The stress of infertility

While I have addressed the emotional effects of infertility on a couple's marriage, I haven't spent a lot of time looking at how the stress of being infertile can affect a single person. Dr. Andrea Braverman, PhD addresses the connection between infertility and stress levels in her article Stress & Infertility. Ultimately, anyone who deals with infertility (whether personally experiencing it or having a loved one who is) will deal with some amount of stress.

Braverman describes a "chicken and the egg" situation "the relationship between stress and infertility can be seen as either causative (stress causes infertility) or reactive (infertility causes stress)" which makes absolute sense to me. Does that make sense to you? Unfortunately, studies cannot draw a conclusive answer to show which direction, if any, stress and infertility may be connected.

According to her research, Dr. Braverman finds many factors that contribute to the stress of infertility; "personality styles, ways of coping with the stress and the environmental stress and support systems" in your life may also have a direct effect on the level of personal turmoil infertility can cause. However, learning to cope effectively is the best goal any person with living with infertility can keep in mind.

Read the article and see what you think of Dr. Braverman's opinion and research. Come back and share your thoughts with me.