TTC and stress... does it make any difference?

[NewAL]

OK, so I've be TTC for quite a while now. I have quite a stressful job in education, and a couple of other things have happened recently that have led to me being signed off work with stress. Do you think I should carry on ttc or leave it for a while until things calm down? Could stress be behind my difficulty ttc up to now???

I ovulate later than usual when I am stressed

I honestly believe stress is having a big impact on me while ttc. I also teach and have been doing an extra role that I hate - it got really bad last month and I spent most of the month in tears and feeling awful. This month it looks like I didn't ovulate/prog levels low and I think this has it's roots in the previous month.

I think stress may also have different impacts on different people - when I was 21 my future hubby had a massive hypo all day and was uncontactable. I was so worried I started bleeding massively - and I was on the pill at the time! So it's clear that stress has a big impact on my hormones. But other people may not have any reaction at all.

I wouldn't stop ttc though - you never know!

I have been under enormous stress (divorcing bipolar ex, very stressful job, recurrent miscarriage) I am forty three and have conceived three times in the last year. So for me, apparently not. However it may or mat not be contributing to my miscarriages.

A friend of mine with a very stressful job was having difficulty TTC - she was signed off work for one month due to stress and was pregnant by the time she went back - she swears stress has a pretty big impact on TTC :)

Stress has been shown to have an impact on fertility. However women conceive during wars, so it's hardly the be-all and end-all.

How old are you? How long have you been TTC? I would be wary of blaming it all on the stress. I had a counsellor tell me that the reason why I wasn't pregnant was because I had a controlling personality and that I wouldn't get pregnant until I relaxed. Funnily enough, I had other ideas and DH and I got checked out by the doc, revealing major structural issues that mean that I would never have conceived without fertility treatment. It has made me a bit sensitive to the "just relax" school of amateur fertility experts.

I wouldn't stop TTC, by the way, just get checked out if you've been trying a year, or are over 35. And good luck. :)

My doctor friend said if a woman if mega stressed it can stop you ovulating. It can also affect the man's sperm count. Of course, ttc can case stress in itself! I'd say there's never s good time to try but make sure you allow time for yourself.