Many women and couples today delay pregnancy well into their 30s and 40s. Whether by choice or circumstance, as a woman’s chance of conceiving a healthy baby becomes slimmer after age 35 as her supply of healthy eggs decreases significantly. Even with medical advances in fertility treatments, which have allowed many women to conceive well into their 40s, the rate of producing a healthy fetus becomes more daunting later in life. Research shows that having children after age 35 poses increased risk of Down syndrome, chromosomal abnormalities and other birth defects, gestational diabetes, preeclampsia, placental abruption and placenta previa, preterm birth, stillbirth, and even maternal death. In addition, the financial cost of fertility treatments, as well as the emotional roller coaster of hormone shots, blood tests, false positives, and even miscarriages, can put considerable strain on a woman and her partner. These challenges all add significant stress and anxiety to many women and couples trying to conceive later in life. However, research has also shown an inverse relationship between stress and fertility. Partners are not immune to this period of stress and anxiety either. Blame and resentment may become the focal point of a couple’s interactions when understanding and support are actually needed. Although the journey to pregnancy is meant to be a blissful time, the fertility process can lead to feelings of helplessness, hopelessness, anxiety, and depression for many women and couples. Whether women or couples are trying to conceive or are in the midst of pregnancy, reducing stress and anxiety is crucial to fertility and pregnancy. Through case examples as well as demonstration of behavioral exercises, this workshop will address these challenges in detail and provide specific strategies to foster mental wellness in order to achieve a stress-less pregnancy.
Objectives:
- Attendees will be able to identify at least 3 challenging situations in a woman/couple’s lives that increase stress/anxiety during the preconception, prenatal, and postnatal periods.
2. Attendees will be able to utilize a questionnaire to assess at least 5 specific triggers to stress/anxiety during the pregnancy period that inversely affects fertility and adds health risks to the pregnancy.
3. Attendees will be able to adopt at least 5 strategies to mitigate prenatal stress/anxiety in order to help women and couples achieve a stress-less pregnancy.
Presenter(s):
Noah Laracy, MA, Renewed Freedom Center for Rapid Anxiety Relief
Dr. Jenny Yip, PsyD, ABPP, Renewed Freedom Center for Rapid Anxiety Relief
Conference Information:
The ADAA 2017 Annual Conference (April 6-9, San Francisco, Hilton San Francisco Union Square)
Saturday, April 8: 2:30 PM – 4:00 PM
144C
