INFERTILE FEMALES 1

Cultural Immersion Paper

Kayla Zahide Fuller

Wilmington University
INFERTILE FEMALES 2
INFERTILE FEMALES 3

Abstract

Culture is a term that can often be defined as a way of life of a specific group of people. When

initially thinking of topics to cover for this cultural immersion assignment, I was thinking more

along the lines of race or religion. But with some insight and education, I was able to dig deeper

and focus on a present day culture that is in need of more support through human service

agencies. Infertility is a rising issue within the United States of America and there is an extreme

lack of support as well as lack of resources for this culture of females. There are various

struggles that derive from infertility such as social issues, financial issues, and cultural issues.
INFERTILE FEMALES 4

Cultural Immersion Paper

Why I Chose Infertile Women as a Culture

I have a very close friend and coworker of mine who I see go through the struggle of

infertility everyday. As an infertile female, she continues to struggle not only with understanding

the complications of infertility, but also understanding herself and her purpose as a woman. I

have seen this friend at her highs before infertility, and now have seen her at her lows in being a

sufferer of infertility. I was able to connect the dots and realize that similar to other health

diagnoses, infertility can have drastic effects on a womans mental and emotional health. There

are many complications that come with being an infertile female such as emotional stressors,

financial stressors, and cultural stressors.

This dear friend of mine has been truly struggling with understanding her meaning in life

while being classified as an infertile female. In my opinion, being an infertile female has affected

her overall personality, well-being, and her daily functioning. What alarms me the most about her

suffering is that there is no support offered for her mentally, physically, or financially.

My friend has discussed with me personal information about the costs of procedures, the

depression that she experiences, and the overall impact it has on her marriage. There are very

limited resources for infertile females that are going through this process. As a human service

professional, I believe there should be more advocates for this particular culture of women.

Overview and History of infertility

Infertility is known to be defined as the inability to get pregnant or inability to conceive a

child. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in order for a female

to be considered infertile, they must be attempting to have a child through unprotected sex for

over one year consistently (Infertility FAQs, 2017). Infertility is the result from having issues
INFERTILE FEMALES 5

with the female reproductive system, which can include womens eggs, ovaries, fallopian tube,

and her uterus.

There is minimal concrete history about the culture of infertile females. William Smellie

was supposedly the first individual to go into detail about infertility in 1752 followed by

Benjamin Coleman in 1711 (Thorpe, 2015). It wasnt until the 1800s when infertility was

thought to be a mechanical function of the uterus. Prior to that, an infertile female was viewed as

broken to others and it was frowned upon that they could not bear children (Thorpe, 2015).

Female infertility is becoming more and more common with every passing year in the United

States of America. According to the CDC, about 1 in 7 females in America experience some type

of infertility issue (Infertility FAQs, 2017).

Infertility has implemented various scientific procedures and technology within the last

few decades. These procedures are known as assisted reproductive technology (ART). According

to the CDC, there are four various methods of ART that are as follows: In vitro fertilization

(IVF), Zygote intrafallopian transfer (ZIFT), Gamete intrafallopian transfer (GIFT), and

Intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) (Infertility FAQs, 2017). Some of the ART procedures

involve using donor eggs or embryos.

There are also other options if females either do not want to participate in these ART

procedures or if they have tried the procedures and have been unsuccessful. Some women turn to

surrogacy, which involves using an outside woman to physically have a baby with the females

own eggs and her spouses own sperm. Another method that infertile females may turn to is

adoption. Very similar to the ART procedures, both the options of surrogacy and adoption are

financially demanding.

Indirect Immersion Activity

INFERTILE FEMALES 6

"One More Shot" is a short documentary that speaks to all of the realities of going

through infertility. The documentary is about a couple who have been trying to build their family

through medical intervention practices such as In-vitro Fertilization (IVF) due to the wifes

inability to naturally conceive a child. The documentary depicts all the realistic emotions that are

intertwined and displayed throughout the process of being an infertile female. The documentary

explores not only the IVF procedure, but it also depicts the emotional roller coaster that being

infertile female goes through.

There are millions of females who are experiencing infertility across America and it is

important as not only human services professionals, but simply as people, to understand this

culture of women. This process as a whole depicts having to overcome adversity just simply to

build a family, which other females often take advantage of. This culture of women face

challenges every day that has them questioning their purpose as a woman.

What I loved most about this documentary is that it shows the highs and the lows of this

process and of this culture. The documentary covers every aspect from financial impacts to social

norms. They have turned their documentary into a website for the purpose of ongoing

understanding and communication of the issue of infertility. This couple has a goal of promoting

an honest dialogue about infertility and eliminating the taboo that surrounds the topic of

infertility, which I think is essential to this current world we are living in.

Direct Immersion Activity

At first, I was reluctant to ask my friend from work to participate in an interview due to

the fact that she is continuing to endure the process of infertility. I thought that by interviewing

her, it would not only help me with my report, but would also help her to be able to express some

emotions. She was more than happy to participate in the interview and her participation allowed
INFERTILE FEMALES 7

me to grasp even more of a better perception of the process of infertility.

The interviewee first touched on her history with being classified as being an infertile

female. She explained that the process has been frustrating and is becoming more devastating

through the two whole years that she has been enduring it. She stated that the most frustrating

part of it all is not having one answer as to why nothing is working after each procedure fails. In

her words she stated, "I pray each month that these procedures work and then getting my period

after all that work is the biggest disappointment."

The interviewee dug into the financial pressures that an infertile female can endure. She

and her husband are 7,300.00 down from paying for tests out of pocket as well as 3,5000.00

down for all of the injections that are needed for the process. She had mentioned that insurances

would only really cover the blood work that is involved within the process. She spoke about how

her father has been assisting her and her husband with the medical bills and that without her

fathers help, she does not know if she would be able to afford the medical costs involved.

The next point that the interviewee touched on was how being an infertile female has

affected her marriage. She explained that she and her husband occasionally fight due to the

misunderstandings that they endure. She stated "Sometimes we fight because I feel like he has no

idea mentally or physically what I go through." She continued with stating that they fight over

the money that is spent during the process, not because of the money itself, but because they feel

as if the more money they spend, the more bad news they receive. She then began speaking

about how her husband tries his best to support her, but she cannot help but to be miserable and it

has affected them both during the past two years.

She spoke about how the medications directly affect her mood regularity. She described

how she is "mossy and miserable all of the time" due to the hormone medications that she is
INFERTILE FEMALES 8

putting into her body. She also stated that she is "tired and cranky" and often does not want to be

around other people. She stated "I am in a dark place in life with my depression and everyday I

have to force myself to do the things I love because this process has taken away my ambition."

The interviewee spoke about being around her friends who have children. The

interviewee described how upsetting it is when her friends break the news to her that they are

pregnant. She stated "The question that always enters my mind is, why not me?" She described

the guilt in being envious of her friends who are able to get pregnant, which takes away from her

happiness for them. She stated that she does not even enjoy being around her friends children

anymore because the subject constantly eats away at her.

Lastly, she touched on how being a female suffering from infertility has negatively

effected her profession and her occupation in the field of human services. Often our clients

children are taken into the possession of the state and are in foster homes. Some of our clients

also result to abortion because of their economical status or their drug habits. In being a

caseworker, the interviewee described her decreasing ability to naturally want to help serve these

clients. She stated that she has become hateful towards the clients who do not deserve the

children that they have had or how selfish the clients are who went through with an abortion

when she herself would give the world to be able to bear a child.

She had informed me that her technical diagnosis is "unexplained infertility." As you can

see even by looking at the diagnosis name, there are no answers provided for her and her

husband. This young woman, who has dreamt of having a family of her own her whole life, is

being classified into a group that affects her daily lifestyle. With no support to assist in the

financial deficits, no support in dealing with her emotions, and no support within the workplace,

she feels at a total loss as a woman.

INFERTILE FEMALES 9

Summary

By viewing this documentary as well as interviewing my close friend, I have continued to

broaden my views on this culture and specifically the needs of this culture. I caught myself

asking, "These females are the advocates for their families, but who are their advocates?" In

reality, who is able to offer support for these women who are struggling with a process that

should be natural for them.

In asking myself these questions, I decided to look up support groups for infertile females

in Delaware. What I found was actually very shocking; there are none offered. There were a few

support groups that are similar, such as support groups for women who have suffered from a

miscarriage. Although I was happy to see a similar support group, I was disappointed in the lack

of advocacy and support for females suffering from infertility.

As explained in my direct immersion activity, the financial deficits within this process are

extreme. There is no help offered from majority of insurance companies; these females are

expected to pay the costs out of pocket. The depression that results from the process are also

extreme and there is no specific type of therapy or any support groups yet tailored to this culture

of women. Within the workplace, there are often misunderstandings and lack of support for this

culture. Overall there is a need within this culture to develop support so that we can enable this

culture of women to successfully thrive within the communities.

My friend has often come to me with tears in her eyes making statements like "I dont get

why this is happening to me." "I dont understand how there is a god who allows this to happen

to me.", "I cant go through this anymore.", "My marriage is suffering.", "I dont even want to

work anymore." As you can see, all of these statements are a cry for help, a cry for support, and a

need for advocacy.

INFERTILE FEMALES 10

Placement Agency Assessment

The United Way of Delaware is a non-for-profit organization whose historical values

revolve around impacting the communities throughout the state of Delaware. The United Way of

Delaware has been impacting the communities for over 70 years. The organization serves as a

bridge gap in order to be able to provide for several groups of people through out the

communities. The United Way of Delaware tends to focus on eliminating the root causes of the

current day social trends and or issues that are negatively impacting the community directly or

the people within the community.

The United Way of Delaware is located in Wilmington, which is a city that is culturally

diverse in its own. The United Way of Delaware is committed to a non-discriminatory policy that

enables them to service to all people of the community. This allows the United Way of Delaware

to represent the community effectively and efficiently. Anyone and everyone from the

community can go to the United Way of Delaware for services. There are several programs in

which people of various cultures are active participants.

The United Way of Delaware has a very diverse demographic spectrum among the

various Delawareans that they serve. The United Way of Delaware has created several advocacy

groups that are based on the cultures that are enduring some of the mot current day issues, which

are known as affinity groups. These affinity groups include various cultures such as Hispanics,

African Americans, and the LQBTQ population. The reasoning behind having these affinity

groups is because the United Way of Delaware has seen a trend in the need to serve these

cultures directly within the city the organization is located in.

One of my personal favorite aspects about the United Way of Delaware is that they work

and partner with other organizations within the community no matter how diverse they may be.
INFERTILE FEMALES 11

Whether the other organizations are based on faith, religion, sex, race, ethnicity, or economic

status, they are open and willing to work with all different cultures without any type of

discrimination or biases. The United Way of Delaware truly values diversity within serving

others in the community and implementing change within the community.

Placement Agency Programs and Services

The United Way of Delaware has program called Help Me Grow that assists families

within the community. This program focuses on the development of children and also providing

support for mothers within the community. This can include helping a mother endure a healthy

pregnancy, help with screening conditions and/or behaviors that can have an impact on child

development, and offering resources for parents.

Parents and other community providers can connect with the resources provided by Help

Me Grow through the Delaware 2-1-1 phone services that United Way of Delaware provides.

The Division of Public Health funds this Delaware 2-1-1 service. Delaware 2-1-1 includes live

human service professionals from the United Way of Delaware that serve as information

operators. Any person can call and attain information for needed resources within the state of

Delaware. These operators are trained in connecting people with resources that match their

particular needs.

I decided to speak with a 2-1-1 operator in person in order to get a better idea of how the

United Way of Delaware would assist a female who suffers from infertility. The operator had

stated that there are little to no direct resources within the state that directly help this culture of

females, but that there are other resources that could be beneficial to suggest. The operator had

stated that 2-1-1 would refer a female suffering from infertility to local counseling services,

Christiana Care, or Reproductive Associates of Delaware. The operator also stated that she would
INFERTILE FEMALES 12

suggest to the caller to check with their insurance company in order to better understand their

coverage for fertility services.

My question of How would you help a female who is suffering from infertility? really

seemed to catch the operator off guard. It took her a while to even think of what she would

recommend to a person of that specific culture. She had even stated that there are very limited

resources out there for infertility. We spoke about how surprising it is that there are no direct

support networks for infertile females considering how much the issue is on the rise in America

today.

My conversation with the operator was just another reason for me to become a firm

believer for the need of advocacy for this culture. Being a female suffering from infertility seems

very isolated and lonely. The reason I say this is because of the emotional pain and the physical

stress that is involved in the process as well as the lack of support involved. Looking at the

bigger picture, this is a health issue that females endure by themselves. As much as husbands and

family can try and offer their support, it isnt into comparison of how beneficial human service

programs could provide for this culture of women.

Workplace Assessment

Assessing my professional workplace I felt is just as beneficial as assessing my internship

placement. Healthcare Commons Inc. is a community mental health center that services all of

Salem County, New Jersey. Considering that the agency mainly revolves around mental and

emotional support, I believe that being knowledgeable about this culture could be beneficial in

providing support and advocacy for this culture.

In conducting a direct immersion activity as well as an indirect immersion activity, I

came to the realization that if I took anything away from those activities, was how important it is
INFERTILE FEMALES 13

that females suffering from infertility are provided with the appropriate emotional and mental

support. I attempted to look for support groups within my workplaces county for females who

suffer from infertility. Just as my search in Delaware, Salem County also did not have any

support groups target to infertile females.

This is where I believe that my workplace could really step in and gain some competence

concerning the culture of infertile females. We conduct cultural competence trainings, which I

myself am apart of, at least once every three months. During our next cultural competence

meeting, my goal is to mention this culture and see how we can improve not only our

competence within the facility, but to improve our abilities to better serve others who are within

this culture of females.

Ethical Standards for Human Service Professionals

The Ethical Standards for Human Service Professionals workbook, which was adopted in

2015, covers a lot of ethical standards from various viewpoints. Some of the codes within the

workbook address cultural issues that may arise while working within the human services field.

Although technically this workbook is not considered to have any legality, it is important to be

familiar with the National Human Service Professionals workbook in order to have a guide of

standard expectations when dealing with complicated issues.

Within the Responsibility to the Public and Society section, includes standard 15,

which is most relevant to the culture of infertile females. Standard number 15 is as follows:

Human service professionals provide a mechanism for identifying client needs and assets,

calling attention to these needs and assets, and assisting in planning and mobilizing to advocate

for those needs at the individual, community, and societal level when appropriate to the goals of

the relationship. (Blevins,2017).

INFERTILE FEMALES 14

Ithinkthatthisstandardisthemostessentialwhenservingthespecificcultureofinfertile

females.Myreasoningisthathumanserviceprofessionalsneedtobeadequateinidentifying

howtheycanhelpfemaleswhoareinfertile.Everyfemaleexperiencinginfertilityhasan

individualneedespeciallytakingintoconsiderationhowtherearevariousspectrumsand

diagnosesofinfertility.Justasahumanserviceprofessionalwouldbeknowledgeableofthe

Hispaniccultureandtheirneeds,theyshouldalsobeknowledgeabletothecultureofinfertile

femalesandwhatresourcestheymayneed.

ThereisacodethatfallsundertheResponsibilitytoSelfsection,whichentails

standard34.Standard34statesasfollows:Human service professionals are aware of their own

cultural backgrounds, beliefs, values, and biases. They recognize the potential impact of their

backgrounds on their relationships with others and work diligently to provide culturally

competent service to all of their clients. (Blevins,2017).ThiscodeIalsothinkisimportanttoa

humanserviceworkerwhileservingthecultureofinfertilefemales.Whenworkingwithother

peopleinthecommunity,itisimportanttobeconsciousofonesowncultureandvaluessothatit

doesnotdirectlyaffecttheservicesofpeoplewhoarefromadifferentculturewithdifferent

values.

Whileworkinginthefieldofhumanservices,onemustalwaysbecompetentinservicing

peoplefromalldifferentbackgroundsandfromalldifferentclassifications.IknowthatIhave

personallybeenchallengedinmyprofessionalworkplaceafewtimes,inwhichIhadtoseekout

answersinordertobeabletobetterserveaspecificculture.Humanserviceprofessionalsshould

haveaccesstovariousculturalcompetencetrainingsandinformationsessionssothattheycan

keepupdatedwiththemostcurrentdayissuesandinformation.

Personal Cultural Competencies and Assessment

INFERTILE FEMALES 15

Conducting this cultural assessment has not only allowed me to challenge myself

educationally through the aspect of cultural competence. It has allowed me to value cultural

differences in others and to be more aware of the sensitivity that various cultures struggle with.

To be ignorant and insensitive to cultures is natural for human beings, but by changing that

mindset, especially as a human service professional, it can better help and support others as well

as offer advocacy.

I value my newly attained knowledge of what a culture can consist of. Before targeting a

specific culture, I kept developing ideas surrounded by gender, race, and religion. It wasnt until

attaining insight from the guided practicum class that I realized that I was viewing culture from a

very narrow perspective. There are some cultures that have been a present day issue for the last

millennium that the nation has created endless resources for. It is the newly forming issues and

cultures that are in need of being recognized now and with the influence of the media, people

tend to lean towards the same issues without moving forward.

I personally have always classified myself as being a very open minded individual. I feel

as if any person involved professionally within the field of human services needs to have that

same quality. Despite any personal religious beliefs or cultural values, I am always able to help

any type of individual and I am always willing to learn about cultures that are different than my

own. Although I have learned about new cultures through out my educational and professional

paths, there are always more cultures to learn about. I am always open to increasing my

competency about different cultures.

This cultural immersion assignment has not only allowed my to broaden my views about

a different culture, but it also has allowed me to think outside of them box and realize that there

is more to a culture than looks, values, or traditions; it can be internal emotions and frustrations
INFERTILE FEMALES 16

that can form a culture. I have also gained more confidence in my ability to practice cultural

sensitivity. My goal regarding cultural competency is to remain involved within the cultural

competency committee at my workplace as well as volunteer to attend any outside information

sessions. After completing this assignment, I can only hope that the culture of infertile females

arises in their advocacy worldwide; it all starts with human service professionals to provide this

advocacy.
INFERTILE FEMALES 17

References

Blevins,H.(n.d.).EthicalStandardsforHSProfessionals.RetrievedMarch18,2017,from

http://www.nationalhumanservices.org/ethicalstandardsforhsprofessionals

Infertility FAQs. (2017, February 16). Retrieved March 19, 2017, from

https://www.cdc.gov/reproductivehealth/infertility/

The Film. (n.d.). Retrieved March 11, 2017, from

http://www.onemoreshotfilm.com/extendedtrailer/

Thorpe, J. (2015, April 14). How Infertility Was Talked About Throughout History - Because To

Fight A Taboo, You Need To Understand Its Origins. Retrieved March 19, 2017, from

https://www.bustle.com/articles/76161-how-infertility-was-talked-about-throughout-history

UnitedWayofDelaware.(n.d.).RetrievedFebruary05,2017,fromhttp://uwde.org/