We understand that the discovery of a fertility problem is often the beginning of a physically and emotionally difficult period in your life. To best take care of your overall well-being, we utilize an integrated, holistic approach. In addition to providing the most up-to-date medical interventions, we offer our patients comprehensive psychological services that include individual, couple, and family counseling as well as psycho-educational consultations. Our goal is to provide you with detailed information about your specific treatment protocol and to help you make fully informed decisions regarding various treatment interventions. We know that the psychological impact of infertility is experienced before, during and after treatment and emotionally challenges both the individual and the couple. Fortunately, our team works together to help you overcome both the physical and emotional consequences of infertility diagnosis and treatment.
What are the common emotional reactions to infertility?
Although each person and couple has unique reactions to infertility, there are often shared feelings. After your diagnosis and during treatment you may feel shocked, depressed, guilty, hopeless, angry, anxious, ashamed, preoccupied, isolated, jealous and out of control. You may have strained relations with your partner, family, and friends, difficulty sleeping, changed eating habits, and a loss of interest in your usual activities. You may find the intensity and duration of these reactions unpredictable and upsetting and may need help in coping, stress reduction, and improving the quality of your life.
What options are available to the infertile couple?
Variety of treatment options are usually available to you. You may choose different treatments in the pursuit of a child who will be genetically related to both would-be parents. Through such procedures as ovum donation and donor insemination, you may have a child who is genetically related to only one parent. Adoption or embryo donations also are available to you in your family building efforts. Alternatively, you may decide that child-free living makes the most sense for you. Each option raises its own set of emotional and psychological issues for you and your future family. It is common to seek help, by way of a psychological consultation, to gather information and to aid in decision making.
What are the common issues faced in infertility treatment?
Irrespective of your specific infertility problem, you must first come to terms with the sense of loss associated with having an assisted pregnancy. You must then decide whether to pursue infertility treatment, and whether you feel emotionally ready to manage the stressful procedures. There are many infertility treatments available, and you must assess which one is right for you. Do you feel comfortable with third party reproduction? Is a known or unknown donor best? Looking down the road, what do you tell the child? Is adoption or embryo donation a consideration for you? What do you do if you and your partner have different ideas or how to build your family? Have you contemplated the impact of a multiple pregnancy or a multi-fetal reduction on your family relationship? These considerations and questions are difficult and it is beneficial to explore, define, and clarify the issues with the assistance of our mental health infertility specialist.
What are the effects of infertility on the couple?
It is common for partners to respond differently to infertility, and it is possible for infertility to invoke unexpected feelings about the choice to have children. Within the couple, there may be different levels of desire to have a child, dissimilar time lines for the commencement of treatment, and conflicts about the use of donors to achieve a pregnancy. Infertility testing and procedures place considerable pressure on a relationship. Unfortunately, at a time when communication is of paramount importance, it may be severely compromised. Consultation with our mental health infertility specialist may aid couples in validating each other's feelings and in making the best decisions.
When is psychological intervention helpful?
You may benefit from talking with our psychologist at any stage of your treatment process to help you cope with feelings of loss and other emotional reactions, make treatment decisions, and prepare for medical interventions. Our focus is on providing information, clarifying goals, examining feelings, determining priorities, improving coping skills, and addressing or preventing relationship conflicts. When you consider third party reproduction through donor ovum, donor insemination, traditional surrogacy, or gestational care, a psychological consultation is crucial to help all participants think through the myriad of issues for themselves and for the future generation.
Many of our patients benefit from participation in RESOLVE, a volunteer organization of infertile people which offers multiple resources including support groups.
