Infertility: Negative Effects and Ways of Overcoming It

Infertility is the inability to reproduce and have offspring by natural means.it it not usually the natural state of a health person. You will find several cases of infertility and thanks to modern science medicine has been developed to help victims be able to bear children of their own. Surveys done on the populous since 1997 have shown and suggest that globally about fir percent are victims of infertility. However, many more couples experience involuntary Infertility for at least one year: estimates range from 12% to 28%." 20-30% of infertility cases are due to male infertility, 20-35% are due to female infertility, and 25-40% are due to combined problems in both parts. In 10-20% of cases, no cause is found. Among the many reasons that cause female infertility are ovulatory problems which generally appear by sparse or absent menstrual periods. Male infertility is most commonly due to lack in semen, whereby semen quality is used as gauge of measure of male fertility.

In my research I have found many definitions of the term infertility but among these one highly used and recognized is how the world health organization defines infertility

“Infertility is “a disease of the reproductive system defined by the failure to achieve a clinical pregnancy after 12 months or more of regular unprotected sex. Primary infertility is infertility in a couple who have never had a child. Secondary infertility is failure to conceive following a previous pregnancy. Infertility may be caused by infection in the man or woman, but often there is no obvious underlying cause.”

It is well known the challenges that infertile women face in our community.in this paper we will be going through the challenges faced by infertile women in japan. Among the many problems that they face include physical, mental and social distress by not being able to have children of their own. Although their psychological status has been often studied and researched in past, many studies and conclusions have indicated that women with fertility problems have more depression and anxiety, compared with the general population or with fertile women or with those who became pregnant through fertility treatment. In addition, their psychological status can differ depending on which stage of treatment cycle they are in.

In these papers we will not only look at the negative effects and interactions these women face but also the positive interactions, it is well known that social support can politely affect the mental health of women experiencing infertility and lastly how they cope and not allow themselves to drown in their own depression.

Negative effects

Many studies about the experience of infertile women at social interactions within their community have revealed that they get negative social interactions, such as insensitive remarks or inappropriate support from people close to them. Furthermore, it has been shown that unsupported interactions with community has negative effects and will lead to psychological distress.

It can be extracted from this that the experience of negative interactions with others is stressful, that is expected to have negative effects on the emotional health of infertile women, sometimes leading to their social isolation. Although several previous studies describe the negative social interactions the infertile women experience as one part of the painful experience of being infertile, there has been very little systematic research on variations of positive and negative social interactions.

Infertile women in Japan as well as in the Western World have high levels of emotional distress, which include anxiety and depression the same psychological stress that woman face all around the world is the same for women in Japan. The expectation of bearing a child is expected by every woman by the society. And if this is not able to be done you can expect some remarks that may not be so nice from insensitive people. Added with personal stress and pressure that you put on yourself it can add up to be emotional discomfort. In Japan, women are frequently greeted with traditional questions such as, 'Are you married? Do you have a child?' Elderly Japanese may project guilt on women without children, because they

believe women should fulfill a role by producing an heir and/or heiress to continue the family name. This can cast shame and/or guilt on the infertility patients, and thus produce undo stress on women labeled as infertile.

It is a good argument to state that social interactions play the major role in the negative effects that women face in our society in fact It might be the root of all most all negative experience that infertile women in Japan face. We will look at some example of negative social interactions that infertile women in our society.

Prying with the topic of children

In the studies done this was the category with the largest number of cases, it was not only experienced by close friends and family but also people who are not close like neighbors. Prying questions were not only aimed to ‘Any children?’, ‘No children yet?’ type of question but also specific and in-depth personal informational that one would not fill inclined to share. I.e. specific questions about reasons and preferences, such as ‘Why not?’, ‘Aren't you going to have any?’ and ‘Do you want children or not?’. If the woman replied she wanted but unable to conceive the follow up question would be if she has visited the hospital. Most of these interactions occurred with people who did not know the participant was undergoing fertility treatment.

Interfering where the topic of children is concerned

Following the unnecessary prying questions about children unneeded interference on pushing to have children was also not uncommon. ‘You need to lose weight,’ ‘this is really good to help you in giving birth,’ what your dong is wrong that's why you can't conceive’ and other similar comments, especially from elderly people in the community. Other cases involved unsolicited advice about medical institutions, adoption, diets and folk remedies. When this interference was persistent and continued over a long period, it led some women to have very strong negative feelings.

Offering inappropriate advice and concern

This experience is very common to give a few cases that have been documented in all these social interactions, the other person intended to be supportive, but the interaction proved unsupportive to the infertile woman. One woman told of an experience whereby her mother-in-law, out of concern for her feelings, kept secret the pregnancy of a relative. However, this ended up making her feel even worse.

“When my husband's younger brother's wife got pregnant, my mother-in-law thought that it would hurt me to know this because I was going through that [treatment], so she kept quiet about it [the sister-in-law's pregnancy]. … No-one told me … I just wish they'd told me earlier. They said it was hard to say anything because I was trying so hard. But, I felt worse about them doing that” (age 43, 5 years, 3 months, ICSI).

Acting insensitively and without care

Some people are insensitive to others and show no empathy to people around them. You will people talking about their own pregnancies and children. although the topic of children is inevitable when talking with people who had children However, it is best to show consideration when communicating with infertile people.in a research done, one participant narrated her experience of telling a friend that she had miscarried after being pregnant through treatment but got no reaction from her friend. Instead, the friend talked about her own joy at being pregnant. The relationship became estranged after this.

“[When I told her about the miscarriage] She just ignored it. You'd think that she would at least say something sympathetic, but she didn't say anything. After that we began to drift apart” (age 36, 3 years, timing method).

Expressing negative attitude toward infertility or reproductive medicine

The issue of infertility treatment is not widely known or accepted in some parts of our community. Some patients are adversely affected by being at the receiving end of negative value judgments regarding infertility. Examples included, ‘You should avoid fertility treatment’, ‘you are not normal, IVF is not normal, so, you should not talk to people about, it can give a bad impression’. In one case, a woman had been told by her mother-in-law not to get treatment because it was unnatural and damaging, and she is ending up having to hide the fact that she was getting treatment. As a result, she experienced the extra emotional burden of hiding the fact.

“She checked to make sure I wasn't going to the hospital and [because I couldn't tell the truth] I said ‘No, I wasn't.’ I hate lying, but I don't want to make her worry unnecessarily either” (age 40, 8 years, IVF–ET).

Disappointed in not having children of your own

Comments and judgments about being lonely if you don’t have children i.e. ‘You must be lonely without children’ were negatively received by victims of infertility and made them want to react e.g. by shouting at them to leave them alone. Such comments were generally made by the elderly women. A woman who was considering terminating her treatment because of her age said:

“After I tell people I don't have children, they invariably say, ‘Oh really? That must be lonely’. And that gets me thinking … is it better to have [a child]?” (age 43, 16 years, ICSI).

Being criticized for not having children

Japanese infertile women are really affected by negative criticism from people especially if it is from close friend and relatives a good example there were some women who suffered from mistaken judgments, such as a woman whose father-in-law, who lived in the same house, unjustly said, ‘There's nothing wrong with the man. It's the woman's problem! So, hurry and go to the hospital!’ Also, a woman who was blamed by her neighbors due to a misunderstanding, ‘This isn't good. The population is shrinking and there are less and less children and it's because of people like you’.

Such remarks can be very damaging to a person and really influence them in a negative way.

Mistakenly if not having children was intentional

Some people seem to be envious of the fact that the infertile woman doesn’t have children and comment on how they are lucky and are free to do their own things. One woman described the feeling of while knowing that the other person did not mean any ill will, she found the words in a conversation with a former work colleague, difficult to take.

“I said I didn't have children yet, and she said, ‘But you're lucky.’ I'm not working, so when she said, ‘You should be happy, you've got an easy life,’ it was quite rough. It's not like I wanted this easy life” (age 29, 1 year 5 months, AIH).

Avoiding contact

In some cases where by you find infertile women form bonds with peers who are undergoing the same treatment however after one of the women becomes pregnant the bond becomes weak and eventually goes away.

“I guess [the other person] felt bad about getting pregnant first. So, she thought it was better not to contact me. Then, I stopped contacting her. In IVF there seems always to be winners and losers” (age 43, 8 years, IVF–ET).

Other ways that infertility affects the women in Japan are in their relationships with partners.

Sexual Stress When Trying to Conceive

The sex life may be the first Victim.at fight simple comments like “let us have a baby” can be a turn but after sometimes of trying it become the last thing that you want to hear.

Because sex is also a way to feel closer to your partner, stress in your intimate life can lead to tension in your overall relationship.

Disagreements on When to Seek Help

When should you decide to seek medical help, this can be a very simple and straight forward answer but what happens when one of you decides to wait while the other wants immediate response.

This can become a source of conflict between the couple.

Fears That If It’s “Your Fault,” Your Partner Will Leave

I suppose that this is the most common result from the effects of been an infertile woman in the Japanese society are in any other kind of community.

“I’m afraid he’ll leave me because I’m infertile. I’m afraid my partner will abandon me for someone who can give him a child.” This is a very common fear and one that many people never reveal to their lover.

If your relationship is otherwise strong, infertility is unlikely to break you apart. What is the best way to deal with this fear? Put it out there. Talk to your partner about your fears.

Interesting fact research has found that those who resort to self-blame and criticism—it’s my fault. I brought this onto myself—tend to have higher levels of infertility stress.

Tension and Resentment Over “Who Has It Worse”

Who has it worse, the one who is subjected to the most procedures? Or the one who is infertile (if only one of the two), and therefore has the emotional burden of feeling at fault? For some couples, these issues lead to resentment, putting blame on each other especially for the women who are given the most blame from the society.

Misunderstandings Over Different Ways of Coping

Each one has different ways of copping. Studies have shown that different genders have different ways of coping with infertility. These differences can lead to misunderstandings.

For example, one partner may accuse the other of “not caring enough” if their coping style is more subdued. On the other side, one partner may accuse the other of “overreacting.”

Studies have also found that women are more likely to handle marital stress than men, regardless of the cause of infertility. This doesn't mean the men don't care. Only that their relationship stress levels from infertility are lower.

Financial Strain of Infertility

Arguments over money are not unique to infertile partners, with the expensive fertility treatment tension and discomfort over finances is common.

Most couples will not require IVF treatment. For those that do, it can lead to long-term financial burdens. Almost all couples that go through IVF need to borrow money. This can mean years of debt.

Other possible sources of financial stress include, disagreements over whether to pursue treatment (due to costs) whether and how to borrow money whether to ask friends and close relatives for financial help whether to skip treatments and go straight to adoption (which is also expensive)

How women cope with infertility

They are different methods developed that help infertility women cope with infertility. But since most of this problem stem from the society we will look at different ways of how infertility women interact with society and how by the community being aware has helped.

Listening closely to the distress experienced in infertility and treatment

Infertile women although undergoing treatment suffer in many ways they can’t seem to overcome their infertility, they lack support and cooperation from partners during treatments, they experience changes in relationship with friends and relatives. Infertile women found that having someone with a sympathetic ear to listen to their concerns as reassuring.

“I don't talk to my friends about details such as the treatment, so who I talk to are my parents. My parents listen to all I have to say. I am very grateful that they listen to me and for the fact that I have someone to talk to” (age 33, 5 years, IVF–ET).

Showing understanding and sympathy toward the distress of infertility and treatment

Having people not just listening but also showing sympathy and empathy was also a grate help and considered a great support. Many of this case involve people who have gone through the same thing.

Providing encouragement at difficult times

Giving affirmation and encouragement is perhaps the most support in helping infertile women cope with infertility. Forming support group is one of the many effective methods to help infertile women in japan but all the world.

Not prying or interfering with the topic of children

Most infertile women in japan regard others not to prying to mush into the topic of children and infertility as highly beneficial. “I often hear that many people get asked ‘No baby yet?’ all the time by their mothers-in-law or other people, but at least I'm lucky and don't get that” (age 29, 1 year 5 months, AIH).

Communication

Talking to each other, sharing fears and worries that really tear at you. Human beings are social creatures by expressing yourself you will be able to settle down and be assured that everything will be okay.

Though it might be terrifying to bring up, you will likely be relieved by the assurance of your partner that infertility is not really a problem for him.

Finding ways to connect that are not connected to infertility

Being able to balance and not allow infertility to be the only thing you talk about in your conversations. Especially during fertility testing and treatment, infertility can shadow everything in your life. You may not remember what you talked about before your fertility challenges hit.

It may be hobby or activity. Sit down and make a list of things to do together.

Reach out for social support

Don’t try to cope with infertility alone. Shame really keeps many individuals and couples from reach out for support. Especially in Japan where by the society is so indirect. You don’t have to tell “the world” so to speak you can decide to share the information with specific close friends and relatives.

Remember that infertility is not forever

Conceiving children may not be possible, but you won’t be struggling to conceive forever. research has shown that stress and anxiety really peak after three years of infertility. However, six years post-diagnosis, couples are feeling stronger, and depression and anxiety symptoms lessen.

It is possible for your relationship to survive this tough and challenging but temporary ordeal. In the, you’ll either have a child or give up trying to conceive. But there is life after infertility.

Sitting down and making plans together with your partner

Research has found that putting a practical plan down maybe in paper helps improve marital satisfaction. In some sense, infertility is not plan-friendly. You may not really know how long your struggle will be or what testing or treatments will be needed. Putting together financial plans since medical treatment can be quite expensive, especially a savings plan is a smart choice. The sooner you start putting money aside, the better. If you don’t need it for fertility treatment bills or adoption costs, you can use it for something else. No harm done.