In this issue, you'll find:

• Message from Pamela Madsen
• This month's featured article: Exercise During Infertility: A Mind/Body Approach
  

Dear Friend,

If you’re trying to have a child, if you’re facing fertility challenges, or if you’d like to adopt, you believe – as The American Fertility Association does – that family matters. In fact, we believe it so much so that we have named our annual spring conference Family Matters: The National Fertility and Adoption Conference, the largest annual event of its kind, with over 1,000 attendees last year!

Please join us at on Sunday, April 17 at the Grand Hyatt New York Hotel, on Park Avenue and 42nd Street in New York City. Click here for more details and to register.

You’ll find a welcoming and supportive setting, where you can attend over 40 lectures and workshops and speak one-on-one with top doctors and other healthcare professionals, who will answer your questions and offer insights and perspectives on range of topics, such as in vitro fertilization (IVF), female and male factor infertility, PCOS, ovum donation, PGD, blastocyst transfer, international and domestic adoption, and so much more.

The AFA will also host an exhibit hall featuring fertility clinics, egg donor and surrogacy programs, urologists, alternative therapy programs, pharmacies and pharmaceutical companies, adoption agencies, and attorneys. You will have the opportunity to meet these professionals face to face, ask them your questions, and learn about their services.

The AFA has secured a block of hotel rooms at the Grand Hyatt New York. To reserve a room, please contact the hotel directly at 212-883-1234 and mention The American Fertility Association conference.

I look forward to seeing you on Sunday, April 17. For more information or to register, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, call 888-917-4777 or click here.

Warm regards,
Pamela
P.S. Stay tuned for exciting details about Fertility Talks and Illuminations, our exciting southern California events in early June!

Exercise During Infertility: A Mind/Body Approach
Alice D. Domar, Ph.D

I spend about half of my professional life counseling women and couples who are going through infertility and the other half writing and lecturing on the topic of stress-management for women. In most areas, there is a lot of overlap between the two populations. Relaxation techniques are introduced, eating healthful, well-balanced food is advised, and I teach both groups lots of stress-reduction tools such as self-nurture skills, ways to challenge automatic negative thought patterns, and I tell them that the importance of social support can not be overemphasized. However, there is one area where I basically give opposite advice: I tell my infertile patients to consider decreasing vigorous exercise for a brief period of time but I tell the rest of my audience to exercise as much as they can.

Why do I give such controversial advice to my infertile patients? Why would I do this when I could write long essays which list the benefits of exercise? Why would I limit an activity which can improve your mental and physical health more than anything else you could possibly do? I do this simply because we do not know if vigorous exercise is ok for couples trying to conceive. There is ample animal research which shows that animals who exercise (think monkeys on a treadmill) subsequently have lower pregnancy rates than animals who don’t (think monkeys on the coach). There is some research which suggests that exercising women who do IVF may have lower pregnancy rates. Female college students who begin exercise programs have hormonal changes indicative of fertility problems. However, does this mean than exercise causes infertility? Absolutely not. There are millions of athletes who conceive effortlessly. However, according to some research, there is a subpopulation of women who may be reproductively sensitive to exercise.

So, what does this really mean? It means that there is a possibility that if you have been exercising vigorously for the whole time you have been trying to get pregnant, it might make sense to try decreasing the intensity and duration of your workouts for a few months to see if it makes a difference. I am not talking about hanging up your running shoes and lying on the couch for three months. I am talking about walking, not running or hatha yoga instead of aerobics classes. There are lots of physical activities which will keep you fit and toned but will not have the possibility of impacting your fertility. In my entire career, I have never seen a plump yoga teacher. They all have bodies most of us would kill for.

One of the best things you can do is mindful walking. Being mindful means being in the moment. It means really seeing, hearing, smelling, feeling, and tasting. There are lots of things you can do mindfully, ranging from eating a Hershey’s Kiss mindfully (this is how I teach mindfulness to my patients- try peeling and eating a Kiss mindfully) to making a salad mindfully or taking a mindful shower or even making love mindfully. Being mindful means to focus on your senses, being in the moment, not worrying about the past or the future. Taking a mindful walk kills two birds with one stone- it is relaxation and exercise in one.

Walking mindfully is a wonderful experience. Instead of worrying about which friend will be the next one to announce a pregnancy, focus on what you can see on your walk. Instead of obsessing on what treatment you can try next month, think about what you can hear. Rather than reliving the last fight you had with your husband, focus instead on what you can smell. Be in the moment. You will likely notice that there are sights and sounds and smells on your walk than you never noticed before.

If the concept of mindfulness still feels foreign to you, borrow a dog for your walk. Dogs are always in the moment. They don’t blithely walk past a pile of leaves assuming they will smell the same as yesterday- they have to smell every last leaf. They don’t ignore another barking dog since they heard it bark last week- they need to listen carefully and respond in kind. Make sure the dog doesn’t make you walk faster than you should; I highly recommend basset hounds- their short stubby legs ensure a leisurely pace.

Taking a mindful walk will decrease your level of stress and allow you to think more clearly afterwards. Try taking a mindful walk with someone else. Taking a mindful walk with a partner can be a wonderful experience. Non-verbal communication can be intimate and can bring you closer. Other than during sleep and while watching tv, there are few times in our lives where we are with someone we love but are not talking.

Mild exercise can be a wonderful health-enhancing activity and is highly recommended during infertility. There are few things in life which are free, good for us, fun, and can so easily lessen stress. Walk guilt-free and improve your body and mind!

Alice D. Domar, Ph.D, is the Director of the Mind/Body Center for Women’s Health at Boston IVF and an Assistant Professor of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Biology at Harvard Medical School. She is the author of four books, the most recent of which is the award-winning “Conquering Infertility” (Penguin 2004).