Going through IVF is a challenging journey, and weight gain may be just one of the many difficulties faced along the way. If this is you, please know that you’re not alone. According to a recent survey, more than 40 percent of adults in the U.S. have either used fertility treatments or know someone who has.
While this treatment makes it possible for more people to conceive and start a family, still, some still remain skeptical of IVF due to fear of weight gain, points out Frontiers in Reproductive Health.
Since IVF is a hormonal therapy, it can result in physical changes, which could also cause body image anxieties or past eating disorder issues to resurface. If you’re considering IVF—or in a treatment cycle now—it’s important to be gentle and compassionate with yourself as these potential body changes occur.
Let’s explore a few beneficial self-care strategies to relieve the mental and emotional toll of IVF-related weight gain.
How to Ease the Emotional Impact of Weight Gain from IVF
A recent study in the Journal of Psychosomatic Research found that 15 percent of IVF users have debilitating anxiety before their first round of treatment. This can be due to factors like uncertainty about the process, questions about the outcome, or infertility stress as a whole.
It’s normal to feel complex emotions during the IVF process, but if the fear stems from potential weight gain or your current body weight, you may need to do more than “work through” the anxiety.
Instead of finding tools to facilitate weight loss to quiet those critical voices and the anxiety, our team of skilled therapists recommends that you practice these self-care strategies. These practices can help you ease your fear while addressing underlying body image struggles. If you’re experiencing extreme IVF weight gain, please see a medical professional to check for Ovarian Hyperstimulation Syndrome (OHSS), hormonal imbalance, fluid retention, or other possible medical complications.
Cultivate Realistic Expectations and Reality Check Yourself
Remember that each person’s body is unique—and there is no perfect number for a “healthy weight” during IVF or otherwise. The truth is: bodies react to fertility medications, hormonal shifts, and emotional stressors in their own distinct ways. And it may not matter that you have a “healthy diet” or eat more lean proteins—these body changes may just be part of the IVF process for you.
Ultimately, weight gain is a natural response for some people going through IVF treatment. Experts at Park Avenue Fertility explain:
“Depending on how many eggs develop or if you experience any mild ovarian hyperstimulation, you will notice that your stomach will feel bloated and that your jeans feel snug. This is normal and will subside when you start your next period or within a few weeks of your pregnancy.”
So if you encounter this, keep in mind that you’re not a failure—nor does it affect your intrinsic human worth. Acceptance of the weight gain as both normal and temporary can help shift your mindset, making it easier to accept that this is a short-term struggle for a long-term gain: starting a family.
Finally, it’s important to keep in mind that your weight gain likely won’t impact the IVF outcomes. That critical voice can bring guilt and shame into the picture, so we encourage you to compassionately reality-check yourself when that happens to ease those thoughts.
Make Body Affirmations Part of Your Routine
The language that you use when speaking to yourself matters—your voice is the one you hear the most each day, so you want that voice to be intentional, mindful, compassionate, and calm. That’s why body image affirmations can be so powerful in general, but especially when working through a challenging season like this one.
When you feel overwhelmed, take three deep, slow, conscious breaths and focus on what you’re capable of instead of how you look. Then, repeat an affirmation to yourself such as, “I’m proud of my body’s strength and resilience to handle IVF.” Or, “I will nurture and care for my body as it works to conceive new life.”
Be intentional. This could mean setting an intention each morning to help you focus on today and why you are on this journey. It might change from day to day, and sometimes maybe it stays the same. What matters most is that you are checking in with yourself and asking what you need.
Do you need to focus on how your body is doing amazing things right now? Or is today a day that you remind yourself how far you have come on this journey of fertility and that right now, you are taking the next necessary step?
And then….Listen, soak it in, and breathe.
If you want more affirmation ideas, check out our blog post, 15 Body Neutrality Affirmations Make Lasting Peace with Your Body. You can use these as-is or personalize them to be more specific to your experience or IVF.
Incorporate Gentle Movement When You Can
Gentle, low-impact mindful movement, such as walks or yoga sessions, can help ease anxiety while reinforcing body connection and appreciation. In fact, yoga practitioners are less vulnerable to body image dissatisfaction, according to Frontiers in Global Women’s Health.
Gentle activities can also enhance your mood regulation, increase circulation, and promote holistic wellness without exerting undue strain on yourself amid IVF. Just remember, the keyword here is gentle. Research shows that too much vigorous exercise could harm fertility.
If you want to work movement into your routine, keep it mindful by asking yourself these questions:
- How much energy do I have?
- How much time do I realistically have?
- What do I want to get from this movement?
From there, you can decide which type of movement feels best for your body. For example:
- I don’t have a lot of energy, but I have 30 minutes and I want to clear my mind. I’ll take a walk in the park nearby.
- I’m feeling strong and I have 15 minutes; I want to work on strength and mobility today. I’ll put on a quick YouTube workout.
- I have some energy and I have 40 minutes, but my head is buzzing. I’ll do some stretching with calm music to slow myself down and reconnect with my body.
Focus on Nourishment Instead of Deprivation
As tempted as you might be to restrict caloric intake to avoid weight gain, the human body requires vital nutrients to both conceive and sustain life.
During IVF treatments, prioritize balanced nutrition with an emphasis on fruits, vegetables, lean proteins, and whole grains along with comfort foods that make you feel safe and happy. Make sure to honor those internal hunger and fullness cues, too.
“You may even notice your hunger cues are more intense during IVF cycles and cravings may be higher during this time. It’s important to have the foods you are craving mindfully,” says Ashley Ellis, LMFT with Kindful Body.
Your body will communicate what it needs, so pay attention rather than deprive yourself. After all, IFV is an intense process—it takes nourishment and energy to cope with each round of treatment.
Surround Yourself with a Network of Support
It’s not uncommon to experience social isolation when doing fertility treatments. This can stem from the stigma and shame of not being able to conceive naturally, or it could result from embarrassment over the physical changes of IVF.
This social isolation can exacerbate your feelings of anxiety and struggles with weight gain. When you feel like you don’t belong, you’re more inclined to find ways to belong—like falling into diet culture habits that people on social media or even within your network of friends might be doing.
Surrounding yourself with others who can help you confront these emotional and mental challenges and remind you how strong and wonderful you are can provide much-needed support during this difficult time. To cultivate this support network, you can turn to:
- Your partner
- A licensed therapist
- A trusted family member
- An online IVF community
- A friend who has also done IVF
The bottom line is this: don’t navigate this road alone. A safe place to sort through your emotions will ease some of the burden.
Love Yourself Through the Physical Changes of IVF
No matter where you are in the fertility treatment process, there’s no shame in reaching out for help to deal with the effects of IVF-related weight gain on your mental health. While self-care strategies can be immensely beneficial, therapeutic interventions and resources are available, too.
At Kindful Body, we’ll match you with a clinician who can empower you to make nurturing and nourishing choices for yourself at each phase of the IVF journey. Contact us for a free 15-minute consultation with our team today! Interested in learning more about Kindful Body? Visit our website, read our blog or follow us on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and YouTube.
