Process of becoming a mother for Iranian surrogacy‐commissioning mothers: A grounded theory study

Abstract

Aim: Little knowledge is available about the experiences of the commissioning mothers during the process of surrogacy; thus, the present study was conducted in order to explore and analyze this process. Methods: This study was conducted in a referral institute in Tehran with a qualitative approach and using grounded theory methodology. The data were collected through 39 unstructured, in-depth interviews that were conducted with 15 gestational commissioning mothers, two of their husbands, four surrogates, and five of the personnel at centers for assisted reproduction (some participants were interviewed more than once). Sampling started purposively and then continued theoretically. Results: The analysis revealed the main concern of these mothers to be the feeling of "insecurity about becoming a mother" and their predominant strategy for dealing with it to be "seeking security about becoming a mother," which emerged as a core concept. The consequences of the mothers' adopted strategies and the effects of the intervening factors included "reaching a state of relative peace," "a continuing threat to one's identity," and "mental and physical exhaustion." Conclusion: Identifying the demands of this group of mothers can help medical personnel, particularly nurses, adopt better plans for the future and to optimize the care they provide to these patients.

Surrogacy relationships: a critical interpretative review

“…thirteen on Indian (19)(20)(21)(22)(23)(24)(25)(26)(27)(28)(29)(30)(31), nine on the US (32)(33)(34)(35)(36)(37)(38)(39)(40), and five articles on the Israeli context (36,(41)(42)(43)(44). The least studied country contexts in this sample include Greece 45, Iran (46), Italy (47), Mexico (48,49), Norway (50), Sweden (51,52), and Russia/Ukraine (53,54). In countries where surrogacy is not legal, only intended parents through transnational surrogacy have been interviewed (e.g.…”

Surrogacy among Filipinos who have struggled with infertility: A discourse analysis

“…As a result, the potential mother may harbor feelings of insecurity about the potential bond between the surrogate and child, a common concern among commissioning parents (Zandi, Vanaki, Shiva, & Mohammadi, 2018). Tracy describes her potential experience, by saying “I know I didn’t give birth to the child [but I might get] postpartum ’cause [I will be] very insecure [that they have a bond], and I won’t.” Ted describes feelings of “pity” toward the surrogate mother for carrying the child, but expresses his concern in the child’s potential “urge to find or look for the surrogate mother.” Although they express sympathy with the surrogate mother parting with the child, their potential relationship is also pointed out as a major concern: “What if she [bothers us], or she wants to be involved in the child’s life for as long as the child lives?” (Tracy).…”

“…As a result, the potential mother may harbor feelings of insecurity about the potential bond between the surrogate and child, a common concern among commissioning parents (Zandi, Vanaki, Shiva, & Mohammadi, 2018). Tracy describes her potential experience, by saying "I know I didn't give birth to the child [but I might get] postpartum 'cause [I will be] very insecure [that they have a bond], and I won't."…”

Psychometric Properties of the Functional Social Support Domain of Perinatal Infant Care Social Support

“…Structural support are the support sources or networks, which can be: formal, like the support offered by the health staff, or informal, especially from their partner or mother. (7) Social support reduces the tension generated by the new maternal role that favors the affective bond, (8) it is associated with greater confidence of the mother (9) and diminishes the risk of postpartum depression. (10) Bearing in mind the positive impact of social support on the maternal and child health, it is a challenge for nursing to design interventions that favor the different types of social support in first-time mothers and evaluate their effectiveness, which require valid and reliable scales.…”