Paul Baerwald School of Social Work, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Mount Scopus, Jerusalem, Israel. mslanda@mscc.huji.ac.il
Abstract
Postmenopausal pregnancy (PMP) is presented as a means of alleviating women's suffering by helping them realize their wish for a child of their "own." The availability of IVF technology and oocyte donation, both necessary for PMP, create the illusion of unlimited female fertility. The aim of this paper is twofold: (1) to examine the psychosocial, health, and ethical aspects of PMP; and (2) to answer the question of whether PMP's promise of unlimited fertility really offers more personal freedom and control for women. The paper concludes that PMP seems to increase, rather than to decrease, human suffering.