Pregnancy is a truly beautiful gift, something bigger than your own self, a moment of creation that changes the world by welcoming someone who did not exist before. But, even such beautiful moments may be ruined because of excessive pressure and attention on the couple who are trying to conceive, sometimes, even turning negative where the couple either start blaming each-other or everyone else starts blaming them. But, we should always remember, not everything is in human hands, let alone something as spectacular as giving life.
There always external reasons that may cause problems in the journey towards pregnancy, especially in this day and age. The first step for those who are preparing themselves towards having a baby is to go through a basic fertility test for men and women that are easily available, both over-the-counter and in fertility clinics. Be prepared for what problems could arise on your journey of getting pregnant and be ready to explore other options.
While it is important to take care of yourselves as much as possible, it is also important to support each-other and others who are struggling with pregnancy. Hence, it is important to understand why some obstacles in the journey towards pregnancy may not be your fault:
Toxin Exposure:
The environment is paying the price for human activities for many years now. In turn, dangerous environmental pollution impacts human lives too on an everyday basis, but sometimes it can have long-term effects. One of those effects is fertility problems. The rise of autoimmune diseases like PCOS and celiac disease are also connected to the infertility problem. Dioxins are known to cause problems in the menstrual cycle of women. Xenoestrogens can also mimic certain hormones in the body and cause disruptions. BPA may also trigger PCOS and damage eggs. (1)
Sedentary Working Environment:
The work lifestyle of this age is something that is terrible for health but also something that cannot be rejected. There are gyms in almost every MNC but working hours start in the middle of the night, when is one supposed to use these facilities? Increase in desk jobs and even work-from-homes have led to a largely sedentary lifestyle for both men and women. This causes major problems in health as a whole and fertility also takes a massive hit.
Stress:
Another inheritance of our time is stress, poor work-life balance and sleep deprivation. Psychological disturbance can also have many negative effects on physical health. Stress causes many hormonal imbalances and the body gets mixed signals that ruin its natural functioning. For example, it is a ‘Fight or flight’ response of the body to secrete more cortisol that progesterone during stressful times which, thanks to our lives, is most of the time. Thus, it causes problems for pregnancy.
Medical Intervention:
Excessive medical treatments like contraceptives, antibiotics, supplements, etc., though mostly necessary, causes many problems in conception. It may also mask underlying problems like PCOS by providing temporary solutions like regularising menstrual cycles, etc. This is also true for supplements for erectile problems. Sedatives and stimulants, widely used to combat psychological problems may also posit obstacles when having a baby. This, again, is out of one’s control and no one’s fault.
Miscarriage: Obstacles don’t go away even when fertility is not the problem. This is one of the major threats to a pregnancy after it has already happened.There have been studies that one in five pregnancies end in miscarriages. That is a very high number but it is still unclear why miscarriages happen. Some of the common culprits are chromosomal anomalies, uterine anomalies, trauma or excessive smoking-drinking during pregnancy. But, these are still a lot of doubts when it comes to causes of miscarriages and more often than not, it’s out of anyone’s control, including doctors.
In conclusion, it must be said that though chances of a safe pregnancy dramatically increase when people adopt a healthy lifestyle and approach, there are still a lot of factors that are not in our hands and therefore we must not feel guilty or ashamed at the face of obstacles that come with pregnancy. (2)
