An Explorative Study of South African Women’s Experiences: Coping with Infertility | Chapter 10 | Highlights on Medicine and Medical Research Vol. 10

 The expectation of marrying and having children is a natural element of adult life for many people. Many young people look forward to becoming biological mothers and fathers. Individuals and couples are socially groomed to strive to this social ideal, which leads to this expectation of parenthood. For many men and women who strive to comply to these socio-cultural conventions of normative motherhood and who believe that childbirth is vital to their life, infertility can be a highly stressful and tormented experience. Medically, infertility is defined as the inability to conceive after at least twelve months of regular sexual contact without the use of contraception. Both men and women may experience feelings of inadequacy, failure, and incompleteness as a result of infertility. Infertile women, on the other hand, experience a wide range of emotional losses as a result of their inability to have children, as well as a great deal of anguish and anguish. This study looked into the experiences of a group of South African women who were dealing with infertility. A varied group of 21 married women diagnosed with primary infertility were recruited using a qualitative methodology. Individual interviews were done in a semi-structured, in-depth format, and the material was analysed using theme analysis. According to the findings of the study, the women experienced emotional upheaval characterised by disappointment and astonishment, rage and irritation, a deep sense of sadness, and finally a sense of acknowledgment that a problem existed. Infertility is associated with high psychological and emotional stress, according to the findings of this study. Social withdrawal and women separating themselves from social activities and social gatherings, avoiding pregnant women and women with children, and participating in escapism tactics on both a psychological and physical level were among the coping mechanisms used by these women in the study. On a psychological level, using an escapism approach might entail thinking about ways to avoid thinking about infertility, pregnancy, or babies. On a physical level, escapism includes behaviours like as shopping, working longer hours, sleeping more than normal, and engaging in activities that occupy a person to the point where they cannot think about anything else than the activities they are currently involved in. Infertility is a difficult journey, and living with it necessitates a strong feeling of resilience on the part of the infertile spouse, as well as the presence of solid social support that is supportive rather than overbearing.

Author(s) Details

Athena Pedro
Psychology Department, University of the Western Cape, Bellville, South Africa.

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