Egg freezing, fertility and reproductive choice: negotiating responsibility, hope and modern motherhood

The ebook edition of this title is Open Access, thanks to Knowledge Unlatched funding, and freely available to read online.Growing numbers of women around the world are now accessing social egg freezing: a fertility extension technology which is enabling some women to extend their fertility and reproductive timelines when faced with age-related fertility decline. This book explores the accounts and experiences of some of the pioneering users of this technology in the UK and the USA.Drawing on theories and concepts across medical sociology and parenting culture studies, as well as literature from demography, anthropology, law, and bioethics, this book examines women's motivations and experiences of social egg freezing in the context of debates surrounding reproductive choice and delayed motherhood. The book also delves into the broader sociological questions raised by this technology in relation to the gendered burden of appropriately timed parenthood, the medicalisation of women's bodies in the reproductive domain and the further entrenchment of the geneticisation of society. It also considers the sexual politics underpinning the timing of parenthood, relationship formation and progression, and the way in which reproductive and parenting ideals, values and expectations can come in to conflict with the biological and relational realities of women's lives.

Front Cover -- Egg Freezing, Fertility and Reproductive Choice: Negotiating Responsibility, Hope and Modern Motherhood -- Copyright Page -- Dedication -- Contents -- List of Graphs and Figures -- List of Tables -- About the Author -- Acknowledgements -- Chapter 1 Introduction -- 1.1. Socio-cultural Context -- 1.2. Age and Fertility -- 1.2.1. Awareness of Age-related Fertility Decline -- 1.3. Cryopreservation of Reproductive Tissue -- 1.4. Describing and Conceptualising 'Social' Egg Freezing -- 1.5. Key Issues in Social Egg Freezing -- 1.5.1. Success Rates -- 1.5.1.1. Age at Freezing -- 1.5.1.2. Number of Eggs Banked -- 1.5.1.3. Clinical Expertise -- 1.5.2. Access and Cost -- 1.5.3. Risks of Fertility Treatment and Egg Freezing -- 1.6. Overview of the Book -- Chapter 2 Contemporary Debates in Social Egg Freezing -- 2.1. Medicalisation of Reproductive Ageing -- 2.2. Commercialisation and Exploitation -- 2.3. Company-sponsored Egg Freezing -- 2.4. Extending Fertility and Enhancing Reproductive Choice -- Chapter 3 Timing Motherhood -- 3.1. The Right Time for Motherhood -- 3.1.1. Living a 'Life Unexpected' -- 3.2. Perceptions and Representations of Older Motherhood -- 3.3. Problematising the 'Choice' to Delay Pregnancy -- Chapter 4 Performing Parenthood -- 4.1. Intensive Motherhood and Mothering Practices -- 4.1.1. Ambivalence and the Intention to Mother Intensively -- 4.2. Women's Attitudes towards Single Motherhood via Sperm Donation -- Chapter 5 Motivations for Social Egg Freezing -- 5.1. 'Running Out of Time' -- 5.2. The Lack of a 'Suitable' Partner -- 5.3. Fear of 'Panic Partnering' -- 5.4. Regret and Blame: The Responsible Reproductive Citizen -- 5.5. Social or Medical: Blurred Boundaries -- 5.6. 'Critical Experiences' -- 5.7. Not 'Leaning-in' -- Chapter 6 The Experience of Freezing Eggs for Social Reasons.

6.1. 'Choosing' Social Egg Freezing: Ambivalence, Risk and the Chance of 'Success' -- 6.1.1. Ambivalence and Anxiety -- 6.2. Awareness and Understanding of Egg Freezing 'Success Rates' -- 6.3. Cost and Issues of Access -- 6.4. Awareness and Perception of 'Risk' -- 6.5. Experiencing Egg Freezing -- 6.5.1. Physical Effects -- 6.5.2. Emotional Effects -- 6.5.3. 'Going It Alone' and Need for Further Support -- 6.6. Life after Egg Freezing -- 6.6.1. Emotions Following the Procedure -- 6.6.2. Women's Attitudes and Perceptions of Their Frozen Eggs and Future Reproductive Intentions -- Chapter 7 Negotiating Parenthood: Men, Intimate Relationships and Childbearing -- 7.1. Lost Time and the 'Right' Type of Father -- 7.2. Individualism and the Gendered Pressures of Parenthood -- 7.3. Men as a Drag on Fertility -- 7.4. Negotiating Partnering and Parenthood in the Face of Age-related Fertility Decline -- 7.5. Signalling Fertility: Disclosing Frozen Eggs -- Chapter 8 Conclusion -- 8.1. Breathing Air Back into the Vacuum of 'Choice' -- 8.2. New Opportunities, Choices and Responsibilities -- 8.3. Reflecting on Social Egg Freezing and Future Research Directions -- Appendix 1: Researching Social Egg Freezing -- A.1. Recruitment and Sample -- A.1.1. Demographic Profile of Research Participants -- A.2. Characteristics of Egg Freezing Cycles: Findings -- A.3. Methodological Framework -- A.4. Ethical Considerations -- Appendix 2: Relationship Factors Motivating Use of Egg Freezing -- Appendix 3: Glossary of Terms -- Appendix 4: Abbreviations -- Appendix 5: Research Participants' Characteristics (Summary Table) -- Appendix 6: Pen Portraits -- References -- Index.