Infertility is estimated to affect 15% of reproductive age couples worldwide and is defined
as the inability to conceive after 12 months of unprotected sex for women under 35 or 6
months for women over 35 and is associated with stress, especially due to psychological
factors such as anxiety, frustration and depression. In addition, women seeking treatment for
pregnancy suffer additional stressors - significant emotional burdens and physical changes
that can increase stress and anxiety levels. The possibility of an association between
emotional stress and pregnancy outcome in women undergoing assisted reproduction treatment
makes important therapies that address the psychological state of these women. Meditation and
Reiki have been used to successfully reduce stress and anxiety in various health contexts.
Reiki is a complementary health approach in which practitioners lightly place their hands on
or just above a person to facilitate their own healing response. Reiki has been used as an
adjunctive therapy to treat the symptoms common to infertile women seeking treatment,
including anxiety, stress, depression, anger, despair and depression. Reviews of randomized
controlled trials concluded that implementation of the Reiki intervention in health centers
resulted in mental health benefits, including reduced tension, mental confusion, anxiety and
pain as well as improved quality of life.
Meditation can be defined as a form of mental training aimed at improving an individual's
psychological capacities, such as attentional and emotional self-regulation. Meditation
encompasses a family of practices that include mindfulness meditation, mantra meditation,
yoga, tai chi and chi gong. Meditation has been used specifically in women undergoing IVF
treatment to successfully reduce symptoms related to psychological distress. Studies measure
the development of self-compassion, mechanisms of emotion regulation, and coping strategies
related to infertility and quality of life in infertility. However, only one study showed a
relationship between meditation and pregnancy rate. Unfortunately, the authors incorporated
yoga and psychological approaches into meditation. Therefore, we designed this study to
evaluate the impact of Meditation and Reiki on the outcome of assisted reproduction
treatment.