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Women's experience of infertility & treatment - A silent grief and failed care and support.
Dalarna University, School of Health and Welfare, Sexual Reproductive Perinatal Health.ORCID iD: 0000-0003-0465-9251
Dalarna University, School of Health and Welfare, Sexual Reproductive Perinatal Health.ORCID iD: 0000-0003-2207-9365
2023 (English)In: Sexual & Reproductive HealthCare, ISSN 1877-5756, E-ISSN 1877-5764, Vol. 37, article id 100879Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]

Infertility is one of the components of sexual and reproductive health and rights, but is not as widely addressed as pregnancy, birth, and contraception. Infertility is a global problem, and it is estimated that around 186 million individuals are affected worldwide. Infertility and infertility treatment impact on women's overall wellbeing including their mental, emotional, sexual and spiritual health. Anxiety and depression is prevalent in these women. This study sought to explore the experiences of women going through infertility and IVF in a global context. This study is a metasynthesis with a meta-ethnographic analysis design based on 19 qualitative research studies, including 503 women, focusing on women's experiences of infertility and IVF treatments. Three main themes were identified; the personal reproductive trauma, the impact of and on relationships, and being failed by the healthcare system and society. The personal trauma and experiences included stress, grief, inability to focus, chock, insomnia, anxiety, withdrawing from others, sense of hopelessness and guilt and shame. The infertility and IVF journey also either caused conflicts in relationships or helped the couples to grow stronger. At the same time, relationships with friends and family were strained due to isolation and feeling stigmatized, and not understood. Finally, the healthcare system and providers lacked adequate support, holistic and caring care, and the women felt dehumanized and failed by the healthcare system. It is therefore critical that the healthcare system provide the time, information and support needed to deal with infertility and IVF to maintain quality of life and wellbeing.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
2023. Vol. 37, article id 100879
Keywords [en]
Experience, IVF, Infertility, Infertility treatment, Involuntary childlessness, Reproductive trauma
National Category
Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Medicine Nursing
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:du-46306DOI: 10.1016/j.srhc.2023.100879ISI: 001035386800001PubMedID: 37356208Scopus ID: 2-s2.0-85162940195OAI: oai:DiVA.org:du-46306DiVA, id: diva2:1775589
Available from: 2023-06-27 Created: 2023-06-27 Last updated: 2024-11-21Bibliographically approved

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Borneskog, CatrinTernström, Elin

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CiteExportLink to record
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Citation style
  • apa
  • ieee
  • modern-language-association-8th-edition
  • vancouver
  • chicago-author-date
  • chicago-note-bibliography
  • Other style
More styles
Language
  • de-DE
  • en-GB
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  • nn-NB
  • sv-SE
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More languages
Output format
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