What Are The Benefits Of Therapy With IVF?

Going through infertility and IVF can be challenging, so before you start an IVF cycle, it’s a good idea to make sure that you are emotionally prepared for the journey ahead of you.

‍Many of you, you will have decided to do IVF after months, or even years, of trying to conceive naturally. You may have tried IUIs or tried IVF before and some of you may also have been through the sadness of baby loss. Some of you may have come to terms with your infertility many years ago, as a result of a known, pre-existing medical condition, or because you are LGBTQ and know that conceiving naturally is not an option for you.  

‍It’s likely that you will be offered counselling at some, or several stages of the IVF process by your clinic or specialist and it’s important to be open to this. You may also decide to opt for counselling in addition to what the clinic offers.

How can therapy help before IVF?

‍Having counselling before starting IVF, can help you to come to terms with any of the feelings of loss, grief, sadness, frustration, envy or disappointment that you have experienced already on your fertility journey. It can help you to work through any anxiety, fear and questions that you may have around IVF treatment. Counselling can also help to ensure that you and your partner (if you have one) are on the same page and that you start the IVF process with open lines of communication. Being able to speak honestly and share your feelings and emotions during the process, can reduce stress considerably, which is not only good for your mental well-being, it can potentially increase your chances of conception too.Having counselling prior to IVF can help you to prepare for the outcome of the cycle, whichever way it goes.  Finding out that you are expecting a much-longed-for baby would obviously be a wonderful outcome, however, it’s important to fully recognise that IVF, particularly the first cycle, could also have a disappointing outcome for you, which you also need to be prepared for.    

How can therapy help during IVF?

‍IVF brings emotional and physical challenges. For women, the hormones they are given can alter their mood and present them with a variety of symptoms. This, compounded by the likely anxiety of not knowing whether the treatment will work, anxiety about whether they are doing everything they can lifestyle wise to get the best outcome and often trying to juggle medical appointments with work commitments, it’s no wonder that they can end up stressed and exhausted.For men, they are aware of what their partner’s are putting their body through with hormone injections, oral medication and suppositories, as well as the physical examinations. Men can often struggle with seeing the effects on their partner and not knowing how best to help and support them. Many men want to attend the appointments too and will also be juggling...