Disrupted selves in transition: How women navigate fertility treatments in the context of work.

Abstract

The challenges of managing the transition to motherhood for working women have been well documented. However, less is known about women whose transition to motherhood is disrupted, stalled, or never realized through complex fertility journeys. This qualitative study explores how 41 working women undergoing fertility treatments experience cross-domain identity challenges that threaten both their desired maternal and professional identities. Through disruptions to initiated identity transitions, participants face three types of cross-domain interferences-embodied, emotional, and cognitive-that create ongoing threats to their desired selves. Unlike typical liminal periods that facilitate identity exploration, we find that repeated fertility treatment disruptions actually erode women's ability to engage in identity play and envision possible selves. This leads to perpetual liminality, where women must make identity trade-offs as their maternal aspirations become increasingly difficult to achieve. Whether fertility treatments succeed or fail, the experience creates a "lingering self" that permanently shapes both personal and professional identities. Our findings extend research on liminality by revealing how extended liminal states can constrain rather than enhance identity exploration, challenging assumptions about the exploratory potential of transitional periods. We also contribute to work-life literature by illuminating how stalled personal identity transitions create unique cross-domain interferences distinct from traditional work-family conflict. These insights suggest organizations need more comprehensive support systems that address the complex, extended nature of fertility journeys while recognizing their lasting impact on employees' sense of self. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved).