Depression, Coping Strategies and Social Support among Infertile Women Attending Gynecology Clinics of a Tertiary Care Hospital in South-West Nigeria: Prevalence, Patterns, Peculiarities and Associated Factors

Abstract

Infertility is one of the fastest growing concerns when it comes to reproductive health and most often, women get the blame. Consequently, females suffer from major psycho-social and emotional problems that may lead to serious mental health concerns. The aim of this research was to study depression, coping strategies, and social support among infertile women attending gynecology clinics of a tertiary care hospital in South-West Nigeria, paying attention to their prevalence, patterns, peculiarities, and associated factors. A descriptive cross-sectional design was used involving 372 respondents. Simple random sampling technique was used to select the study population and sample size. Data collection was done using a semi-structured standardized questionnaire. Applied statistical tests of significance were stated and were tested using chi-square test, with p-value <0.05 considered statistically significant. 38.7% of the respondents were within the age range of 31-36 years and only 1.0% of the respondents were within the age range of 19-24 years. Majority of the infertile women in this study (39.2%) had a normal level of depression according to Beck Depression Inventory. Socio-demographic characteristics such as age, income, level of education, type of family, and duration of marriage were significantly related to occurrence of depression among the respondents. Most of the respondents (57.5%) had first degree (bachelor’s degree) from the university. More than half (67.7%) had income >N100,000 monthly. Majority of the respondents (76.9%) came from a monogamous family and the duration of marriage in 34.4% of the respondents was 6-10 years (p<0.001). Majority of the respondents (55.9%) accepted sympathy and understanding from someone – Seeking Social Support coping strategy; 68.3% of the respondents do not think they brought the problem on themselves - Accepting Responsibility coping strategy; 50.0% of the respondents hoped a miracle would happen, and 43.0% of the respondents avoided being with people in general - Escape Avoidance coping strategy; 51.1% of the respondents concentrated on the next step to be done - Painful Problem-solving coping strategy; 71.0% of the respondents prayed - Positive Re-appraisal coping strategy; 45.2% of the respondents did not express their anger to the person(s) that caused the problem - Confrontative coping strategy; 31.7% of the respondents somewhat keep their feelings to themselves - Self-controlling coping strategy; and 43.0% of the respondents tried to forget the whole thing - Distance coping strategy. The relationships between coping ability and severity of depression were examined and it was discovered that there is statistically significant relationship between the coping ability and severity of depression among the infertile women. There is a need to assess infertile women‘s general and psychological health. Care for infertile women should be in a contextually and culturally appropriate manner to improve their health status and quality of life. Health policy in developing countries needs to recognize the public health burden of depression as it affects infertile women. Key health services available in the clinics should include integrating psychological care, strengthening social support network, counseling, and follow-up services in infertility management.