Perinatal loss and the replacement child: The emotional limits of reproductive technology.
Item
-
Title
-
Perinatal loss and the replacement child: The emotional limits of reproductive technology.
-
Identifier
-
AAI9707129
-
identifier
-
9707129
-
Creator
-
Morton, Peggy Ann.
-
Contributor
-
Adviser: Irwin Epstein
-
Date
-
1996
-
Language
-
English
-
Publisher
-
City University of New York.
-
Subject
-
Social Work | Health Sciences, Obstetrics and Gynecology | Sociology, Individual and Family Studies | Psychology, Clinical
-
Abstract
-
While perinatal loss (defined as miscarriage, stillbirth and neonatal death) has been acknowledged as a significant psychological trauma over the past twenty years, the literature on its psychological effects highlights the problem of pathological symptomatology, particularly in the early bereavement period. Though a well-documented phenomenon, minimal attention has been paid to the lingering impact of perinatal loss; that grief which may extend over time. Additionally, while mourning has been noted (with some contradiction) to be resolved by subsequent pregnancy and parenthood and conversely, to be detrimentally interrupted by it, the actual relationship between grief and subsequent pregnancy and parenthood has been underresearched.;This is the study of thirty-two women who share the experience of attaining biological motherhood subsequent to perinatal loss. Using qualitative research methods (in-depth interviewing and a grounded theory approach to data analysis) the study yielded a comprehensive understanding of the meaning of perinatal loss in women's lives and its implications over time, including how it resonates throughout the experiences of subsequent pregnancy and parenthood.;Qualitative data analysis resulted in findings in four basic areas of women's experiences: perinatal loss, subsequent pregnancy, subsequent parenthood and life issues beyond the subsequent child. The thirty-two respondents described the ways in which perinatal loss continued to reverberate in their experiences subsequent to loss and even resonate within their current lives. The findings strongly suggest that this group of women did not experience the normal, predictable trajectories of pregnancy and childbearing that most women traverse.;As continuing advances in reproductive technology enable increasing numbers of women to biologically bear children after loss, health and mental health professionals will need to strongly consider the emotional uniquenesses of their experiences in their caregiving approaches.
-
Type
-
dissertation
-
Source
-
PQT Legacy CUNY.xlsx
-
degree
-
D.S.W.
