Navratri During IVF: Fasting, Garba and Each Treatment Phase
In short: Many women can observe Navratri during IVF with a plan agreed with their team: medicines at fixed times, a fast with fluids rather than a waterless one, gentle Garba while the ovaries are enlarged, and your clinic’s fasting rules before egg collection. Bed rest after transfer is not needed. What is right depends on your health and treatment stage.
Navratri 2026: Sharad Navratri begins on Sunday 11 October, and Dussehra falls on Tuesday 20 October.
Same-day warning signs, at any stage: severe abdominal (tummy) pain or bloating, breathlessness, passing very little urine, vomiting that will not settle, fainting, or bleeding. See when to call us.
Navratri brings nine nights of devotion, family and Garba. If you are in the middle of IVF, IUI or a frozen embryo transfer, it can also bring practical questions. Can you keep your vrat? Can you dance? Does the stage of treatment matter? It does. IVF timings follow your ovaries, not the festival calendar, so this guide goes phase by phase. It is part of our IVF guide. Use it with your team to plan a way of observing the festival that fits your treatment.
Can I keep a Navratri fast during IVF?
Often, yes, with a plan agreed with your IVF team. No study has looked at Navratri fasting during IVF, and no trial shows that fasting improves IVF results. So the aim is to observe in a way that does not disturb your medicines, fluids or recovery.
The stage of treatment changes the answer. Use the table below as a starting point for that conversation, not as a rule.
| Treatment phase | Fasting | Garba | Most important point |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stimulation injections (usually about 10–12 days) | A fast with water and other fluids is often manageable; avoid a waterless (nirjala) fast | Gentle in the early days; slower rounds only as the ovaries enlarge | Keep every injection at its set time |
| Egg collection day | Follow your clinic’s written fasting instructions for sedation | No Garba | Tell the team if you have been keeping a vrat |
| One to two weeks after collection | Eat and drink regularly; not a time for a waterless fast | Rest first; no vigorous dancing | Know the warning signs of OHSS |
| Embryo transfer day | No fasting needed; you may be asked to come with a comfortably full bladder | Normal activity afterwards | Bed rest is not needed |
| Two-week wait | Discuss any fast first; keep fluids up | Gentle Garba is generally fine; avoid exhausting nights | Take progesterone exactly as prescribed |
| After a positive test | Ask for individual advice before any fast | Gentle activity, as advised | Early pregnancy care continues |
What are my options if I want to keep a vrat?
A fast that keeps fluids is usually easier to fit with treatment than a waterless one, and how you observe is your choice. Families keep Navratri fasts in different ways, from farali (fasting-day) food through the day to a nirjala fast without water.
Options worth discussing with your team:
- keeping water and other fluids through the day, with farali food as your family’s practice allows;
- fasting on fewer days, or on days that do not fall on egg collection or the days just after it;
- pausing the fast on procedure days and resuming it afterwards;
- not keeping a nirjala (waterless) fast during stimulation, around egg collection, or if you have been told you are at higher risk of OHSS.
This is about planning, not about giving up your faith. If you have not started your cycle yet, you can also ask whether to begin before or after Navratri. For some women a short wait makes little difference. For others, such as those with a low egg reserve, time matters more, and that is worth discussing openly. For eating well through each phase, see nutrition during IVF.
How do I fit injections and medicines around a fast?
Keep every medicine at the time your team set, even when a fast changes your meal times. Never skip, delay or double a dose on your own; if a dose is missed or late, call the clinic for advice.
- Stimulation injections: give them at the times on your treatment plan.
- The trigger injection: give it at exactly the time you are told, because egg collection is timed from it, about 36 hours later.
- Tablets meant to be taken with food: ask how to fit them into your fasting day.
- Progesterone support after collection or transfer: take it exactly as prescribed; it is never stopped or reduced without advice.
- Diabetes medicines or insulin: do not fast without a plan from your doctor. Fasting while taking them can make your blood sugar fall too low.
- Other regular medicines, such as thyroid or blood pressure tablets: ask before changing the time you take them.
If vomiting or weakness during a fast stops you taking your medicines, stop the fast and call us. Our page on IVF medicines explains what each one does.
Can I play Garba during the stimulation injections?
Gentle Garba is usually fine in the early days of stimulation. As your ovaries enlarge in the later days, stay with the slower rounds and sit out the fast whirling, jumping and twisting.
Garba often begins with slow circular steps and builds towards fast whirling. During stimulation, the ovaries grow larger as several follicles develop, and enlarged ovaries can, rarely, twist on themselves (ovarian torsion). That is why our advice during stimulation is light activity, with no high-impact or twisting movements as the ovaries enlarge. No study has tested dancing during stimulation, so this is a precaution based on how the ovaries change, not a trial result.
- Ask at your monitoring scan how your ovaries are responding and what activity suits you now.
- Stop and rest if you feel pain, heaviness or pulling low in the abdomen. Sudden, severe pain on one side needs a same-day call.
- Keep water with you through the evening and drink regularly.
- Plan late nights around your injection times and any early-morning scan appointments.
Do I need to fast before egg collection?
Yes, but it is a short medical fast for safety under sedation, not a religious one. Follow your clinic’s written instructions exactly; they say when to stop food and drink before your procedure time.
Egg collection is done under sedation or light anaesthesia, and international anaesthesia guidelines set fasting limits before procedures like this. If you are keeping a vrat, tell the team when your collection is booked. Do not add a waterless fast on the day before. Eat and drink normally until the cut-off time in your instructions. Break your fast after collection, once the team says you can eat and drink. Read more about egg collection day.
What should I watch for after egg collection?
Mild bloating and discomfort for a few days are common. Severe or worsening pain or bloating, vomiting, passing very little urine or breathlessness can be signs of ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS). They need a same-day call.
OHSS is an over-response of the ovaries to the stimulation medicines. Rest on the day of collection and take things easy for the next few days. Avoid vigorous Garba, intense exercise and heavy lifting for one to two weeks. If you have symptoms of OHSS, avoid strenuous activity until your team advises otherwise. Drink regularly through the day, guided by your thirst; this is not the time for a waterless fast. Our page on OHSS prevention explains how the risk is managed.
Can I fast or play Garba after embryo transfer?
The transfer itself needs no fasting, and you do not need bed rest afterwards. Normal daily activity, including gentle Garba at an easy pace, is generally fine; avoid exhausting, high-impact dancing during the two-week wait.
- You may be asked to come with a comfortably full bladder, which helps the ultrasound view, so drinking is part of the transfer-day plan. See embryo transfer day.
- Guidelines advise against bed rest after transfer: studies comparing rest with getting up straight away found no benefit from resting.
- If you plan to fast during the two-week wait, discuss it first, choose a fast with fluids, and take progesterone exactly as prescribed.
For everyday questions during the wait, see post-transfer dos and don’ts.
Will fasting or dancing change my chances of success?
No trial shows that fasting improves IVF results, and no study has looked at Navratri fasting during IVF at all. Getting up and carrying on with normal activity after transfer has not been shown to lower the chance of pregnancy.
You may read that fasting “boosts” fertility treatment; there is no trial behind that claim. The main influences on IVF results are factors such as age, egg reserve and embryo quality. There is no evidence that a modified fast or gentle Garba changes them, so please do not carry guilt about either.
What changes for IUI or a frozen embryo transfer?
Less changes, but the same principles apply. IUI needs no anaesthesia, so there is no pre-procedure fast. Frozen transfer cycles usually prepare the womb lining rather than grow many eggs, so the enlarged-ovary precautions often do not apply. Check with your team.
- IUI: treatment may use tablets or low-dose injections and a trigger, with one or two monitoring scans. Keep medicine and trigger times exact; usual activity is generally fine.
- Frozen embryo transfer: the womb lining is prepared in a natural cycle or a medicated cycle with oestrogen and progesterone. Keep those medicines on time through any fast; the transfer-day and two-week-wait advice above applies.
What if my pregnancy test is positive during Navratri?
Please speak to us before keeping any fast in early pregnancy, especially if you have diabetes, anaemia or a high-risk pregnancy. Advice is individual, because the research cannot give a general answer.
No study has looked at Navratri fasting in pregnancy. The closest evidence comes from Ramadan, when fasting means no food or drink from dawn to sunset. Reviews of those studies have mostly found little or no difference in the outcomes they measured. But the studies have important weaknesses and did not report on miscarriage. They cannot tell you whether a fast is right for you in early pregnancy.
- Keep taking progesterone and other early-pregnancy medicines exactly as prescribed.
- If you have symptoms of OHSS, keep reporting them; in pregnancy they can last longer.
- If you decide to observe, regular farali meals with fluids are generally easier on the body than long gaps without food or water.
- Vomiting that stops you keeping fluids down needs prompt care, whether or not you are fasting.
Read more about early care in an IVF pregnancy, the first trimester and nutrition in pregnancy.
When should I call the hospital straight away?
Call the same day, at any stage of treatment and whether or not you are fasting, if you have any of these signs. Do not wait for your next appointment, and do not try to push through a fast.
- severe or worsening abdominal pain or bloating
- breathlessness or chest pain
- passing very little urine, or very dark urine
- vomiting that will not settle, or being unable to keep fluids down
- fainting, or feeling faint and dizzy
- bleeding heavier than spotting, or bleeding with pain
- sudden, severe pain on one side of the lower abdomen
- a painful, swollen leg
If you are in treatment with us, call Dr. Priyadatt Patel’s line on +91 99094 96027 or the hospital on +91 97234 31544. If you are being treated elsewhere, contact your own clinic. If you cannot reach anyone quickly, go to the nearest hospital emergency department. Go straight there if you are struggling to breathe, have fainted or are bleeding heavily.
Frequently asked questions
Can I keep a Navratri fast while taking IVF injections?
Often yes, if you plan it with your IVF team. A fast that keeps water and other fluids, with farali food, usually fits better than a waterless (nirjala) fast. Keep every injection at its set time, and tell the team if you take medicine for diabetes or another condition. No trial shows that fasting improves IVF results.
Can I play Garba during IVF stimulation?
Gentle Garba is usually fine in the early days. As your ovaries enlarge in the later days of stimulation, stay with the slower rounds. Avoid fast whirling, jumping and twisting, because enlarged ovaries can rarely twist. Stop if you feel pain, and call the same day for sudden, severe pain on one side.
Is the fast before egg collection the same as a vrat?
No. It is a short medical fast for safety under sedation, and its timings come from your clinic’s written instructions, which follow international anaesthesia guidance. If you are keeping a vrat, tell the team and avoid a waterless fast the day before. Break your fast after collection, once the team says you can eat and drink.
Can I fast after embryo transfer?
The transfer itself needs no fasting, and bed rest afterwards is not needed. If you want to fast during the two-week wait, discuss it with your team first. Choose a fast with fluids, and take progesterone exactly as prescribed. If your test is positive, ask for individual advice before any fast.
What should I do if I feel unwell during a fast?
If you feel unwell during a vrat, stop the fast, drink fluids if you can, and call us. If it happens while you are fasting before egg collection, call the team before you eat or drink. Call the same day for severe abdominal pain or bloating, breathlessness, very little urine, vomiting that will not settle, fainting or bleeding. If symptoms are severe or you cannot reach us, go to the nearest emergency department.
Evidence this page draws on
- American Society of Anesthesiologists. 2023 Practice Guidelines for Preoperative Fasting: a modular update of the 2017 guidelines. Anesthesiology 2023;138(2):132–151. doi:10.1097/ALN.0000000000004381
- Practice Committee of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine. Performing the embryo transfer: a guideline. Fertility and Sterility 2017;107(4):882–896. doi:10.1016/j.fertnstert.2017.01.025
- Craciunas L, Tsampras N. Bed rest following embryo transfer might negatively affect the outcome of IVF/ICSI: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Human Fertility 2016;19(1):16–22. doi:10.3109/14647273.2016.1148272
- Rodriguez-Purata J, et al. Live birth rate following bed rest vs. early mobilization after embryo transfer: a systematic review and meta-analysis. JBRA Assisted Reproduction 2022;26(3):547–553. doi:10.5935/1518-0557.20220003
- Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists. Ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome: patient information leaflet (published 2016). rcog.org.uk
- International Society of Ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology. Patient information: ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS) (updated 2022). isuog.org
- Al-Taiar A, et al. Impacts of Ramadan fasting during pregnancy on pregnancy and birth outcomes: an umbrella review. International Journal of Gynaecology and Obstetrics 2025;169(3):968–978. doi:10.1002/ijgo.16127
Clinically reviewed by Dr. Priyadatt Patel, MBBS, MS · Last reviewed: 3 October 2026
Fetal sex is neither determined nor disclosed, as per the PC-PNDT Act.
For decisions about your own treatment, please speak with your IVF team. No outcome guarantees are made or implied.
General education, not personal medical advice.
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