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Whenever a couple is ready to make the bold move to attempt to conceive, they will start looking into ways that will help them conceive quicker. When you’re trying to get pregnant, you will most likely get fertility advice from everyone that range from the sage to the ridiculous with crazy fertility old wives tales. Claim Your 20 Free Pregnancy Tests – Click Here
For instance, if their blood sugar or blood pressure is too high, or if they need to make changes with their weight whether they need to gain or lose- that needs to be addressed and taken care of first before they start trying to conceive.
They will be referred to a dietician that is knowledgeable about the fertility diet who can give them excellent guidance. While they are encouraged to stick to the fertility diet, they are also told to stop giving into bad habits. Those are drinking, smoking, doing drugs, drinking too much coffee, and eating too much sugar or refined carbs.
They will also be told that they need to learn to manage their stress levels by taking up yoga or meditation and to make sure that they wind down each evening so they get plenty of good-quality sleep.
Additionally, men will be told to not spend a long time in the shower, and make sure the water is lukewarm instead of hot. Heat kills off healthy sperm. That is also why they are advised to wear boxers and loose-fitting cotton pants instead of briefs and tight-fitting pants, especially jeans which traps the heat into the groin area- which again will kill off healthy sperm.
Women are told that they need to chart their cycles and learning when they ovulate so they have the highest chance of getting pregnant. They can do this by taking their body basal temperature for 3 months and mark the temperature that they get on the graph paper before they start actively trying to conceive because they will be able to see by looking at the graphs when they roughly ovulate. And, they can also check for fertile cervical mucus, and even use ovulation prediction kits to find out when they are the most fertile.
And, aside from that, couples that are wanting to get pregnant will look for additional ways to help them conceive. They may take herbal remedies in conjunction with sticking to the fertility-friendly diet, and that is completely fine. It may even help them conceive even quicker.
However, many couples also rely on old wives tales, which some of them don’t really make sense at all. Let’s check out 12 of the fertility old wives tales which again, do not make sense at all.
Rubbing statues
There have been couples that claimed that they had gotten pregnant quickly after rubbing fertility statues which were created and shaped by tribes that reside on Africa’s Ivory Coast. Supposedly these statues have energies that can help increase fertility. But, this does not make sense because there is absolutely no proof that it really works.
These couples who claimed to have gotten pregnant by rubbing these statues may have just done so at the right time- at the time that the aspiring mom was fertile. And, besides, no one knows how many times they had rubbed these statues. If they are rubbed at the wrong time of the cycle, then nothing will happen.
Waiting until its the full moon
It has been believed that conception is the most likely to happen when intercourse takes place during the full moon. It has been said that the Romans believed that the moonlight had affected the cycle, but again there is no proof to this.
There are plenty of women who conceive when it’s a new moon, or a crescent or quarter moon as well. It all depends on the timing. Just because a woman may get pregnant under a full moon does not mean that the reason it happened was that of the full moon itself.
Sitting on cold surfaces should be avoided
According to Eastern European and Russian folklore, women that sit on cold surfaces such as a snowy bench or ground, concrete, or the cold basement floor, it can hinder fertility. There is absolutely no proof to this at all, and if anything it could even help pregnancy happen- that is if men were to sit on cold surfaces to help preserve healthy sperm.
However, this superstition was believed because, during the 1986 Goodwill Games in Moscow, Ted Turner thought that women’s fertility was purposely negatively affected since the stadium was built with concrete seating. But again, there is no proof to this one at all.
Sweeping under the bed is off-limits
There is absolutely no proof that sweeping under the bed can hurt your fertility. It is a Chinese belief that if you sweep under the bed, then you are sweeping away the unborn child’s spirit. However, if you are surrounded by dust and other pollutants, then it can’t be too good for you either, and who knows- that can even have a negative impact on your fertility. So, keep your room clean, even if that means you have to sweep up dust bunnies that are under the bed. Your future child’s spirit will not go anywhere if you do.
Starting the adoption process will help you conceive
This has maybe happened to a handful of people, but this is the exception and not the rule. Even though it is true that stress will hinder your chances of getting pregnant, it is not always the cause for fertility issues. Just because a couple has resigned to adopting instead of getting pregnant on their own does not mean that they will all of a sudden get pregnant. Severe infertility is severe for a reason, and it doesn’t magically heal itself as soon as you begin the adoption process.
Going on vacation will help you conceive
Again, this revolves around the notion that stress prevents you from conceiving. Yes, that is true, stress can be a huge hindrance on fertility since stress causes cortisol levels to climb up which hinders ovulation or sperm production. But again, severe infertility will not be cured just by going on a relaxing vacation. And, just because you heard about one couple conceiving successfully after their relaxing trip to the Dominican Republic after trying to conceive for years does not mean this is the norm.
Avoid stress altogether
Firstly, that is not doable and realistic. Life is full of stress, whether it has to do with your job, your finances, or your family. Stress is just not avoidable. And, a little bit of stress is actually very good for you. It keeps you motivated, it keeps you working, and it helps you problem-solve. In fact, if you had a completely stress free life, you would end up becoming lazy and not doing what you need to do in order to increase your chances of getting pregnant.
However, a lot of stress is a problem because too much stress will not only cause you to sleep poorly but it will raise your cortisol levels which will be a hindrance to your fertility. It all depends on how you manage it, and the only way you will know is if you are too stressed out is if you cannot function as well as you used to. Then it is time to look into ways to manage your stress levels.
All you have to do is think positive and you will get pregnant
This one is very problematic, it is not possible to think positively all of the time. In fact, it is not even good for you to think positively all of the time. Sure, you want to be optimistic about things working out in the end, but you have to be realistic as well. If you are suffering from severe infertility, having positive thoughts will not increase your chances of getting pregnant.
And, in some cases, things working out, in the end, does not necessarily mean that you will get pregnant. Sometimes you will adopt a great kid and other times, other times you will decide to become a pet parent, or you will make peace with having a child-free life, and you will want to make the most of how to enjoy yourself.
If you look at baby stuff all the time, then that will increase your chances of conceiving
This one is extremely problematic because this comes from the belief that Law of Attraction works this way. Unfortunately, looking at baby stuff all of the time, or thinking about having a baby daily will not increase your chances of getting pregnant like it is falsely believed through what you had learned about the Law of Attraction from The Secret. There is truth to Law of Attraction, but not when it comes to this.
Expanding your family through Law of Attraction will mean you will have to take action on increasing your chances of getting pregnant by using methods that have been proven to work scientifically. Additionally, if you suffer from severe infertility, you may or may not end up having a child of your own. Sometimes Law of Attraction is based on you expanding your family through adoption or by fostering other kids if you are unable to have kids of your own.
If you have infertility, the only way to conceive is through IVF
This belief is not even so much a superstition but it is extremely false. The only time when IVF is the only option to conceive is if the fallopian tubes are blocked and nothing can remove the blockage, or if you are using a donor egg or donor embryo for other reasons.
But sometimes some fertility drugs can be enough to do the trick while conceiving the natural way, and there is also IUI (intrauterine insemination) which is also an effective method for some couples that are facing infertility. But just because you have fertility issues does not mean that the only way that you can get pregnant is through IVF. Again, it is often the last resort unless there is a reason that IVF is the only method that a couple can conceive.
Infertility is psychological
This old wives tale is not only false but it is damaging. People that suffer from infertility are physically unable to have kids without any kind of fertility intervention. Not by having a psychological issue. However, the truth is that because these couples are infertile, they will end up having psychological issues as a result due to being stressed, depressed, and will have feelings of despair. It is not the other way around. And, instead of making these statements about couples that are infertile, they could use a lot of support during a difficult journey.
Only women have fertility problems
That is also very untrue. There are women that have perfectly functioning reproductive systems and their partners are the ones that have the fertility issue which is why they have not conceived. Men can have low sperm count and low-quality sperm for a variety of reasons. This is a huge reason that many couples can only conceive through IUI or an IVF method which involves the individual sperm being injected into the egg.
Conclusion About Fertility Old Wives Tales
That said, these old wives tales do not make any sense at all and are completely false. Do not believe any of these but if you want, you can always rub a fertility statue if it makes you feel better. Or, you can always have intercourse during the full moon, but if you are not at your fertile time, it is unlikely that you will get pregnant unless the sperm ends up staying in your system for a very long time which has been known to happen every once in a while. You are much better off trying fertility methods that have been proven to work. Good luck!
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