Subjective well-being of women at the beginning of fertility treatment: the role of medical variables, attachment orientation and supportive relationship with the mother.

Objective: To examine the unique and combined contribution of medical aspects and personal and external resources to three major indicators of Subjective Well-Being (SWB): life satisfaction, positive affect and negative affect. Background: Infertility is a stressful condition that requires women to cope with both medical and psychological challenges. Lack of personal and interpersonal resources that may facilitate adjustment to infertility places women in a vulnerable position. Methods: 177 Israeli women on their initial visits to a fertility clinic, completed self-report questionnaires. Medical information was provided by the fertility specialist. Results: Better physical health was associated with greater life satisfaction, more positive emotions and less negative emotions; women with a diagnosis of secondary infertility who did not have previous children were characterised by lower life satisfaction; higher anxious attachment orientation was associated with less life satisfaction and more negative emotions; and a more supportive interaction with the mother was associated with a higher level of positive emotions. Conclusions: The study highlights the need to design interventions for women, that are directed towards the enhancement of both life satisfaction and positive emotions, and indicates that one way to achieve this goal is by promoting a supportive relationship with the mother.

Life satisfaction of women in early stages of fertility treatment.

As many women perceive motherhood to be a central component of identity that enhances life satisfaction, difficulties conceiving may lead to stress. This study examined women in the early stages of fertility treatment to ascertain the relations of perceived stress, cognitive appraisal, and self-mastery to the life satisfaction of women embarking on fertility treatment and whether the associations were the same for women who were already mothers versus those who were not. Women were recruited for the study over a period of 18 months, from January 2013 to June 2014. The final sample was composed of 145 women; of these, 67 had 1 or 2 children and 78 had no children. No significant differences were found in perceived stress and life satisfaction between women with and without children. However, in the sample as a whole, higher levels of self-mastery and lower levels of stress were associated with greater life satisfaction. Moreover, the associations between self-mastery and cognitive appraisals of threat and self-efficacy were mediated by perceived stress. The findings highlight the importance of developing interventions at fertility clinics that begin at the very first point of contact to promote the psychological well-being of women being treated for infertility.

Mental health of women entering fertility treatment: What role do age and internal resources play?

Drawing on Lazarus and Folkman's (1984) model of stress and coping, the study aimed at (a) examining the associations between the mental health of women entering fertility treatment and their internal resources (hope and two aspects of self-consciousness: reflection and rumination); (b) indicating whether mental health is associated with age (above or below 35), and whether this association is mediated by the internal resources. The sample consisted of 137 women (76 aged 20-34; 61 aged 35-44) at the start of fertility treatment who completed a series of self-report questionnaires. Results indicated that younger women reported higher distress and rumination than older women. Higher hope was associated with greater well-being, and higher rumination was associated with greater distress. Furthermore, hope and rumination were found to mediate the association between age and mental health. These findings highlight the importance of developing age-based interventions for women entering fertility treatment, aimed at strengthening their resilience to effectively cope with the demanding process ahead.