Couples' optimism, stress, and quality of life when undergoing fertility treatments: A cross-sectional study with prospective outcome assessment.

BackgroundCouples experiencing infertility often seek medical help to achieve a pregnancy using assisted reproductive technology, which might cause stress and affect their quality of life.ObjectivesThe purpose of the current study was to investigate the mutual effects of optimism and stress on fertility-related quality of life among women and their husbands during the process of in vitro fertilization (IVF), as well as the success of the treatment.DesignA cross-sectional study with a prospective outcome assessment design aimed at assessing psychological variables, with a short-term prospective follow-up, among 51 couples undergoing IVF treatment.MethodsParticipants completed questionnaires on fertility-related stress, optimism, and fertility-related quality of life. Two weeks after embryo transfer they were contacted by a researcher to check for pregnancy. The dyadic associations were analyzed using the Actor-Partner Interdependence Mediation Model (APIM).ResultsWomen's fertility-related quality of life correlated negatively with their stress (r=-.67; p<.01) and positively with their husbands' fertility-related quality of life (r=.31; p<.05). Husbands' fertility-related quality of life correlated positively with their optimism (r=.35; p<.05) and negatively with their stress (r=-.56; p<.01) and their wife's stress (r=-.33; p<.01). A positive correlation was found between women's optimism and their husbands' optimism. Women's stress was higher and their fertility-related quality of life lower than those of their husbands. The APIM analysis revealed actor (B=.22, p<.001) and partner (B=.12, p=.02) effects of optimism on fertility-related quality of life. The only predictor of pregnancy was younger age.ConclusionsBoth spouses experience stress during IVF treatments, therefore psychological support should be offered to both during this time, including stress management interventions and couple-based support aimed at strengthening dyadic coping. The positive correlations between women's fertility-related quality of life and that of their husbands, and between women's fertility-related quality of life and their husbands' optimism, highlight the importance of spouses' support for each other.