The Science-Backed Benefits of Meditation from TTC through Motherhood

 Carrie Murphy Profile Photo
By Carrie Murphy | Updated on Dec 1, 2023
Image for article The Science-Backed Benefits of Meditation from TTC through Motherhood

TLDR: Stress, anxiety, and other emotions are known to have negative impacts throughout the conception, pregnancy, and motherhood journeys. Studies indicate that a mindfulness practice like meditation is a proven stress-reducer, and therefore encouraged for all moms and moms-to-be.


When you’re on a journey to parenthood, it can be helpful to have a toolkit to help you cope with the emotional ups and downs. Meditation is one thing that can help. Meditation during motherhood and the path to it is proven to work on multiple levels during these major transitions in your life. We know it works by the relaxation you feel in your body when you listen to our tracks, and also because there's scientific proof to back it up.

“Scientific studies have shown that holistic care that includes both mind and body can improve the likelihood of pregnancy for those undergoing fertility treatments,” says Dr. Shaun Williams1 , an endocrinologist and partner at Illume Fertility. “Emotional and psychological stress is often heightened when trying to conceive (particularly if you’re having trouble getting pregnant).” 

Dr. Williams recognizes the slippery slope of stress hurting your conception journey, and how meditation can help. 

“The reproductive system can be adversely affected by this stress,” he says. “Practicing meditation and mindfulness allows hopeful parents to focus on certain events or situations in a way that minimizes the emotional stress often attached to those experiences. 

“This in turn helps couples break out of vicious cycles of negative thinking associated with infertility, leading to enhanced conception rates.”

Fertility and Meditation

Trying to conceive is often a source of stress. From timing sex juuuust right to that seemingly interminable two-week wait, it’s a lot, both mentally and emotionally. And if you’ve experienced loss or difficulty in your conception process, you’re probably feeling even higher levels of stress, worry, and fear.

Some research indicates that higher levels of stress can affect your hormones2 , and thus, your fertility. That fact can be a hard pill to swallow for many hopeful parents, especially because stress levels can be hard to control in the world we live in. Think about it this way—if trying to conceive causes you stress, stress could then equal a more difficult time conceiving, which could then equal even more stress…and the cycle continues.

Enter meditation and mindfulness. Study after study supports the use of meditation as a stress-reducer3 . Reduced stress is incredibly beneficial for fertility. Not only do your body and mind feel better, they can potentially also work better to help you get and stay pregnant.

For example, one 2021 randomized controlled trial4  found that a meditation and mindfulness program reduced stress in women who have had multiple miscarriages. Mindfulness interventions are also effective5  for improving both the mental health and relationships of women diagnosed with infertility, as well as specifically for those undergoing in vitro fertilization treatments5 .

Sleep and Anti-Anxiety Benefits

If you’re pregnant, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed during those nine months, with all of the things to learn, plans to make, and baby gear to gather. Most modern moms have a to-do list a mile long—not to mention dealing with the intense inner transformation and physical experience of growing a new human.

A systematic review and analysis of many scientific studies in 2017 found that mindfulness-based interventions in pregnancy have many broad benefits6 , including lower levels of stress, anxiety, and depression. Meditation is also helpful for regulating sleep7 , which can be hard to get during pregnancy and the early postpartum period.

Meditation also can help with mentally preparing for birth and the actual experience of labor. Women who participated in a mindfulness-based childbirth education program tailored to decrease fear and pain showed higher levels of self-efficacy8  (aka believing in yourself) and mindful body awareness.

Practicing mindfulness in pregnancy has benefits for babies, as well. Keeping stress levels low creates a more optimal environment for babies9  while they’re in the womb. A 2011 randomized controlled trial found that mothers who participated in a mindfulness and meditation program were less likely to have a preterm infant10  than those who did not practice mindfulness and meditation.

Some research also shows that people who practiced mindfulness during pregnancy had reduced anxiety overall11 . Even better? That reduction in anxiety also affected their infants in a positive way, up to 10 months after birth. 

How Does Meditation Affect Motherhood?

Reduced stress is one of the biggest effects of mindfulness and meditation. We don’t mean to sound like a broken record, but we can’t emphasize it enough—taking some time to sit with yourself and meditate can really help you deal with the stress of adjusting to your new identity and new role as a parent.

Your baby’s early infancy is often an intense experience for your body, mind, and emotions. According to one 2019 trial, practicing mindfulness regularly can ease your transition to motherhood12  and possibly even lower your risk of postpartum depression, especially if you started the practice during pregnancy. Meditation and mindfulness are proven ways to improve your mental health as a new mother.

But the benefits of meditation go well beyond the fourth trimester—a 2018 study found that mindfulness was also incredibly effective at reducing general and parenting-related stress13  for parents of preschoolers.

For parents, mindfulness can be a powerful tool to deal with all of the ups and downs of raising small humans, from sleep regressions and starting solids right on through toddlerhood and the school years. No matter what stage of parenting you’re in, a meditation practice can be a touchstone to return to again and again.

Pregnant woman holding her stomach on a bed with a plant in the background

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Expectful uses only high-quality sources, including academic research institutions, medical associations, and subject matter experts.

  1. ILLUME FERTILITY"Dr. Shaun Williams"https://www.illumefertility.com/about-us/fertility-care-team/dr-shaun-williams.

  2. Palomba, S., Daolio, J., Romeo, S., Battaglia, F. A., Marci, R., and La Sala, G. B."Lifestyle and fertility: the influence of stress and quality of life on female fertility"Reproductive biology and endocrinology : RB&E, vol. 16, no. 1Dec 2, 2018, pp. 113https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6275085/.

  3. Infante, J. R., Torres-Avisbal, M., Pinel, P., Vallejo, J. A., Peran, F., Gonzalez, F., Contreras, P., Pacheco, C., Roldan, A., and Latre, J. M."Catecholamine levels in practitioners of the transcendental meditation technique"Physiology & behavior, vol. 72, no. 1-2Jan 1, 2001, pp. 141–146https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11239991/.

  4. Jensen, K. H. K., Krog, M. C., Koert, E., Hedegaard, S., Chonovitsch, M., Schmidt, L., Kolte, A. M., and Nielsen, H. S."Meditation and mindfulness reduce perceived stress in women with recurrent pregnancy loss: a randomized controlled trial"Reproductive biomedicine online, vol. 43, no. 2May 7, 2021, pp. 246-256https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34112605/.

  5. Abedi Shargh, N., Bakhshani, N. M., Mohebbi, M. D., Mahmudian, K., Ahovan, M., Mokhtari, M., and Gangali, A."The Effectiveness of Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Group Therapy on Marital Satisfaction and General Health in Woman With Infertility"Global journal of health science, vol. 8, no. 3Aug 6, 2015, pp. 230–235https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4803966/.

  6. Anjulie Dhillon, Elizabeth Sparkes, and Rui V. Duarte"Mindfulness-Based Interventions During Pregnancy: a Systematic Review and Meta-analysis"Mindfulness, vol. 8Apr 17, 2017, pp. 1421–1437https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12671-017-0726-x.

  7. Ravindra P. Nagendra, Nirmala Maruthai, and Bindu M. Kutty"Meditation and its regulatory role on sleep"Frontiers in Neurology, vol. 3Apr 18, 2012https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fneur.2012.00054/full.

  8. Larissa G. Duncan, Michael A. Cohn, Maria T. Chao, Joseph G. Cook, Jane Riccobono and Nancy Bardacke "Benefits of preparing for childbirth with mindfulness training: a randomized controlled trial with active comparison"BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth, vol. 17, no. 140May 12, 2017https://bmcpregnancychildbirth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12884-017-1319-3.

  9. Whirledge, S., and Cidlowski, J. A. "Glucocorticoids, stress, and fertility"Minerva endocrinologica, vol. 35, no. 2Jun 7, 2010, pp. 109–125https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3547681/.

  10. Sriboonpimsuay, W"Meditation for Preterm Birth Prevention: A Randomized Controlled Trial in Udonthani, Thailand"International Journal of Public Health Research, vol. 1, no. 1Sep 1, 2011, pp. 31–39https://spaj.ukm.my/ijphr/index.php/ijphr/article/view/121.

  11. van den Heuvel, M. I., Johannes, M. A., Henrichs, J., and Van den Bergh, B. R."Maternal mindfulness during pregnancy and infant socio-emotional development and temperament: the mediating role of maternal anxiety"Early human development, vol. 91, no. 2Jan 7, 2015, pp. 103–108https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25577496/.

  12. Pan, W. L., Chang, C. W., Chen, S. M., and Gau, M. L."Assessing the effectiveness of mindfulness-based programs on mental health during pregnancy and early motherhood - a randomized control trial"BMC pregnancy and childbirth, vol. 19, no. 1Oct 10, 2019, pp. 346https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31601170/.

  13. Corthorn C"Benefits of Mindfulness for Parenting in Mothers of Preschoolers in Chile"Frontiers in psychology, vol. 9Aug 17, 2018, pp. 1443https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6108128/.


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Updated on Dec 1, 2023

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The Science-Backed Benefits of Meditation from TTC through Motherhood

 Carrie Murphy Profile Photo
By Carrie Murphy | Updated on Dec 1, 2023
Image for article The Science-Backed Benefits of Meditation from TTC through Motherhood

TLDR: Stress, anxiety, and other emotions are known to have negative impacts throughout the conception, pregnancy, and motherhood journeys. Studies indicate that a mindfulness practice like meditation is a proven stress-reducer, and therefore encouraged for all moms and moms-to-be.


When you’re on a journey to parenthood, it can be helpful to have a toolkit to help you cope with the emotional ups and downs. Meditation is one thing that can help. Meditation during motherhood and the path to it is proven to work on multiple levels during these major transitions in your life. We know it works by the relaxation you feel in your body when you listen to our tracks, and also because there's scientific proof to back it up.

“Scientific studies have shown that holistic care that includes both mind and body can improve the likelihood of pregnancy for those undergoing fertility treatments,” says Dr. Shaun Williams1 , an endocrinologist and partner at Illume Fertility. “Emotional and psychological stress is often heightened when trying to conceive (particularly if you’re having trouble getting pregnant).” 

Dr. Williams recognizes the slippery slope of stress hurting your conception journey, and how meditation can help. 

“The reproductive system can be adversely affected by this stress,” he says. “Practicing meditation and mindfulness allows hopeful parents to focus on certain events or situations in a way that minimizes the emotional stress often attached to those experiences. 

“This in turn helps couples break out of vicious cycles of negative thinking associated with infertility, leading to enhanced conception rates.”

Fertility and Meditation

Trying to conceive is often a source of stress. From timing sex juuuust right to that seemingly interminable two-week wait, it’s a lot, both mentally and emotionally. And if you’ve experienced loss or difficulty in your conception process, you’re probably feeling even higher levels of stress, worry, and fear.

Some research indicates that higher levels of stress can affect your hormones2 , and thus, your fertility. That fact can be a hard pill to swallow for many hopeful parents, especially because stress levels can be hard to control in the world we live in. Think about it this way—if trying to conceive causes you stress, stress could then equal a more difficult time conceiving, which could then equal even more stress…and the cycle continues.

Enter meditation and mindfulness. Study after study supports the use of meditation as a stress-reducer3 . Reduced stress is incredibly beneficial for fertility. Not only do your body and mind feel better, they can potentially also work better to help you get and stay pregnant.

For example, one 2021 randomized controlled trial4  found that a meditation and mindfulness program reduced stress in women who have had multiple miscarriages. Mindfulness interventions are also effective5  for improving both the mental health and relationships of women diagnosed with infertility, as well as specifically for those undergoing in vitro fertilization treatments5 .

Sleep and Anti-Anxiety Benefits

If you’re pregnant, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed during those nine months, with all of the things to learn, plans to make, and baby gear to gather. Most modern moms have a to-do list a mile long—not to mention dealing with the intense inner transformation and physical experience of growing a new human.

A systematic review and analysis of many scientific studies in 2017 found that mindfulness-based interventions in pregnancy have many broad benefits6 , including lower levels of stress, anxiety, and depression. Meditation is also helpful for regulating sleep7 , which can be hard to get during pregnancy and the early postpartum period.

Meditation also can help with mentally preparing for birth and the actual experience of labor. Women who participated in a mindfulness-based childbirth education program tailored to decrease fear and pain showed higher levels of self-efficacy8  (aka believing in yourself) and mindful body awareness.

Practicing mindfulness in pregnancy has benefits for babies, as well. Keeping stress levels low creates a more optimal environment for babies9  while they’re in the womb. A 2011 randomized controlled trial found that mothers who participated in a mindfulness and meditation program were less likely to have a preterm infant10  than those who did not practice mindfulness and meditation.

Some research also shows that people who practiced mindfulness during pregnancy had reduced anxiety overall11 . Even better? That reduction in anxiety also affected their infants in a positive way, up to 10 months after birth. 

How Does Meditation Affect Motherhood?

Reduced stress is one of the biggest effects of mindfulness and meditation. We don’t mean to sound like a broken record, but we can’t emphasize it enough—taking some time to sit with yourself and meditate can really help you deal with the stress of adjusting to your new identity and new role as a parent.

Your baby’s early infancy is often an intense experience for your body, mind, and emotions. According to one 2019 trial, practicing mindfulness regularly can ease your transition to motherhood12  and possibly even lower your risk of postpartum depression, especially if you started the practice during pregnancy. Meditation and mindfulness are proven ways to improve your mental health as a new mother.

But the benefits of meditation go well beyond the fourth trimester—a 2018 study found that mindfulness was also incredibly effective at reducing general and parenting-related stress13  for parents of preschoolers.

For parents, mindfulness can be a powerful tool to deal with all of the ups and downs of raising small humans, from sleep regressions and starting solids right on through toddlerhood and the school years. No matter what stage of parenting you’re in, a meditation practice can be a touchstone to return to again and again.

Pregnant woman holding her stomach on a bed with a plant in the background

Want evidence-based health & wellness advice for fertility, pregnancy, and postpartum delivered to your inbox?

Your privacy is important to us. By subscribing you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms & Conditions.

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Expectful uses only high-quality sources, including academic research institutions, medical associations, and subject matter experts.

  1. ILLUME FERTILITY"Dr. Shaun Williams"https://www.illumefertility.com/about-us/fertility-care-team/dr-shaun-williams.

  2. Palomba, S., Daolio, J., Romeo, S., Battaglia, F. A., Marci, R., and La Sala, G. B."Lifestyle and fertility: the influence of stress and quality of life on female fertility"Reproductive biology and endocrinology : RB&E, vol. 16, no. 1Dec 2, 2018, pp. 113https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6275085/.

  3. Infante, J. R., Torres-Avisbal, M., Pinel, P., Vallejo, J. A., Peran, F., Gonzalez, F., Contreras, P., Pacheco, C., Roldan, A., and Latre, J. M."Catecholamine levels in practitioners of the transcendental meditation technique"Physiology & behavior, vol. 72, no. 1-2Jan 1, 2001, pp. 141–146https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11239991/.

  4. Jensen, K. H. K., Krog, M. C., Koert, E., Hedegaard, S., Chonovitsch, M., Schmidt, L., Kolte, A. M., and Nielsen, H. S."Meditation and mindfulness reduce perceived stress in women with recurrent pregnancy loss: a randomized controlled trial"Reproductive biomedicine online, vol. 43, no. 2May 7, 2021, pp. 246-256https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34112605/.

  5. Abedi Shargh, N., Bakhshani, N. M., Mohebbi, M. D., Mahmudian, K., Ahovan, M., Mokhtari, M., and Gangali, A."The Effectiveness of Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Group Therapy on Marital Satisfaction and General Health in Woman With Infertility"Global journal of health science, vol. 8, no. 3Aug 6, 2015, pp. 230–235https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4803966/.

  6. Anjulie Dhillon, Elizabeth Sparkes, and Rui V. Duarte"Mindfulness-Based Interventions During Pregnancy: a Systematic Review and Meta-analysis"Mindfulness, vol. 8Apr 17, 2017, pp. 1421–1437https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12671-017-0726-x.

  7. Ravindra P. Nagendra, Nirmala Maruthai, and Bindu M. Kutty"Meditation and its regulatory role on sleep"Frontiers in Neurology, vol. 3Apr 18, 2012https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fneur.2012.00054/full.

  8. Larissa G. Duncan, Michael A. Cohn, Maria T. Chao, Joseph G. Cook, Jane Riccobono and Nancy Bardacke "Benefits of preparing for childbirth with mindfulness training: a randomized controlled trial with active comparison"BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth, vol. 17, no. 140May 12, 2017https://bmcpregnancychildbirth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12884-017-1319-3.

  9. Whirledge, S., and Cidlowski, J. A. "Glucocorticoids, stress, and fertility"Minerva endocrinologica, vol. 35, no. 2Jun 7, 2010, pp. 109–125https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3547681/.

  10. Sriboonpimsuay, W"Meditation for Preterm Birth Prevention: A Randomized Controlled Trial in Udonthani, Thailand"International Journal of Public Health Research, vol. 1, no. 1Sep 1, 2011, pp. 31–39https://spaj.ukm.my/ijphr/index.php/ijphr/article/view/121.

  11. van den Heuvel, M. I., Johannes, M. A., Henrichs, J., and Van den Bergh, B. R."Maternal mindfulness during pregnancy and infant socio-emotional development and temperament: the mediating role of maternal anxiety"Early human development, vol. 91, no. 2Jan 7, 2015, pp. 103–108https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25577496/.

  12. Pan, W. L., Chang, C. W., Chen, S. M., and Gau, M. L."Assessing the effectiveness of mindfulness-based programs on mental health during pregnancy and early motherhood - a randomized control trial"BMC pregnancy and childbirth, vol. 19, no. 1Oct 10, 2019, pp. 346https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31601170/.

  13. Corthorn C"Benefits of Mindfulness for Parenting in Mothers of Preschoolers in Chile"Frontiers in psychology, vol. 9Aug 17, 2018, pp. 1443https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6108128/.


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