Table 3.

Themes and subthemes related to the experiences of infertile couples.

Domains	Themes	• Sub-themes
Biomedical experiences of the infertility treatment journey	Lack of clear information regarding infertility care pathway	•Diagnosis not established quickly •Therapeutic management not understood by patients •Information and orientation problem
	Multiplicity of treatments	•Multiple medical treatments •Use of a variety of alternative therapies
	Fractured care or Lack of continuity in care	•Discontinuous monitoring •Frequent change of doctors •Problem of trust in private practices
Social experiences	Gendered social pressures	•Stigma and discrimination •Social isolation •Harassment •Pejorative perception of ART/secretive nature of ART
	Marital and relationship difficulties	•Conflicts and tensions with in laws and marital partners •Threat of potential divorce
	Disruption of daily and professional lives	•Geographic distanceto ART centres •Disrupted labour
Psychological experiences	Psychological suffering	•Negative emotions •Psychological distress
Financial experiences	Financial problems	•High direct medical costs •Indirect costs •Financial indebtedness •Mandatory out of pocket expenditures