“My mother in-law forced my husband to divorce me”: Experiences of women with infertility in Zamfara State of Nigeria

Abstract

IntroductionWomen with infertility have different experiences that determine the quality of their psychosocial health. Cultural constructions of infertility in Africa have made the experience of infertility among African women more burdensome. Yet, little is known about the psychosocial experiences of women with infertility in Zamfara State of Nigeria. The purpose of this study was to explore the psychosocial experiences of women with infertility in Zamfara.Materials and methodsAn exploratory qualitative design was used for this exploration. Individual in-depth interviews were conducted using a semi-structured interview guide. Ethical approval was received from the Institutional Review Board of the Nogouchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research in the University of Ghana. Women who were married and seeking treatment for infertility from a public hospital were recruited and interviewed. A total of 12 women were interviewed with each interview lasting 45 minutes. The interviews were audiotaped with permission from the participants, transcribed verbatim, and content analysed.ResultsThe findings revealed that psychologically, majority of the women had experienced anxiety, stress and depression as a result of their inability to get pregnant. Socially, the women suffered self and social isolation, social stigma, social pressure and marital problems.ConclusionThese women have psychosocial health problems that need the attention of health professionals to enhance their wellbeing.

Coping Strategies Mediate the Association Between Stigma and Fertility Quality of Life in Infertile Women Undergoing In Vitro Fertilization Embryo Transfer

“…As the results of this study showed, there was a signi cantly negative correlation between stigma and FertiQoL. This is also supported by previous qualitative studies, where infertile women perceived that their daily lives were disrupted, and their marital relationship to have deteriorated, and complained that they had lower social status and social support during fertility treatment [35,36].…”

Coping Strategies Mediate the Association Between Stigma and Fertility Quality of Life in Infertile Women Undergoing in Vitro Fertilization-Embryo Transfer.

“…As the results of this study showed, there was a signi cantly negative correlation between stigma and FertiQoL. This is also supported by previous qualitative studies, where infertile women perceived that their daily lives were disrupted, their marital relationship to have deteriorated, and complained that they had lower social status and social support during fertility treatment [27,35].…”

The association between early in marriage fertility pressure from in-laws’ and family planning behaviors, among married adolescent girls in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, India

“…Report of communication between girls and their husbands may suggest increased female reproductive agency, however, we do not know the nature of their reported communication and whether it is by choice. Spousal communication needs further scrutiny since couples’ decision-making concordance and quality of relationship have a direct bearing on contraceptive use [ 20 , 36 ], especially for married adolescent girls with limited agency in a gender unfriendly context. These reports of communication could have been due to in-laws’ pressure, conflicts with husbands, or pressure from husbands.…”