In our culture, fertility and issues around conception are an incredibly loaded and taboo subject, even though it’s something that 1 in 5 Australian women deal with. There is a boatload of western medical info and procedures out there but we need look no further than Ayurveda for wisdom that has been given to couples for thousands of years. Ayurveda has a long tradition of supporting both men and women through pre-conception to post partum, both partners health is seen as equally important, which also honors the equal balance of masculine and feminine energy required in all creation.
There are a whole host of reasons why women in western cultures are struggling to conceive, and why 1 in 4 pregnancies now end in miscarriage, but I’d like to shift the focus off why and onto how we can give our bodies and babies the best pregnancy experience possible.
Making the decision to create new life and invite a soul into your family is the very first spark that initiates the journey to conception. Unlike the western medical model, in Ayurveda, more emphasis is actually placed on pre-conception care than pregnancy. It is said that the health and wellbeing of the parents in the 2 years before conception determine the health of the baby! Its at this time, during the pre-conception years, that both the mother and future child are benefitted, harnessing the body’s ability to naturally cleanse and renew.
As always, it’s not just the physical act of becoming pregnant that Ayurveda looks at but the emotional and spiritual aspects too. What’s generally recommended is a period of 3 dedicated months of detoxing followed by a 3-month period of rejuvenating.
This includes physical detoxing through diet and lifestyle practices, emotional processing of unresolved or “undigested” thoughts, long held beliefs, traumas and triggers. Plus energetically clearing your personal spaces; your home, work, sacred sanctuary and digital space.
After this season of cleansing we follow up with rejuvenation practices to inject good vibes and healthy habits into the physical, mental, emotional and energetic aspects of our life as the couple sends out an invitation to the incoming soul.
The 4 essentials that make up the foundation of pre-conception care.
Timing
You can get super cosmic and creative with your timing, considering the seasons and lunar cycles but this consciousness must also be balanced with a complete surrendering of control. Cultivate deep trust in the timing of your life and the life of your child
The field
Creating an ideal first home, your uterus, through understanding your dosha is what we are talking about here,. Equally important is the external home environment and creating a safe and serene landing pad for your new family member and yourselves.
The fluids
We want healthy blood, plasma, reproductive hormones and cervical fluid in preparation for conception. The Sanskrit word, ojas, is what we are circulating. It’s like the body’s essential oil of vitality and that feeling of being all juicy!
The seeds
Sperm and egg. Egg and sperm, equals and opposites, we cannot have one without the other. It is the most pure and refined tissue in the human body. For men, seed is produced over 2 months to maturity and diet has the biggest effect. For women, who are born with all their eggs, the home and energetic environment is most important.
If you enjoyed this post and would like to learn more, get in touch!
You can also listen to my podcast episode about Fertility here