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Gertrud Mander Writes:
We are taking the unusual step of publishing two reviews of Inconceivable Conceptions: Psychoanalytic Aspects of Infertility and Reproductive Technology edited by Jane Haynes and Juliet Miller, because of the subject's newness and importance and the interesting difference of approaches. One review was commissioned, written by the family therapist Elizabeth Andrew, the other review was sent in unsolicited, written by the analytical psychologist Nicola Glucksmann.
IN A Year When Reports about further advances in assisted reproduction and lively discussions about the clinical, psychological, social, moral and ethical implications of these developments are appearing almost daily, this is a welcome book. The editors, Jane Haynes and Juliet Miller, both psychotherapists, are clear that, while they do not dispute that the new treatments have brought many benefits and many wished-for births, there are growing concerns that ART (Assisted Reproductive Technology) has contributed to a destructive split between mind and body. Most of the contributors agree and seek to find a balance. ‘ART is neither a science of fertility, nor a science of infertility - it is about isolating, refining and juggling the mechanics of conception’ (Introduction, p. 4). The purpose of this book is to explore some of the complexities of the present situation, work towards greater understanding of the psychology of infertility and think about how a synthesis between psyche and soma might be achieved.
Since the seemingly miraculous birth by IVF of Louise Brown 25 years ago, treatment for infertility has developed so fast that it is now possible for two people, who have contributed neither egg nor sperm to the process, to produce a child who has no biological connection with them. We have entered the era of the four-parent child and mothers come in three categories. In addition to those who suffer from unexplained infertility or infertility caused by disease, each year more women and