Skip to main content Accessibility help

We use cookies to distinguish you from other users and to provide you with a better experience on our websites. Close this message to accept cookies or find out how to manage your cookie settings.

Close cookie message
×
Hostname: page-component-848d4c4894-xfwgj Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-06-17T05:06:45.686Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Chapter 5 - High Stakes Pregnancies

The Impact of Infertility, Risk, and Loss

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 November 2022

Catherine McMahon
Catherine McMahon
Affiliation:
Macquarie University, Sydney
Get access

Summary

While conception, pregnancy and childbirth are ‘natural’ events for most, for some the process is more complicated, medicalised, and marked by unexpected or difficult events. This chapter examines the experience of pregnancy when high investment is juxtaposed with high risk. The impact of a history of infertility, conception involving ART, pregnancy loss is examined in depth as well as evidence regarding the most effective ways to support parents who experience perinatnal loss.

Keywords

Vanessa and Michael’s Story: Different Pathways through Perinatal GriefVanessa and Michael describe their very different feelings about having, and then losing a baby, and their need for their grief to be acknowledged.Annie’s Story: A Miscarrage, IVF, and Baby TwinsAnnie embraces her pregnancy with twins, despite the known risks, and challenges of moving countries. She emphasises the importance of professional support and social connection.Tentative pregnanciesPregnancy-focused anxietyTwin pregnanciesInfertilityStillbirthMiscarriage
Type
Chapter
Information
Becoming a Parent
Contemporary Contexts and Challenges during the Transition to Parenthood
 , pp. 102 - 130
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2022

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Save book to Kindle

To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure coreplatform@cambridge.org is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.

Available formats
×

Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

Available formats
×