Open Access<p>Women and Infertility in a Pronatalist Culture: Mental Health in the Slums of Mumbai</p>
Author(s) -
Lisa R. Roberts,
Solomon Renati,
Shreeletha Solomon,
Susanne Montgomery
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
international journal of women's health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.136
H-Index - 45
ISSN - 1179-1411
DOI - 10.2147/ijwh.s273149
Subject(s) - infertility , mental health , stigma (botany) , distress , medicine , social stigma , focus group , slum , mental distress , psychology , psychiatry , clinical psychology , population , environmental health , family medicine , pregnancy , genetics , marketing , human immunodeficiency virus (hiv) , business , biology
Infertility is a global problem, with high prevalence in India. As a pronatalist society, infertility is particularly problematic in India, causing stigma, shame, and blame especially for women. Infertility consequences for women include discrimination, social exclusion, and abandonment, putting them at high risk for mental health distress. Furthermore, mental health is highly stigmatized and specialized care is largely unavailable. Despite the cultural importance of childbearing, research on infertility distress and resulting mental health sequelae is lacking, particularly among low-income women. The purpose of this study is to assess mental health, using validated scales, among Mumbai slum-dwelling women with a history of infertility.