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De-stress for Safety
Learn to Take It Easy During Pregnancy
By Katherine Bontrager
A study published in the periodical New Scientist points to a connection between stress and miscarriages. In research conducted on pregnant women and lab mice, stress reportedly caused the release of a cascade of hormones, leading to spontaneous abortion in some cases.
The Stress Factor
The idea that stress could affect fertility was no news to Lois Ford Long of St. Louis, Mo. "My husband and I tried for three years to have children," Long says. "I had an ectopic pregnancy, a miscarriage and just a general lack of success. I was also working an incredibly high-stressed job as a television news reporter at a local affiliate. I loved it, but it was a pressure-filled job where you lived and died by seconds."
The couple was on the verge of consulting with an infertility expert when Long changed jobs. "Although I wasn't looking for another job, I was offered a communications position outside of television news, with real holidays, weekends off and the chance to go home at the end of the afternoon," she says. After 13 years in television, the time seemed right for a career change, so Long switched jobs and settled into a much more laid-back work environment.
"Within a month, I was pregnant," Long says. "My daughter turned 10 this year. A subsequent pregnancy occurred without difficulty. Eleven years ago, nobody seemed to talk much about stress and pregnancy problems. But I was convinced then, and still am, that it played a huge role in our experience."
The irony, of course, is that there are few things more stressful than pregnancy, especially for those who've endured years of trying, complications and disappointments. But take heart! There are simple ways of relaxing and de-stressing – and many don't require major life changes such as switching jobs.
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