Lived Experience of Infertile Women of Their Infertility Issue

This study examines the marital consequences of infertility in infertile women. It has been conducted, using a qualitative approach and contextual theory method. The target population has primary been infertile women between the age of 25 and 40 who face infertility problems and do meet the following criteria: at least 5 years of cohabitation experience, at least two years of infertility treatment, and at least one IowaF failure. Accordingly, through theoretical sampling twenty-one cases have been studied. The theoretical sampling has continued until data saturation. The data has been gathered through interviews, with data analysis being performed by open, axial, and selective coding methods. The findings show that the consequence of infertility in marital life are 8 main categories, namely transition from a main subject to marginal ones, objectification of the second wife, the victim role, agonized separation, transformation in the husband, the fantasy of love, infertility as a problematic platform, and existential loneliness. A core category has been identified as “victimizer victims”, a notion that refers to the idea that infertile women may, over time, experience their husband's remarriage or a desire to remarry as a result of their infertility, particularly cultural consequences. The findings generally indicated that infertile women are concerned about their husbands' remarriage and, in some cases, the wife's support for the husband's remarriage to have children only to divorce the second wife. Thus, infertile women are psychologically disturbed, as well as in their marital relationships.