Economic and Psychological Effects of Term Paper

Thus, the longer a woman delays becoming pregnant, the more she is susceptible to suffering psychological ramifications.

Of course, the biological clock, or that which determines the best period of time in a woman's life to become pregnant and experience a successful pregnancy, plays a major role in fertility treatments. However, some young women, due to a lack of education early in life, may not realize that such a thing as a biological clock exist. According to Michael Fox, the absence of not knowing about this clock may exclude some women from receiving fertility treatments, due to waiting too long. Fox adds that as a result doctors and fertility specialists should "be more aggressive in the counseling of women who are in (their) early to mid thirties and beyond who consider delaying childbearing" (2000, Internet).

Options:

When a woman decides to wait until her mid forties or beyond to have a child or if she is told by her physician or OB/GYN that her procrastination has resulted in lowering her chances to become pregnant, she is left with few options. Some women who either wait too long or find out that they cannot conceive turn to high-tech fertility treatments like in-vitro fertilization, intracytoplasmic sperm injection (i.e. The sperm is mechanically inserted into the egg) or even egg donation in which contraception occurs in a petri dish where the embryo incubates from three to six days and then is placed in the uterus.When all else fails, a woman can also choose to adopt a child, although this may not be acceptable for some, due to ethical/religious beliefs or principles. In fact, a woman that is very religious may not wish to undergo any artificial means to become pregnant at a late age which lowers her chances of bearing a child.

Economically, if a woman or couple wait to have a child when the woman is in her mid to late forties, the financial burden may be great, especially if the woman or the couple is retired and living on a fixed income, especially when the child reaches his/her teen years and requires substantial financial support.

References

Berkowitz, G.S., et al. (1990). "Delayed Childbearing and the Outcome of Pregnancy." New England Journal of Medicine. 322.

Domar, A.D., et al. (2000). "Impact of Group Psychological Intervention on Pregnancy Rates in Infertile Women." Fertil Steril. 73.

Kearney, Brian. (1998). High-Tech Conception. New York: Bantam Books.

Fox, Michael. "Age and Fertility: The Biological Clock: Fact or Fiction?" Duval County Medical Society. Internet. May, 2000. Accessed September 29,….....