Helane S. Rosenberg

Use of the Internet as the only outlet for talking about infertility

OBJECTIVE To gather information about demographic characteristics, medical status, mode of Internet participation, and psychological well-being of participants whose only outlets (OOs) for talking about infertility are Internet medical and support forums and to compare them with persons who have additional outlets (AOs). DESIGN Prospective Internet-based survey. SETTING Website of a nonprofit international infertility organization. PATIENT(S) Five hundred eighty-nine persons submitting fully completed surveys. INTERVENTION(S) Internet-based survey with 134 items. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S) Survey of types of Internet participation, benefits of participation, self-assessed ability to cope with aspects of infertility, perceived stress, perceived support from relatives and friends, and 21-item Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), which is an instrument designed to measure depressive symptomatology. RESULT(S) Only-outlet and AO participants were comparable in their medical history and treatments. Only-outlet participants had less formal education, were less wealthy, and more likely to be homemakers. Compared with AO participants, OO participants were more depressed and got less real-world support while feeling more supported on the Internet. CONCLUSION(S) Used properly, the Internet can help people facing infertility by educating, empowering, and diminishing their feelings of depression. But the Internet can also be used inappropriately to withdraw from real-world interactions.

Creative Transformations: How Visual Artists, Musicians, and Dancers Use Mental Imagery in Their Work

“Imagination whirls me around.” So stated GD, a choreographer who was interviewed as part of the following package of research studies that focuses on how artists use mental imagery in making or performing art. And like GD, what all the various visual, musical, and dance artists, interviewed in the three studies reported here have in common is that imagination whirls them around. Imagination is a major force in the creative processes of all of these artists.

The effects of prior gravidity on the outcomes of ovum donor and own oocyte cycles

OBJECTIVE To determine the effects of prior gravidity on hormonal parameters, medication regimen, oocyte parameters, fertilization, and clinical pregnancy rates (PRs) in donor and own oocyte cycles. DESIGN A retrospective study of 64 first-attempt ovum donor cycles and 102 first-attempt IVF and ZIFT cycles using own oocytes conducted during a 2.5-year time period. Analyses of covariance and t-tests using gravidity of oocyte source (gravida versus nulligravida) and controlling for sperm parameters were used to assess differences in hormonal, endometrial, medication, and demographic parameters and were performed separately for donor cycles and for own oocyte cycles. SETTING Private fertility center. PATIENTS In ovum donation cycles, oocyte parameters, medication administered, and hormonal parameters of 64 oocyte donors between the ages of 21 and 35, 34 of whom were never pregnant, i.e., nulligravida and 30 who had ever been pregnant, regardless of the outcome of that pregnancy, i.e., gravida, were studied. In own oocyte cycles, oocyte parameters, medication administered, and hormonal parameters of 102 women, 54 nulligravida and 48 gravida, between the ages of 23 and 44 were studied. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE Medication requirements, hormonal response, seminal parameters, oocyte quality, fertilization, and clinical PRs. RESULTS For patients using their own oocytes, there were no significant differences in any of the parameters studied. In contrast, compared with their nulligravida counterparts, gravida oocyte donors had fewer poor quality oocytes, had more high quality oocytes that fertilized, had a higher proportion of their oocytes fertilize, and had a higher PR per transfer. CONCLUSION A prior history of gravidity is an important predictor of clinical pregnancy in donor oocyte cycles but not in cycles in which patients use their own oocytes. Oocyte recipients may wish to consider donor gravidity in selecting their donor.

Imagery in Creative Drama

The spontaneous imaginative play of the preschool-aged child appears to strengthen and influence learning and a wide range of behaviors. An essential component in imaginative play is the ability to transform ones imagery, mentally and physically. Creative drama, a field devoted to the conduct of drama activities with young people aged seven to fifteen, seems to be the next stage in the development of imagery processes. Mental imagery, seen as the connecting link between such fields as theatre, child development, education, and psychology, provides the focus for a framework for the field of creative drama. Termed the iii Framework, this conceptualization consists of three stages: image (i1), imaging (i2), and imagination (i3). Each stage of the framework, as well as practical application to creative drama, is discussed.

Counseling couples in conflict about infertility: Issues and treatment

This article focuses on a set of disagreements that a couple experienced while pursuing infertility treatment. Aspects of conflict that are unique to this case and others that are common to most cases involving infertility are discussed. The thrust of the article is that conflict is an inevitable aspect of infertility, rather than the symptom of a troubled marriage. A therapist must understand the situational factors contributing to the conflict and help the couple learn to resolve it. Intervention procedures are noted that can help ameliorate infertility-related conflict.

The Nature of the Theatrical Imagination: How Theatre Going Affects Children’s Imagination, and What Children Say About Their Theatre Experiences

In 1986, the state of Massachusetts passed legislation called the Performing Arts Student Series (PASS) which provided funding to allow school children to see selected performing arts events for a small fee. The following investigations are part of the evaluation study of this program. One of the key questions of this three-year investigation focused on the effect of theatre attendance on mental imagery abilities.

Creative Drama and Imagery

Creative drama has as its parents the art of theatre and the field of child development. Leaders of drama activities with young people have worked primarily instinctively, evolving a personal style which takes into consideration their previous theatre training and knowledge of children. Utilizing theatre/drama activities with children to aid them in their development as individuals and as artists has been an accepted practice for centuries, but only since the 1940s has the field of creative drama become clearly defined (Ward, 1947). Since the forties, the literature has increased, practitioners have been trained and awarded advanced degrees in creative drama, and various approaches for leading drama activities have developed (Aldrich & Swartz, 1972; Heinig & Stillwell, 1974; Jennings, 1973; McCaslin, 1968, 1975; Siks, 1958, 1977). Some of these are based more strongly on the child development aspect of drama (Slade, 1954; Way, 1967); some are more clearly related to the theatre roots of creative drama (Spolin, 1975; Wagner, 1976).