Can Yoga Poses help you to get pregnant? Although yoga was not developed for infertility, it does help with issues relating to infertility such as stress and overall good health. Although a certain amount of stress is normal, most of us deal with an extremely high amount of stress in our lives. Add not getting pregnant to the list and you’ll go through a vicious cycle of anxiety and disappointment every month.

I can relate to the women and men going through this. My husband and I have been married for three years now and although we are fairly relaxed about conceiving, we never used contraception. No one knew why I wasn’t getting pregnant.

I have two younger sisters and a younger brother. When my younger sister was diagnosed with Stage IV Endometriosis, my youngest sister and I went in to see specialists. They ran a battery of tests, each coming back normal. I had no symptoms of endo, but I felt as though I had it.

I immediately looked up the disease online as well as treatments. I began to take supplements and do yoga regularly. Of course, the only way to tell for sure if I had endo was to have a laproscopy. I continued my yoga, meditation and supplements and I waited. Finally my laproscopy was done on November 2010. They did find endometriosis, but it was so mild that they treated it immediately. It was the best possible outcome and my fertility should improve in the coming months.

When my sister was diagnosed, the endometriosis was too severe to treat. Was yoga an integral part of helping me? I believe so. I will continue to practice my yoga regularly and hopefully in a few months will be able to add good news to this page.

So now how can yoga help you?

Yoga will help in three ways. First it will help you and your partner to reduce your stress levels. Stress can affect fertility. Second it helps you keep in good health. Being overweight and unhealthy can also contribute to infertility. Finally, yoga helps regulate your hormones and stimulate your abs and reproductive areas.

Also keep these things in mind before you start practicing yoga:

1. I would not recommend doing yoga or any form of alternative treatment without also consulting medical doctors.
2. I also believe that you must also research ways of improving your own health. Infertility is a murky realm as each of our bodiesare unique and what will work for one person may not work for another.
3. Know your body. Yoga helps with this and you will know what treatment will help your body best. Trust yourself.

Here are a few of many poses to help open your pelvis area, stimulate your thyroid, and help balance your hormones:

Child’s Pose

Child’s Pose helps reduce stress and relaxes your body and mind.

Reclining Hero Pose

This pose helps open your hipsand stretches your psoas (hip flexors) and abs. It is excellent for menstrual pain and opening up your pelvis area. Use a bolster or cushions if you cannot lie on the floor.

Squat

Again excellent for opening up your hips and pelvis area. This pose is helpful in pregnancy as well.

Pigeon Pose

This pose stretches your hip flexors and groin and stimulates your abs and back. Sink down only as far as you can go.

Tailor Pose

Opens up your pelvis and groin area. This pose is great for your abs,ovaries, prostate gland, bladder, and kidneys. It is also another excellent pose for pregnancy. Only lower your knees as far as it is comfortable. Do not strain yourself in this pose.

Deep Lunge Pose

Great for stretching your groin and pelvis area as well as strengthening your back. If you cannot hold your balance in this pose, put your toe and knee against a wall for stability. Try not to hunch your shoulders.

Bridge Pose

This pose opens up your pelvis area and helps reduce stress. It stimulates your abs, lungs, thyroid and aids your digestion and helps during menstruation.

Shoulder Stand and Plough

Shoulder stand is known for helping to stimulate the thyroid and prostate glands.

It also is great for relieving stress and mild depression.

Plough also helps deepen the pose, stimulate the hips and pelvis area and work on your ab muscles and flexibility.

If you can’t place your feet on the floor from plough, use a chair like I am in the picture.

Recommended Reading

I have pored through many infertility books and I would recommend this one. Why? Both authors have been dealing with infertility for over 20 years. It offers a combination of both Eastern and Western Medicine and gives practical advice. Its solutions are simple and logical. An excellent resource. If you can’t buy it get it from the library, it is worth it. The cover isn’t very nice, it is green in New Zealand and much more appealing but it’s what’s inside that counts!