「降りる」選択をした中年期女性のライフストーリー : 不妊治療を受けなかった理由

Abstract

This study examines the life story of a career woman, focusing on her decision to refuse infertility treatment. An in-depth individual interview was conducted to understand the lifestyle and values of this individual, and this material was then analyzed qualitatively. When initially employed at an advertising agency after college graduation, the participant had visions of becoming a career woman, wife, and mother. At 37 years of age, her career suffered a major and sudden failure. At the same time, a gynecologist informed her that she might be infertile. Because of her experience of what she saw as a "goalless world", derived from the loss of her career, she felt unable to pursue infertility treatment. Despite the impending limit on her reproductive ability at 45 years of age, the participant expressed satisfaction with her decision. After experiencing a midlife transition, she had accepted her life as a woman without children. This said, she is training to work as a psychotherapist. Her life story, including her experience of failure in her career and her encounter with infertility, should be considered to have positive meaning and be one dimension of a woman's development.