Fertility psychology is a field covering a multitude of aspects of reproductive life, from unplanned pregnancies to questioning parenthood itself. One of its primary facets is counseling patients through in-vitro fertilization. Patients can go months without conceiving after paying thousands of dollars and putting their bodies through extreme regimens to get a chance at creating life. Not only will patients have to undergo the inability to conceive, but there are tragic cases when patients finally have their miracle moment, then later miscarry their pregnancy. This complex and painful process failed to receive real psychological support until the mid-1980s but only took off in the past decade. Reproductive psychology is a very new specialization in psychology relative to its counterparts, but it is vital for the patients taking this brave leap in life.
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Reproductive psychologists help clients understand their trauma after having a long-term dream of being a parent and not being able to achieve it on their own. Trauma like this can have a detrimental impact on other parts of life aside from personal life, such as work, school, and social life. It can even have a straining effect on the relationship between the people striving to have a child. One partner may have an avoidant coping style and completely ignore both the issues and the relationship, while another may attack the problem head-on and logically. The goal of reproductive therapy, as put by Lucille Keenan, PsyD, is to, “help couples get to a place where they can begin moving to the next step of their journey, whether it be child-free, continuing with another aspect of fertility treatment, pausing treatment or building a family in another way.”
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To start preparing for in-vitro fertilization, a fertility psychologist will first see the clients and teach them stress-management techniques and the importance of self-care during this period. They would also work to identify any potential risks or obstacles in treatment, such as uncertainty about parenthood or unsupportive family members. A test called the Positive Reappraisal Coping Intervention, or the PCRI, is an exercise that helps put clients into an optimistic mindset for the two-week waiting period of being approved for IVF treatment. It allows clients to feel in charge and at ease in uncontrollable and unpredictable situations.
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A few different therapies are presented as options for patients hoping to undergo fertility treatment. It is up to the couple to choose what timing and type of counseling they prefer for their individual situation. Patient-centered care involves information gathering, analysis, implications, and decision-making counseling. It is the more general form of fertility counseling and the first kind of therapy that clients typically undergo. Then there is infertility counseling, which involves decision-making counseling, support counseling, and crisis counseling. Infertility counseling is the specific therapy clients receive once they have either had a miscarriage or have had many failed attempts at moving forward with a successful conception. Lastly, there is psychotherapy, which involves crisis counseling and therapeutic counseling. Clients may need this after developing trauma from their fertility journey, having been unfortunate in their attempts repeatedly. This type of counseling can be more short-term than the others and typically helps clients understand and manage their grief.
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Fertility psychology is vital with the rising number of couples who need help starting a family of their own and doing so while keeping their mental health intact. They help clients in every step of the journey, from planning the initial coping strategies to crisis/grief counseling to seeing new life being brought into the world by an overjoyed couple. This work is novel but so crucial in this developing world.
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Grace Stubblefield,
trainee psychologist, IASIS NGO
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References
- Stringer, H. (2017). Psychologists who treat the trauma of infertility. Monitor on Psychology. https://www.apa.org/monitor/2017/07-08/trauma-infertility
- Peterson, B., Boivin, J., Norré, J., Smith, C., Thorn, P., & Wischmann, T. (2012, March). An introduction to infertility counseling: A guide for mental health and medical professionals. Journal of assisted reproduction and genetics. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3288135/
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