It is clear that we do need emotional support. But we find it hard to take the step of consulting a professional.
Here you have a list of some of the issues that concern people the most. Identifying them will help you to find out what your strengths and weaknesses are and to evaluate whether you need an extra help of a psychologist:
- Goodbye, culpability! Anxiety is not a determining factor for the outcome of the treatment. Don’t let be affected by comments like “You don’t get pregnant, because you’re obsessed”.
- Manage your emotions. Identifying anger, feeling of injustice or sadness and accepting them, finding out the negative thoughts that provoke them, help you to reduce suffering.
- Get rid of your fears. Our fears paralyse us, so apart from recognising them, we must know how to face them.
- Control your anxiety. Learning relaxation’s techniques, diaphragmatic respiration and mindfulness allow us to better manage stress and anxiety.
- Improve your communication skills. Be assertive and express what you feel properly: neither passive nor aggressive.
- Strengthen your partner relationship. If sexuality has been affected, there are techniques to reactivate and improve it.
- Be mentally prepared. You must have a “background runner’s plan”, we don’t know when the pregnancy will happen nor how many treatment cycles you will need to obtain it.
- Be realistic. Neither excessive optimism nor catastrophism help.
- Support in difficult situations. The necessity to turn to a gametes donation, a miscarriage or the possibility of having to give up with treatments, are all situations that need a special support.
- You’re not alone. A psychological support throughout the whole treatment cycle let you feel accompanied along the process.
