I’m sure you’ve heard stress can impact trying to conceive. You may have even been told, “just relax and you’ll get pregnant.”

But it’s hard to not be stressed about the whole situation, let alone the swirling vortex of chaos going on around us.

What if I told you there are other ways to cope with stress, that impacts how your body responses? Or that your body may cause a stress response because of physical issues in your tissues?

Not only does stress increase cortisol levels in your body that mimic reproductive hormones, effectively altering ovulation. But stress turns on our fight or flight response through the sympathetic nervous system and by doing so causes a cascade of involuntary responses in your body that do more than increase cortisol.

Such as an increase in blood glucose levels & blood flow to your muscles, inflammation, poor nutrient absorption & reabsorption of toxins and reduced function in non-vital organs. This is ok for short bursts, but being in a constant state of fight or flight, communicates to your body that it’s not a good time to be pregnant.

There is a way to effectively moderate this response by targeting your sympathetic nervous system through the thoracic spine.

What is sympathetic nervous system (SNS)?

The SNS is a branch of the Autonomic Nervous System (ANS), a subdivision of the NS that regulates organ function, maintains homeostatis & helps us adapt to change. The SNS is in charge of action, increasing HR, blood flow to muscles & mental activity. The other branch of the ANS is the Parasympathetic Nervous System (PNS) which is in control of relaxation allowing healing, nutrient absorpotion, waste disposal, calming the mind & improved endocrine & immune system function.

How does the ANS impact reproductive health?

There has been some evidence showing that the ANS swings between PNS & ANS depending on what phase on your cycle you are in. For example, during the luteal phase the body tends towards the SNS, which is presumed to help with implantation.

This is different from the collective thinking of “stay calm” to conceive. However, as stated above there is evidence showing that chronic stress, meaning overactivation of the SNS, causes higher cortisol levels, increase in blood glucose levels, poor nutrient absorption, reabsorption of toxins due to poor waste disposal, inflammation, difficulty calming the mind for sleep, and redirection of blood flow away from non-vital organs, all interfering with normal reproductive hormone function & ovulation.

How can thoracic spine function impact the ANS?

Your ANS is controlled by a cranial (brain) Vagus nerve & ganglia along your thoracic spine. The health of both the vagus nerve & your thoracic spine will also impact your ability to maintain a healthy balance or ebb and flow between the SNS & PNS.

There has been evidence to show that thoracic spine mobilization can down-regulate the SNS, bringing balance back to the ANS. Mobilizations are a manipulation of the tissues & joints of the vertebrae. It can be done either through direct pressure to the bones and tissues or through mobility exercises. There are benefits to doing both and each can be done in some way at home. And since your thoracic spine is attached to your ribs & breathing musculature, stiffness in the joints impacts your breathing. Breathing is vital not only for tissue health, but calming your ANS & mind, management of your intraabdominal pressure, is linked to your core, and helps with flushing toxins through your lymphatic system.

The three main modes of treatment for thoracic spine dysfunction, like poor posture, joint stiffness, pain, that may be causing ANS imbalance - Physical Therapy, Chiropractic & Osteopathic Manipulation. The focus for all is alignment in the thoracic spine. Chiropractors & Osteopaths use joint manipulations or adjustments. Physical therapy uses joint mobilization, exercises and education on posture & activity form & function.

As you can see staying relaxed isn’t the only option for reducing the impact of stress & an overactive SNS on your reproductive health. Thoracic dysfunction, like poor posture & inactivity, can contribute to coping mechanisms for the ANS to stay in harmony.

Is finding ways to manage stress important? Yes. And so is looking at your physical health for both how it impacts your body’s nervous system and how your nervous system shows up as physical symptoms.