With this study published definitely linking stress and trying to conceive, we are one giant step closer to understanding more about our female bodies.

Three years ago when I had my “a-ha” moment, standing in my kitchen holding a cup of coffee, with the idea of Circle+Bloom banging me on the top of the head, the stress-fertility connection was only a theory. Over and over we heard friends who “gave up trying” and either adopted or decided to go childless, and they ended up naturally pregnant.

Even my own experience seemed to show the connection: our first baby came with us “trying but not trying,” – we weren’t using birth control, nor were we expecting anything to happen. Our second child was a completely different story. With my biological clock ticking like Big Ben, our work to get pregnant a second time was just that: work. Four years of work.

Now, we have 284 women to thank for shedding light on the subject. With the study published in the Journal of Fertility and Sterility, we can now conclusively say that there is a most definite connection between the length of trying to get pregnant and levels of stress.

Of course there are a multitude of other factors that may be impeding your fertility: PCOS, endometriosis, premature ovarian failure, cysts, etc., etc. This doesn’t mean, however, that you should ignore the stress component if you do have a diagnosed condition. Working through your stress issues will give you peace of mind and having a better feeling of control over your fertility and may give you the strength to carry on.

So let’s celebrate this new-found knowledge! Use it to our advantage! Say NO to stress!

I can hear you yelling at me right now though. Is this easier said than done? This raises questions for ourselves such as how much stress do we really experience in our lives? How can I really reduce stress and relax? How do I know if it is working?

Here are five tips to begin to think differently about your life, your stress and your ability to become pregnant:

1. View the stress-infertility link with a sense of optimism and take control of your fertility. Knowledge is power, and this study brings us closer to making our pregnancy dreams a reality. Think about this as a way to restart your fertility journey.

2. Assess what brings you peace, joy and fulfillment. Every single day, find the simple things in life and find gratitude for them. For me, it could be the sun light filtering through the curtains that makes me stop and enjoy the moment. What else brings you happiness throughout your day? Try to become more aware of your inner state of being, and really make a commitment to yourself to manifest more of the good stuff in your life.

3. Deep breath every single day. The wonderful book by Meir Schneider who taught his eyes to see after being born completely blind convinced me of the value of deep breathing exercises. The fact that most of the time we take in only enough oxygen for our lungs when the entire body needs oxygen convinces me that we need to take time to restore all parts of our body with deep breathing exercises. Not only will you feel more awake and alive after deep breathing, but the process of focusing on your breathing is step one in any kind of meditation or relaxation work. Focusing only on your breath allows you to become centered and more fully present.

4. Wherever you go, there you are. The wonderful books by both Jon Kabat-Zinn and Ekhart Tolle have been so life-changing for me on a personal level. For most of my life, my thoughts have always been on the next thing in my life, the future, and the “what-ifs” that could either help or hurt me. I was known in my family as the “klutz” and I truly believe I have accidents when I am not focusing on what it is I am doing in the present moment. What these books have taught me is that all we have is right now. All that truly exists is right now. By focusing on the “now,” I begin to see the true value of my existence. (Note – I still have klutzy moments as my sisters will surely point out – but I realize it immediately where my thoughts were and therefore feel more in control.)

5. Integrate relaxation techniques into your schedule. Just like you exercise for health, just like you take vitamins and eat healthy foods, you should also take time to consciously reduce your heart rate in relaxation and focused attention. Slowing your brain chatter, becoming more aware of your thoughts each and every day – and scheduling something in your daily schedule like meditation, using our Circle+Bloom programs, yoga, journaling, or simply taking a long slow walk to savor the day.

We are setting our sights on you, PCOS!  We are in our labs right now mixing up a deadly concoction of brain-body therapy to rid you forever!

When we sent out our questionnaire a few months ago as to what next product you would like us to develop, PCOS was high up on the list. We’ve heard you and are working very hard to help you help yourself heal from PCOS.

By way of quick background, Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) is a hormone dysfunction. It effects approximately 1 in 10 women, and is most often never diagnosed unless there is a specific problem pertaining to trying to get pregnant. We don’t know the cause, nor do we have a pharmaceutical cure. PCOS symptoms vary to a large degree, but include not so fun things such as menstruation irregularity and anovulation, insulin-resistance and being overweight, male-pattern excess hair growth or loss (depending on location), depression and a few other wonderful traits.

Essentially, PCOS is a hormone inbalance. From my tons of research, I’ve uncovered the fact that we really don’t know which is the first “domino” to fall, but our cycles are completely out of whack. In a normal cycle, we have a hormonal feedback loop that starts with the Hypothalamus sending GnRH to the Pituitary which sends out LH and FSH in increasing amounts to the ovaries which in turn send estrogen back to the pituitary in increasing amounts to reduce the LH and FSH (and surge LH around ovulation)…and then progesterone enters the picture. Everything works in order to effect the menstrual cycle. With PCOS, there is either not enough estrogen (or too much andogens/testorone in relative figures), not enough LH or FSH (or too much of either of them) or not enough or too much progesterone. The cycle breaks down and can’t recover itself.

I was diagnosed with PCOS as a late teen – probably because I had a great OBGYN and a few symptoms such as irregular cycles. I had trouble with conception not so much with our first, but most definitely with our second child.

All this research has been bouncing around like a tennis balls in my head.  I am now convinced that we need to get our cycles back on track. Simple as that. If at some point the cycle broke down at one point AND our natural state is balance, then we can find the right feedback loop again. Our brain-body communication can do this, I’m convinced of it.  How?  A daily guided visualization to get the body back on track.

I think anyone with PCOS trying to get pregnant can benefit from our daily Natural Cycle program to help the hormones find balance, and then we are set out to create supplemental programs to be listened to every other day – one for insulin and weight loss, one for male-patterned issues, one for depression.  Anovulation and cycle irregularity will fix itself by virtue of the Natural Cycle program which focuses on hormonal changes and balance as you proceed through the cycle.

We sent out a tweet about 5 days ago asking for beta testers, and was overwhelmed with the response. As a fellow “cyster,” I know the frustration and contradictory information and the fact that there is no cure at this point. We are set to change that. Stay tuned.

The NIH study showing indicating stress may delay women getting pregnant is getting lots of attention from the press.  The study which has taken 274 couples who were having trouble with conception and tracked them over the course of six months while testing for stress hormones has shown a statistically significant connection between stress and it taking longer to obtain pregnancy.

But how can we systematically reduce stress in a significant way to improve our reproductive ability?

Let me be absolutely shameless here…..one of the main tenets of how our programs work is to reduce stress each and every day.

How else can you lower your heart-rate, obtain a full body massage with your mind and go on a mini-vacation all in one 15 minute session without leaving your bedroom?

If you haven’t already done so, use one of our sample downloads to try it out.  I guarantee that you will find yourself being physically and mentally transported in a manner that calms your mind and your entire body to help you improve your fertility.

Here are a few of the links to the news stories about the conclusive findings that stress impacts fertility, including Dr. Sanjay Gupta discussing it on CNN and the New York Times article, Old Maxim of Fertility and Stress is Reversed.

Would you believe me if I told you reading about a story of a 61-year-old male cancer survivor can help in your fertility journey? No? Read on, and you might just be surprised to find out.

In 1971, Dr. O. Carl Simonton, a radiologist at the University of Texas met a 61-year old patient who had advanced throat cancer with a very poor prognosis. The patient was so weak that it seemed highly unlikely that he would respond well to radiation, the standard therapy for his condition.

In desperation, Dr. Simonton suggested the man try visualization exercises as a means of enhancing his radiation therapy. While visualizing the cancer cells as vividly as possibly, he imagined his white blood cells successfully ridding the cancer. For him, he saw his cancer cells being swept clean from his system leaving only healthy cells behind. He went home with instructions to repeat this visualization throughout the day, every day.

In a few weeks, his tumor seemed to be shrinking and he was virtually free of side effects from his radiation therapy. After two months, his cancer was completely gone.

Naturally, Dr. Simonton was elated but baffled. How could a thought deal so effectively with a cancer cell? The patient went on to effectively deal with arthritis in his leg that kept him from going stream-fishing. Six years later, he was still cancer and arthritis free.

This is the power of the brain to heal.

Dr. Simonton went on to spend his entire career researching and fine-tuning what would become the Simonton Method. There is a documentary about his life’s work being produced, and here is a five-minute overview.

This is the power of the brain and how we can use visualization to enact this self-healing power. According to Dr. Bernie Siegel, it doesn’t matter if you direct it to heart disease, cancer, arthritis, or infertility — it works on all aspects of our health.

This is the underpinning of our work and programming for Circle+Bloom. Applying this brain-visualization power to the reproductive system. This is why our programs follow the cycle as closely as possible. We move inward and visualize what is happening — or should be happening — on a daily basis.

After watching both my parents die of cancer at the hands of modern medicine, I find a bittersweet solace when I hear these types of stories. But at the same time it strengthens my resolve that we need to educate and teach everyone that this self-healing is a powerful tool we can all use no matter what stage of our life we are in.

This is an edited post that was first published on our special blog on Fertility Authority. If you haven’t done so already, you should really explore the wonderful resources that website has to offer.

If you live in Central Florida, this is an event you will not want to miss!  This is the only event in Central Florida that will bring together top medical professionals and industry experts in one room for one day. The event will feature guest speaker Kim Hahn, founder of Conceive Magazine, Conceiveonline.com and Conceive on Air. She is also the author of “The Fertility Journal; A Day by Day Guide to Getting Pregnant,” “Fertility Facts; Hundreds of Facts about Getting Pregnant” and “Cooking to Conceive.”

The best part, you will get to meet me and Joanne.  Joanne will help lead one of the break out seminars, and we will have an exhibit booth at the conference.  Joanne will be educating attendees about the power of the brain and how people can use proven mind-body science techniques to help bring about necessary physical changes that might be required to conceive.  These changes might include hormone balance, proper ovulation or changes to the uterus lining.  Mind-body science techniques can also help reduce stress and help with sleep issues.  Reducing stress, and getting proper sleep have been noted as key elements to help with conception.

Fertile Dream is a great organization and this event is only one of the many ways they help couples struggling to get pregnant.   We love their Vision – Fertile Dreams envisions a world in which individuals discuss fertility issues without feeling embarrassed and inadequate, a world where young people are aware and attuned to the importance of maintaining a healthy lifestyle to preserve their fertility, and one in which everyone celebrates and recognizes the miracle of a child joining a family, no matter how the family is created.

Paths to Parenthood Conference will be held on Saturday, September 18, 2010 at the Marriott World Center Orlando.  Join us from 8:00am – 4:00pm for the one-day event.  There will an IVF and adoption raffle. Admission is $20 per person or $30 per couple. Register online at www.FertileDreams.org or by calling 321-397-3868.

We hope to see you there!

Mike Berkley, L.A.c, founder and director of the Berkley Center for Reproductive Wellness, has been so extremely helpful to us on a ton of levels. I can’t say enough about him as a professional, an individual, and now I can say a friend.

First of all, his offices are immaculate, gorgeous and very spa-like. You feel instantly transformed into a cocoon of calm when you walk through his doors. Anyone looking for acupuncture in the New York City area needs to consult with Mike Berkley. He is the “acupuncture for acupuncturists” – a true leader in his field.

Anyway, he recently created this video discussing how he has been using our programs in his practice.  He has 4 i-pod Nanos, loaded with all of our programs, allowing his patients to choose the program and track of their choice and listen during their sessions.

When a patient comes into his office and is being “needled,” they choose one of our programs to listen. They then “bliss-out,” as Mike refers to the relaxation and “clinical” benefits that our programs provide.

Mike “absolutely” recommends our programs. He says they aren’t just relaxing, they have clinical benefits -  opening our mind-body connection to guide our bodies towards health. Watch this video to find out how our programs has transformed his business:

We are happy to be in the final stages of crafting a special professional licensing offer – one that will be based on Mike’s success. The licensing options will be designed for both acupuncturists and Reproductive Endocrinologists who can offer our programs to their patients in treatment.  They will also be able to share in the revenue of patients who buy our programs to use at home in between their treatments. We are looking for the ultimate win-win situation.

So, if you are a professional – stay tuned! We want to work with you, and we are working on a “no-brainer” offer for you and your practice.

This is a guest post from our good friend Cindy Bailey from The Fertile Kitchen. After being given a 2% chance of naturally conceiving, Cindy completely changed her diet and was pregnant within four months. Motivated by this life-changing experience, she set out to write about her fertility diet research and, along with her husband, crafted this beautiful book that is both filled with interesting recipes and well-researched facts about what to put into our bodies to optimize our fertility.

Finally, after six IVF treatments Celine Dion is pregnant with twins at the age of 42. Hooray! Hooray for her persistence as much as her reward. It can be tough for women to get pregnant in their 40’s. Should they go for it anyway? (I think I know how Celine would answer.)

First of all, I want to congratulate Celine on sharing her very private fertility story publicly because by doing so she helps those that don’t have fertility issues better understand how incredibly grueling and sensitive it is to go through such an ordeal. I often refer to Dr. Alice Domar’s findings in a Harvard study: Women who want children and are told they can’t have them react with the same level of stress and depression as those who are told they have cancer or AIDS. Yes, it’s that devastating.

Second, here’s what I think about women attempting to conceive in their forties: go for it! Yes, the statistics and odds are against you, but I believe we are not statistics. We are people, individuals, and we do have the power to make a difference in our own health – reproductive and otherwise. We can use mind-body techniques, such as Circle+Bloom’s beautiful program, to reduce stress and create calm, we can use visualizations to empower us, and we can eat the right foods to optimize our health. We can do acupuncture, meditate, take herbs and supplements and do yoga. And we can do IVF too if we choose. There is a lot we can do to make a difference for ourselves and set us apart from the average statistic. As a group we even have the power to change the statistics to something more positive over time!

But know up front that trying to conceive in your 40’s might not be easy. If it’s not, you have to decide for yourself how much you can take, and when enough is truly enough. Unfortunately, there is no magic formula that guarantees pregnancy. I know of a woman who finally got pregnant with her 9th IVF, another with her 11th. They reached their dreams, but at what cost? How far do you feel you can go? I believe that decision is up to you and you alone.

When I was given a 2% chance of conceiving, I made a conscious decision not to listen to that number. It was unacceptable to me that I don’t get to have a child, so I set out to do everything in my power to fight the odds. I researched and went on a fertility diet, practiced yoga, meditated, did visualizations and took supplements. I simply flat-out believed I would have a child at some point, and four months later I conceived naturally at 40. I believed in myself and in my body to make a difference.

Looking back, I knew I wanted to be able to say I did everything I could, within my emotional and financial capacity. That way, when the time came, I could move forward without regret, knowing I had tried everything I could. Sometimes we don’t know our limits until they’re tested. In any case, I feel only you can decide when you’ve reached them.

So if Celine Dion wanted to keep doing IVFs until she reached her goal (and her husband agreed to it), more power to her. That was her choice. She understood the challenges she faced and chose to fight. It was a risk, but it was hers to take. Now she is blessed with enjoying the rewards.

© 2010 by Cindy Bailey of www.fertilekitchen.com

We are just about to celebrate our first anniversary in business. What a year, and we have big, bold plans for the future.

We need your feedback though to make the most of our future, and we would like to learn a little more about you!

Will you please take 5 – 10 minutes to complete this survey? We will donate $1 to Resolve for every completed survey. Five minutes of your time to have great impact on Circle + Bloom and help a great organization, isn’t that worth it?

“Don’t let your mind bully your body into believing it must carry the burden of its worries.” ~Astrid Alauda

What does stress mean to you? In this post we seek to uncover the mysteries of stress, its effects on our health and fertility and why it’s important to do something about it.

Stress is something I believe we all have in some way shape or form. I believe it is built into our psyches to effectively handle the demands of our existence. The flight or fight reaction is stress induced. Researched by Hans Seyle in the 1930s, stress is still something that remains somewhat elusive, probably because of the difficulty we have in actually measuring it. It is a psychological response, and therefore, different with everyone.

There are some great articles and surveys in various places that can help you better understand stress and its impact on our health:

* The American Psychological Association has a great interactive online tool that shows the parts of our body that is impacted by stress.
* The Mayo Clinic has an online stress assessment survey to rate your levels of stress.
* Trusty Wikipedia has a very in-depth article all about the history of stress.

When applied to the stress-infertility question, I don’t think it’s surprising to learn that women undergoing fertility difficulties have as much stress as people being threatened with life-threatening diseases like cancer or heart-disease. Infertility puts into question a couple’s life-plans and ability to raise a healthy and happy family. It questions our existence and future plans at its core. It’s invasive to our life and can create cyclical emotional roller coasters each and every month.

We have also seen studies that show that by reducing the stress in our lives, we can proactively help improve our fertility. At one end of the spectrum, when stress is at very high chronic levels, menstrual cycles may be suppressed completely. Emory University published a fascinating study about improving ovulation in women by undergoing cognitive therapy, which is essentially being more cognizant of your thought patterns – one very effective way to take control of your life and therefore reducing stress.

As with anything, I think the first step is admitting to yourself that stress is present in your life, and most likely exacerbated by the inability to conceive. Once you have admitted this to yourself through awareness of the signs and symptoms, you can congratulate yourself that you have taken a big step toward improving your life and well-being – and maybe even your fertility.

Then start to do something about it!

Our programs are one way to reduce stress. They works systematically – which you can do each and every day – to help you reduce the effects of stress in your body by using your brain to help your body relax. You don’t need deep massage, yoga or even a vacation to experience very deep relaxation throughout your entire body. Listen to one of our free sample downloads, all of which contain the very effective progressive body scanning techniques – that can work wonders throughout your entire body to begin today to reduce the effects of stress.

Working from home most of the time allows me to feel centered with a more well-rounded perspective with Circle+Bloom, my husband and kids. I’m truly fortunate to be able to do this, and LOVE what I am doing day in and day out. And this is speaking from a woman who only a short year ago switched from commuting over 2 hours each day in the city. Happy anniversary to my leaving my corporate existence to finding my true passion. If I can do it, so can you.

We had a family day while doing most of the recording in NYC for my “How to Use Circle+Bloom” video. And then my daughter Jacqueline made her directorial debut in the days that followed to help put the finishing touches on the video. We had so much fun that we made a bloopers video which I hope you enjoy watching as much as we had in making it.

Wishing you and your family a wonderful 4th of July!