There are things you can implement in the 3 months leading up to trying to conceive (TTC) that are simple, nothing fancy & really practical.
DIET
It’s important to eat a diet that works for your body – take notice of how you feel when you eat. Do certain foods result in bloating, tiredness or changes in your bowels?
There is not one rule for everybody.
Your diet should be mainly whole foods. Cut sugar and processed food, to help with insulin resistance and better hormone production. Include plenty of protein and good fats. The Mediterranean or Paleo are good examples to follow.
Many problems or imbalances in the body can be helped when we address gut problems through diet. Depending on the person and the symptoms or diagnosis they present with, many people will find avoiding dairy and/or gluten for a time can make huge improvements to your health.
Don’t skip meals. Make sure you are eating enough, because your body needs fuel to make hormones and blood. If you are working and exercising make sure that you are not expending more energy than you have. For example, does your workout leave you feeling energised and happy, or exhausted?
Try not to eat on the run, sit and eat your food mindfully to support digestion.
BBT (Basal Body Temperature) CHARTING
Before seeing me, start charting your temperatures. It allows us to understand the timing and efficiency of the different phases of the menstrual cycle. It graphs the temperature of the body at rest over the entire monthly cycle.
There are many apps available for your mobile phones that make recording the BBT simple. I suggest Fertility Friend, it is free and supplies you with loads of information to educate you on your cycle and how to understand what is happening at each phase.
Unless you are taking medication for IVF, charting your BBT is an essential part of working with me in regards to fertility.
For more information, click here.
Get your hormones tested by your GP, your partner should get a sperm test too. The data collecting can be time consuming, so start now.
REDUCE CHEMICALS & SUPPORT YOUR LIVER
The skin is the biggest organ in our body, whatever it comes into contact with will absorb into our system. Sometimes these toxins can become overwhelming and difficult to excrete.
Be fussy with what you put into and onto your body. Less chemicals, try natural personal care products.
We can’t do anything about the amount of chemicals we come into contact with outside our house so make sure your home isn’t adding to toxin overload. Use less chemicals when cooking and cleaning.
Avoid non-stick cookware and plastic where possible and never heat food in plastic containers in the microwave.
Use glass water bottles and never reuse plastic water bottles.
Buy natural cleaning products or use baking soda and white vinegar to clean.
STRESS & SELF CARE
I know lots of health practitioners talk about reducing stress, it becomes a bit lost on us. But, stress affects our hormones, it can even stop us from ovulating, and it causes weight gain and poor sleep.
A stressed body will stop proper self-regulation and it begins to tax our adrenals and increase stress hormones. The disruption in hormones then causes digestive and gut problems and eventually leaky gut. Then toxins accumulate and the liver is overwhelmed.
Get enough good quality sleep. The hours of sleep before midnight are worth double the ones after midnight. Stress and worry stops us falling asleep. Get off your phone a few hours before bed, read or journal, spend more time with your partner. Who knows, it could lead to more connection and intimacy, an essential part of babymaking!
Take the right supplements. My absolute favorite supplement to support stress and detoxification is Magnesium. Stress causes us to dump Magnesium.
It’s involved in over 600 processes within our body and Magnesium can:
- Support liver detoxification
- Relaxes muscles, helpful for menstrual pain
- Calms the nervous system
- Helps regulate blood sugar
- Promotes sleep
- Create/repair DNA and RNA
- Helps digestion by converting our food into energy
You can also find Magnesium in dietary sources including Nuts, seeds, and leafy greens.
Invest in a really good prenatal multivitamin that doesn’t contain folic acid. It should be folate or folinic acid so as to avoid problems with toxicity.
I recommend and supply Naturobest – click here to purchase
Note: The popular brand Elevit has folic acid and not great doses of the other ingredients.
Start a self-care routine that includes exercise. Maybe you need to start exercising? Get moving – your hormones will love you for it! I love yoga and meditation for all aspects of our health. It allows us to slow down and reconnect with ourselves and what we need.
Do we need to learn to say no? Or perhaps yes?
Make time to do something you love, not work- related and not for others. And not to do with fertility. Allow it to fill your heart with joy, so that you can be fully present right now.
Most of this information is applicable to your partner too. Overall health affects sperm.
Sperm numbers and health is on a shocking decline worldwide. Sperm has a 3 month lifespan, which means they are constantly being made. Health changes today mean healthier sperm in the months to come.
Healthy sperm + healthy eggs = healthy offspring.
Improving your health and wellbeing now will have lasting effects, not only for the child you conceive and your pregnancy – but ongoing, for future offspring and your health beyond the baby-making years.
It can be hard, but don’t let your fertility be the only thing in your life. Find balance. Trust that everything you are doing is taking you closer to what you want. But don’t forget about what you already have.
Go forth on your 3 month preparation journey together. I guarantee you will feel great and the benefits will be huge.
