Increasing work demands, long working hours, and high-stress levels are affecting couples’ relationships, leading to declining intimacy, emotional strain, and fertility challenges, according to medical experts. Doctors report a steady rise in couples seeking help for intimacy-related concerns due to their hectic professional lives, with assisted reproductive technologies (ARTs) such as in vitro fertilization (IVF) and intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) emerging as potential solutions for conception.

The modern work culture, characterised by irregular shifts, physical exhaustion, and emotional burnout, is disrupting natural relationship dynamics. Dr. Padma Srivastava, Consultant Obstetrician & Gynaecologist at Motherhood Hospitals, Lullanagar, Pune, emphasised the adverse effects of stress hormones like cortisol on libido and emotional bonding.

“Long working hours, high stress, and lifestyle imbalances take a toll on couples’ well-being, making it difficult for them to engage in meaningful interactions, including intimacy. The lack of quality time together can lead to misunderstandings, stress, and relationship dissatisfaction, ultimately affecting conception. Untimely intercourse and reduced emotional bonding due to irregular work schedules are becoming common concerns. Six out of ten couples aged 27-35 report intimacy issues and lower libido due to stress and lifestyle factors,” she said.

Dr. Srivastava further noted that in her practice, four to five couples per week seek medical advice for intimacy and fertility-related concerns, with ARTs being recommended as a viable option.

Dr. Nisha Pansare, Fertility Specialist at Nova IVF Fertility, Kharadi, Pune, highlighted that stress, long work hours, and lack of sleep can disrupt hormonal balance, ovulation in women, and sperm quality in men.

“Couples with high-stress jobs and irregular shift timings often struggle with maintaining intimacy and emotional connection. This leads to emotional detachment, conflicts, and anxiety, weakening the foundation of their relationship. Many partners feel neglected, impacting trust and emotional security. Additionally, chronic stress increases cortisol levels, which interferes with reproductive hormones and affects fertility. Seven out of ten couples face intimacy challenges due to their inability to maintain work-life balance,” she explained.

Experts recommend lifestyle modifications to improve reproductive health, including ensuring adequate sleep, maintaining a balanced diet, engaging in regular physical activity, and practising stress management techniques like yoga, meditation, and counselling. Seeking timely medical advice for fertility concerns can also be beneficial.

Dr. Srivastava stressed the importance of open communication, work-life balance, and proactive health management in preserving emotional and physical well-being. Dr. Pansare added that assisted reproductive treatments such as IVF and ICSI can be considered for couples facing difficulties in conceiving.

Medical professionals urge couples to take early steps in addressing work-related stress to improve their intimacy, emotional well-being, and fertility outcomes.

To learn more go to stress.org

By  BW Online Bureau 

Photo by lil artsy

“We should take this matter very seriously because the alternative is unthinkable. We are seeing mental health crises affecting our children and the adults that are taking care of them. If we do not see that this is a problem and take steps to change the course, then we’re not serving our next generation at all.” said Dr. Robin Gurwitch.

The surgeon general released his advisory in August. Items considered stressors for parents and caregivers are financial strains, children’s health and safety, and time demands. Factors in today’s society, such as technology, social media, feelings of loneliness, and comparisons, are new stressors parents must encounter. The advisory states that about 41 percent of parents are so stressed that they cannot function. The impact of this stress can lead to mental health problems like depression and anxiety. These issues not only trickle down to the children but can affect the stability of the home and develop physical problems for the kids as well. According to the Surgeon General’s advisory, children of a primary caregiver who reported poor mental health were four times more likely to have poor general health and two times more likely to have mental, behavioral, or developmental disorders.

“The Surgeon General’s report on parenting stress was incredibly timely and important. I think stress impacts families nationwide more than ever before, including our children. Our children are also being impacted by stress, and it’s not a one-way street,” said Dr. Gurwitch.

In a recent Sci-Line presentation, a Duke University professor explained that parental stress builds on each other. Large amounts of parental stress can impede parents’ ability to be their best at work, at home, and in relationships. Dr. Gurwitch discusses how parental stress starts a vicious cycle of children being stressed by the parent and vice versa. Temper tantrums and meltdowns in younger children are one sign of the impact of parental stress on them. In teenagers, withdrawal and defiance are signs of impact.

“When children are stressed, we often see it come out in behaviors. They have a harder time with sleep, a harder time with focus, and more anxiety and worry, which leads to challenges at school. This impacts parents trying to figure out how to help their children,” said Dr. Gurwitch.

Dr. Gurwitch recommends walking, listening to music, and connecting with friends to relieve parental stress. She also advises creating a routine and encouraging people to use the same coping strategies used during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“If COVID taught us anything, it introduced new ways of dealing with stress. Whether it is taking a moment to watch something funny or taking a walk in the beauty of nature, it is about finding those quiet moments. Tapping into those activities you did during COVID can help relieve some of the stressors,” said Dr. Gurwitch.

The Duke University professor is acting against parental stress through a program called C.A.R.E. (Child Adult Relationship Enhancement). This program provides trauma-informed skills to adults who interact with children and teens who have experienced trauma. The material in CARE can be used in any setting and caters to welfare and at-risk families.

Parental stress is challenging, but Dr. Gurwitch hopes people can overcome it. She believes that if we recognize the problem and look at the variables causing it, we can find solutions to reduce it. Providing parents with the support they need is essential for them to become the best caregivers possible.

“I wouldn’t be in this field if I didn’t believe in hope if I didn’t believe that change is possible. I believe we can have a different outcome with the support, and that’s our responsibility,” said Dr. Gurwitch.

To find out more about stress, go to STRESS.ORG

Photo by Ketut Subiyanto

by Clayton Gutzmore     for The Atlanta Voice

KEY POINTS

• Stress-dumping and free-floating anxiety are often driven by internal fears projected outward onto others.
• Living with free-floating anxiety is exhausting, leaving you conditioned to worry and catastrophize.
• Manage your anxiety by cultivating new self-soothing techniques such as discharging physical tension.

There are times in life when anxiety is natural and necessary. Anytime you take a risk, try something new, or engage in potentially dangerous activities, a burst of anxiety is a wake-up call, a tap on the shoulder that says, “Hey! Pay attention! Be careful!”

In this way, anxiety can be a protective force that keeps you focused, alert, and engaged.

But what happens when anxiety becomes the dominant emotion in your life? What happens when stress becomes embedded in your sense of identity?

What is free-floating anxiety?

While walking through a neighborhood park in New York City, I spotted a poster perfectly capturing the essence of free-floating anxiety: a cartoon of a woman calmly asking herself, “What should I worry about today?”

When anxiety becomes a way of being, you’re conditioned to worry. In fact, you’re searching for new things to be upset about. Free-floating anxiety (also known as generalized anxiety disorder) is an internal state of agitation that attaches itself to new situations and concerns. Rather than sit with the anxiety and process, examine, or relieve it, you project it outward onto people, places, and things. Free-floating anxiety is, in essence, internal discomfort displaced onto the world.

Here are some of the troubling outcomes of free-floating anxiety:

• You try to control others in an attempt to regulate your worries. (See “Do You Have a Controlling Personality?“)
• You develop inflexible beliefs and opinions.
• You make fear-based decisions.
• You see potential disaster and stress everywhere.
• You’re increasingly distrustful of others and society.

All this can make living with free-floating anxiety exhausting, leaving you feeling constantly beleaguered and on edge.

Let’s consider the significant damage it does to your relationships.

How stress-dumping and free-floating anxiety hurts your relationships

Years ago, while working in a mental health clinic, I had a supervisor who lived in a permanent state of angst. She worried about the therapists she supervised, their patients, and her patients. She worried about budget cuts, politics, the environment, the color of the waiting room walls, the cleaning staff, the bathroom supplies—you name it, she worried about it.

She also had a bad habit of spewing anxiety and dumping stress onto anyone who came in contact with her, ranting to them about all her worries and concerns.

She was notorious for inducing tension in others. For example, even if you were having a good day, when she called you into her office, you left exhausted and discouraged, and you desperately needed a nap.

What did her free-floating anxiety get her? She was universally avoided and disliked.

It’s draining to be in the presence of permanently anxious people because they are constantly pulling us into their latest crisis. Their high stress levels are contagious, making them terrible listeners and impossible to please. As they pull you into their vortex of worry, the more you begin to avoid and resent them, or even block them on social media.

Friends, partners, lovers, co-workers—virtually any relationship can be damaged by excessive worrying and stress-dumping. (See “The Inner Voice of an Anxiety Disorder.”)

The negative impact on parent and child relationships

Parents are among the biggest worriers in the world—and with good reason. Being charged with your child’s well-being is an enormous responsibility, chock full of worries and concerns. A parent who doesn’t worry about their kids is most likely neglectful.

But, at a certain point, those anxieties can become corrosive to parent-child relationships. When a parent constantly shares their worries about their child with their child, their child experiences the parent as being critical, having no confidence in them, and just plain depressing.

Children begin to think, “You don’t believe in me. You don’t see me as a capable person.”

This dynamic eats away their sense of trust in their parents. The more parents express their worries, the more kids want to push them away.

How to stop stress-dumping anxiety

If you think you suffer from free-floating anxiety, consider the following steps:

1. Identify the internal source of discomfort. Chances are, there’s something you’re unhappy about. Maybe it’s your job or relationship; discomfort and frustration are most likely generating that anxiety. Try to identify what it is.
2. Cultivate self-soothing techniques. Are you sleeping well? Eating well? Are you engaged in creative activities, such as painting, hiking, writing, or community-based activities that bring you peace and comfort? Anxiety needs soothing activities—not rumination.
3. Discharge physical tension. Not all anxiety can be put into words. When we’re unable to identify it, anxiety transforms into physical and mental tension. A cardio workout of 30 minutes or more three times a week can lower anxiety by up to 75 percent. Move your body and discharge that tension rather than look for someone to dump your worries and concerns on.
4. Bring more joy into your life. What brings you joy? What makes you smile and laugh? What gives you a boost of adrenaline, endorphins, and old-fashioned happiness? People who experience free-floating anxiety and engage in stress dumping are notorious for being unhappy. Target that unhappiness and find a way to address it.
5. Consider medication. If you’ve tried therapy, counseling, coaching, exercise, and everything mentioned above, and your anxiety isn’t improving, it’s time to consider medication. Why white knuckle your way through life with such high tension and stress levels? Make an appointment with the psychiatrist and schedule a consultation.

Originally posted in Psychology Today

Photo by fauxels

By Sean Grover, L.C.S.W.,  author and psychotherapist who leads one of the largest group therapy practices in the United States.