-related fears out there. Yes I’ve heard that sun tanning causes skin cancer and we should slather ourselves daily in sunscreen. But on a side note, have you ever read the ingredients in most sun screens? Lots of them are filled with carcinogens (caner causing) and endocrine disruptors (wreaks havoc on hormones which is not good for fertility), so that seems a bit counterproductive to me. I won’t go too far down that rabbit hole in this post. I’m not a sunscreen hater. It has it’s place. Burning isn’t good for anyone and there are some more natural, non-toxic ones out there. But sun exposure has gotten a bad rap. And I’ll admit it: I am a sun lover, in moderation of course.

So I have been making an effort to engage in short, intimate rendezvous with the sun.  I found this article helpful for knowing when and how much sun exposure to aim for safely. But as much as I love the vitamin D, it’s more than that to me. The sun represents energy, power, will, and endurance – and these characteristics are woven into my journey with infertility. So when I bare my skin for a glorious 15 minutes up on my balcony under the sun, that’s what I’m taking in. I’m filling every cell in my body with this energy, this power. I ask the Diving power of the sun to recharge me and give me strength on this journey. I visualize my body filling with this energy and beginning to glow. And then I offer a quiet word of thanks for this wonderful gift.

I was inspired by a recent post in a group that I’m in that referenced an older blog post about a meditation called “Eating the Sun”. It’s a simple meditation that you can do anytime, anywhere. You can find the blog post here and try it out if you’d like. It’s really beautiful.

We could all use a little more sunshine on this journey, couldn’t we?

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