JBRA Assisted Reproduction 2025;29(Suppl.2 SBRA 2025):180
Poster Presentation
29th Annual Congress of the SBRA. São Paulo/SP - Brazil, 2025
doi: 10.5935/1518-0557.20263908
P-168. Operation Stork: Biopsychosocial Challenges and The Role of Reproductive Medicine in (Re)Constructing The Parenting Project of Women in The Serra Gaúcha of Rio Grande Do Sul (RS)
Isabela Reginato Pilatti1, Eleonora Bedin Pasqualotto1, Anna Luísa Krug Bratti2, Sabryn Candido1, Sofia Helena Dresch3
1 Universidade de Caxias do Sul - Caxias do Sul - RS – Brasil
2 Universidade de Caxias do Sul - Encantado - RS – Brasil
3 Universidade de Caxias do Sul - Lajeado - RS – Brasil
Objective: This research aims to investigate the biopsychosocial impacts experienced by women from Serra Gaúcha (RS) who face difficulties in getting pregnant -known as "trying to conceive"- and to analyze the role of local reproductive medicine in the (re)construction of their parenthood projects.
Methods: The study adopts a qualitative and quantitative approach, by means of a literature review, the application of a form to 160 residents of the region and an interview with a specialist in assisted reproduction.
Results: From this perspective, infertility, traditionally understood as a strictly biological deficiency, is interpreted here as a multifaceted phenomenon, crossed by cultural, social and psychological determinants. Inserted in a region marked by the legacy of Italian immigration, with values strongly rooted in the appreciation of fertility, religiosity and the traditional family structure, women from Rio Grande do Sul face, in addition to clinical difficulties, a symbolic burden that associates motherhood with the fulfillment of a social destiny. From the perspective of Freudian psychoanalysis, infertility can be understood not just as a biological absence, but as a symbolic representation of a lack. The desire to become pregnant, according to Freud, would be an expression of the unconscious longing to appropriate the phallus -a symbol of power, completeness and value in patriarchal culture. In this way, the child would be invested with narcissistic meaning, occupying a place of reparation for the subjective lack, allowing the woman to symbolize the phallus and, paradoxically, re-signify her position in the social bond. Thus, motherhood can symbolize the place of desire and also of lack, constituting a space of power, but also of psychic vulnerability. The data obtained shows that, even with technological advances and changes in mentality, the ideal of women as mothers is still current, causing psychological suffering, guilt and a sense of failure when the reproductive project is not realized. According to the survey, around 34 women reported that they had been unable to get pregnant, even after attempts and treatments; another 40, although already mothers, still face difficulties in trying again. The scarcity of specialized public services in the region, misinformation about techniques such as in vitro fertilization (IVF) and the lack of psychological support aggravate the situation. Alarmingly, 75.3% of the women interviewed were unaware of assisted reproduction methods, and 78% said they had received no emotional support during their attempts. In the interview, it was reported that the profile of the patients is changing: women are postponing motherhood because of their careers and stability, but are facing the limits of the biological clock. They also pointed to polycystic ovary syndrome, endometriosis, emotional factors and old age as frequent causes of infertility. The study also highlights the symbolic weight of motherhood, given that the absence of children is not only material, but also a space occupied by frustration, loneliness and invisible mourning. Trying women live silent battles, carrying their own and collective expectations, often without institutional support or a support network. From this point of view, the lack of public assisted reproduction centers in Serra Gaúcha limits access to treatment, which in many cases depends on travel to Porto Alegre or high financial resources.
Conclusion: The analysis therefore reveals the urgent need to implement public reproductive health policies and reception networks that take into account the cultural particularities of the Serra Gaúcha. It is therefore understood that female infertility is a phenomenon deeply influenced by local culture and must be tackled through interdisciplinary strategies that integrate women's bodies, psyches and social ties, giving new meaning to the role of motherhood in the contemporary context.