Fertility and Body Positivity: Embracing Your Body’s Journey
Your family-building journey can impact all areas of your life. From fertility treatments to the experience of pregnancy itself, you'll likely face many changes and challenges throughout this process. This can be especially challenging for those who are considering egg donation or surrogacy as part of their path to parenthood.
Regardless of where you are in your fertility journey, it’s important to get into the habit of practicing self-love as soon as possible. Now is the perfect time to reflect on your journey and find new ways to embrace your body. Let’s discuss the importance of loving yourself as you grow your family and how you can incorporate more body-positive practices into your daily routine.
The Importance of Embracing Your Body
When it comes to pregnancy and having children, we all have an image of how we think our bodies should work, and most of the time, it’s difficult, if not impossible, to live up to that ideal. This constant stress and self-criticism, combined with fertility-related anxieties, can wreak havoc on your physical and mental health.
Your body is unique and does incredible things without you even thinking about it — from ensuring you breathe to pumping blood to your vital organs, digesting your food, and getting you from point A to point B. You are pretty amazing and deserve to love yourself no matter what.
Self-Love Tips
Loving yourself can be easier said than done, so here are some tips to help you get started:
1. Practice Mindfulness
Mindful exercises like certain breathing and meditation techniques can help put a pause on negative self-talk and take your mind off fertility-related concerns. In fact, a 2015 study found that mindfulness-based interventions can reduce emotional distress, pain perception, depression, and anxiety after three to six months of continued practice.
2. Be Kind to Yourself
Many aspiring parents facing fertility challenges blame themselves and their bodies, believing that they’re flawed or defective. Think about it this way: would you consider your body a failure if you needed glasses? Of course not! You were born with the eyes you have, and for them to work at their best, they need a bit of assistance. The same concept applies to fertility.
One easy practice is to repeat positive affirmations to yourself. Say something nice about your body each morning when you look in the mirror, or place sticky notes with encouraging mantras on your bedside table and read them aloud before bed.
3. Do Something That Brings You Joy
Something as simple as walking or journaling every day can help you process your emotions and experiences. Spending time with yourself is a great way to practice quality self-care and can help boost your self-worth.
4. Seek Support
While self-love ultimately comes from within, research shows that positive relationships can help improve self-esteem. There are many individuals out there who have undergone similar struggles and made it through. Finding a like-minded community can show you that you're not alone, and they can also offer advice for loving yourself as you try to grow your family.
Treat Yourself with Kindness
The fertility journey is complex, with many aspiring parents experiencing a rollercoaster of emotions about themselves and their bodies. That’s why practicing self-care, kindness, and body positivity as soon as possible is crucial. At Fertility Source Companies, we are deeply in tune with the emotional hills and valleys that people go through when growing their families via egg donation and surrogacy, providing a supportive environment as intended parents navigate the path to parenthood. To learn more about our supportive approach, connect with us today.
