Emotional experience of Danish men during fertility treatment: qualitative study on engagement, hope and loss.

RESEARCH QUESTION: How does being in fertility treatment affect men, and how can healthcare professionals better involve and support men throughout the process?

DESIGN

Semi-structured qualitative interview study with 15 men (aged 31-47 years) undergoing fertility treatment. Four men had used donor semen. Six couples had experienced a pregnancy loss. Participants were recruited through fertility clinics, patient organizations and social media. Data were collected in 2023 and 2024 and analysed using qualitative content analysis.

RESULTS

The following themes emerged from the interview data: involvement; hope (becoming a father and keeping positive); loss (psychological burden, control and masculinity); and lasting impact. Involvement and inclusion of men during fertility treatment were of critical importance. The men observed that this entails efforts from healthcare professionals to actively engage them and a recognition of their own responsibility in the process. The men saw the fertility journey as a shared and important issue. All participants expressed a profound sense of hope and motivation rooted in their aspiration to eventually become fathers. The men described experiencing the loss of dreams, hope, sense of masculinity and a sense of control. Experiencing infertility had a lasting effect on them, affecting them mentally, socially, sexually and financially, regardless of whether or not they ended up having children.

CONCLUSION

It is important that men are acknowledged and included in the fertility treatment process. Healthcare professionals need to recognize the effect of infertility on men aspiring to become fathers and their need to play a meaningful role during fertility treatment.