不孕婦女成為母親的生活經驗

A Study on the Lived Experience of Infertile Women Who Later Become Mothers

本研究目的在於了解不孕婦女成為母親的生活經驗，研究過程採用質性研究詮釋現象學方法論的哲學理念與觀點，同時以半結構式深度訪談的方法，蒐集5位接受過不孕症治療後懷孕、生頭胎年齡為30-36歲之受訪者的文本資料。透過主題分析法，並徵得受訪者互為主體的同意後，歸納出四個共同主題：「音信杳然的覺知－－生兒育女的觀望與困境」、「努力『做人』的挑戰與奮鬥－－希望與失望的交迭」、「從『驚』、『喜』或『懷疑』中－－體驗孕育生命的變化」、「成為父母的旅程－－親職承擔與生活學習」。最後，針對研究發現對生育抉擇、親職教育與生育政策提出一些建議。

The purpose of the study was to explore the lived experience of infertile women who later become mothers. This study was conducted via qualitative research method. During the process of the study, the researcher adopted the philosophical perspectives of hermeneutic phenomenology. Semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted to collect data. Those participants became pregnant following infertility treatments, and gave birth to their firstborns around 30 – 36years of age. With interviewees’ intersubjective agreement the following four themes were identified as the result of thematic analyses: (a) The interviewees were aware of the fact that they had been unable to have a baby, but they kept waiting due to several reasons, e.g., pressure from their work or family, child-rearing problems, family economical situation…etc.. (b) The interviewees struggled to have a baby, and they were always confronted with high hopes and severe disappointment during the course of infertility treatments. (c) Upon learning of their pregnancies, the infertile women were often situated in an “shocking”, “surprising” and “suspect” status. However, they simultaneously had to adjust their physical and mental changes. (d) Once the child came into the world with a cry, parents faced the impact of their new lives. Interviewees appeared depressed but at the same time enthusiastic over learning in parenthood. This article ended with reflections and implications for fertile choices, population planning and parent education.