Building a Support System – The Role of Partners, Friends, and Family in Preconception Health

Your preconception journey is a complicated, emotional, and nuanced one, but having a trusted support circle can have significant benefits for your emotional and reproductive health. Surrounding yourself with friends, family, healthcare experts, and a partner who can encourage you and guide you throughout this stage of life is easier than you might realize. Our tips below help you lean on this community throughout your preconception journey. You’ll also gain knowledge on how a Kaneka Ubiquinol® supplement can be an ideal addition to your routine.

Read More: Seeking Preparation Tips for Preconception? Start Here

Why a Support System Matters on Your Preconception Journey

A support system is important for general health, but it’s especially valuable as you navigate the emotional and physical demands of preconception. Having a partner, friends, family, and neighbors by your side can reduce stress and impact reproductive wellness. In fact, recent studies highlight key facts about the significance of a circle you trust during this stage of life:

• Social support for women on their preconception journey has positive impacts on their relationships with healthcare providers and peers
• When two partners, of any gender, focus on their preconception health as a couple, both feel more invested in their future and greater satisfaction in their relationship
• Community support during the challenging times of preconception can protect individuals’ emotional well-being

You don’t have to navigate your reproductive health alone. Leaning on loved ones helps your body and mind feel confident as you navigate this journey.

The Power of Friends and Family in Emotional Support

Preconception help is as much about reproductive wellness as it is about emotional well-being, and building a circle of trusted friends and family can especially help you manage stress, feel encouraged, and stay healthy during the emotional time of preconception.

Still, we know that discussing your preconception journey with loved ones can sometimes feel challenging. That’s why we recommend doing the following activities with others so you can navigate this period of life and have organic, meaningful conversations:

• meal prep with your partner or a friend
• work out with a peer or loved one
• share preconception resources, like books or podcasts, with others going through the preconception journey
• schedule phone calls or meet-ups to have open, honest conversations with others
• meet with your doctor regularly to discuss your options

These activities can make protecting your emotional wellness that much easier. Plus, you might be struggling to set boundaries with individuals in your life during this time. Rest assured that that’s normal, and confiding in loved ones can make it easier to determine who you want involved in your preconception journey and protect your peace.

How Partners Can Play an Active Role in Preconception Health

A support system involves friends, family, and healthcare providers, but it especially includes your partner. One study highlights that men and male partners proved a key component of a woman’s preconception health and feelings of support. Below are a few ways you and your partner can encourage each other during preconception:

• Stay knowledgeable about reproductive terms and cycles together
• Actively acknowledge and listen to your partner’s feelings and emotions, as the preconception journey can be emotionally taxing for both partners
• Set realistic goals for yourself and your relationship to work towards during this time
• If the emotional toll of the process is having a significant impact on you or your partner, consider individual or couples therapy

Prioritizing your partnership makes the emotional and physical components of preconception more manageable. That’s why navigating reproductive health with your partner will set you both up for success on your preconception journey.

Building Healthy Habits for Preconception Wellness

Healthy conception partly depends on building healthy habits that set you and your partner up for success. Luckily, you two can work together to prepare for preconception physically and emotionally, while supporting your relationship. The following are just a few ways you can commit to healthy habits together and promote reproductive wellness:

• Exercise regularly
• Get quality sleep
• Adopt a healthy diet
• Manage stress
• Prioritize emotional wellness

Beyond these, supplementation can be another helpful lifestyle choice. A Kaneka Ubiquinol® supplement promotes preconception health for both men and women, and working it into your routine is easy and simple. Read on to learn more about how taking a daily Kaneka Ubiquinol® supplement can become a helpful habit during your preconception journey.

Read More: Looking for More Lifestyle Tips? Read Our List

Why Add Kaneka Ubiquinol^® to Your Preconception Support System?

A Kaneka Ubiquinol^® supplement works from the inside out to promote reproductive health for both men and women. Thanks to its antioxidant properties, it supports mitochondrial function and protects against oxidative stress — an excess of free radicals and not enough antioxidants, which can damage cells, cause premature cellular aging, and impact reproductive health.^1,2,3,4

While it can benefit both you and your partner’s overall and preconception health, Kaneka Ubiquinol® has unique perks for the female and male reproductive systems. For women, it promotes healthy oocytes: its antioxidant properties support the high cellular energy demand these reproductive cells require and their large number of mitochondria.⁵ For men, its antioxidant properties promote sperm health, quality, and motility.^6,7

Kaneka Ubiquinol^® can be an important addition to your preconception support system. By maintaining reproductive wellness for both partners, a daily Kaneka Ubiquinol^® supplement helps you navigate this journey with confidence.

Read More: Want to Learn More About Ubiquinol’s Antioxidant Properties? Explore Here

Creating a Preconception Community You Trust

The preconception process requires a village: a supportive, trustworthy circle of individuals who can guide you and your partner on your preconception journey. This stage of life can feel overwhelming and emotional, but making a realistic plan, staying consistent as a team, focusing on small steps, celebrating milestones, and exploring your supplement options with loved ones helps you lean on the people you love most.

Read More: Looking for More Guidance? Discover Tips for Healthy Conception Here

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1. Alleva R, Scararmucci A, Mantero F, Bompadre S, Leoni L, Littarru GP. The protective role of ubiquinol-10 against formation of lipid hydroperoxides in human seminal fluid. Molecular Aspects of Medicine, 1997 18(1):221-228.
2. Zhu Z, Xu W, Liu L. Ovarian aging: mechanisms and intervention strategies. Medical Review 2022 Nov;2(6):590–610.
3. Ben-Meir A et al. Coenzyme Q10 restores oocyte mitochondrial function and fertility during reproductive aging. Aging Cell. 2015a Oct;14(5):887-95.
4. Zhang M, ShiYang X, Zhang Y, Miao Y, Chen Y, Cui Z, Xiong B. Coenzyme Q10 ameliorates the quality of postovulatory aged oocytes by suppressing DNA damage and apoptosis. Free Radic Biol Med. 2019 Nov 1;143:84-94.
5. Bentov Y, Casper RF. The aging oocyte–can mitochondrial function be improved? Fertil Steril. 2013 Jan;99(1):18-22.
6. Cakiroglu B, Eyyupoglu SE, Gozukucuk R, Uyanik BS. Ubiquinol effect on sperm parameters in subfertile men who have astheno-teratozoospermia with normal sperm concentration. Nephrourol Mon. 2014 May 10;6(3):e16870.
7. Thakur AS, Littarru GP, Funahashi I, Painkara US, Dange NS, Chauhan P. Effect of ubiquinol therapy on sperm parameters and serum testosterone levels in oligoasthenozoospermic infertile men. J Clin Diagn Res. 2015 Sep; 9(9): BC01–BC03.