The unifying difference: dyadic coping with spontaneous abortion among religious Jewish couples

In this study we examined the meaning of abortion in the religious Jewish sector on both the individual and the couple levels. In a qualitative, descriptive, interpretive-narrative study, semistructured interviews were conducted with five religious couples. Both members of each couple were interviewed separately. The findings show that although both members of the couple experienced spontaneous abortion as a loss, each expressed it in different ways and thus perceived it differently in the couple relationship. Men who demonstrated the ability to bypass their own pain and made an effort to respond to their partners' distress motivated the women's exit from the isolation cycle, and contributed to a sense of dyadic cohesion and to creating a meaning for their "togetherness." These findings are discussed in the context of research and theoretical literature that deal with bereavement and mourning processes, and with constructing meaning for a pregnancy-related loss.