Author Archives: Rachel Patterson

About Rachel Patterson

Rachel Patterson is a doctoral candidate in the Bellisario College of Communications at The Pennsylvania State University. As a health communication scholar, Rachel's work has examined the portrayal of transgender death in the news, online social support for infertility and other health issues, eating disorders, and climate change as it relates to health behavior. Her most recent work focuses on the communication with providers about psychiatric treatment for and media portrayal of eating disorders and new mothers. She completed a BA in public relations and an MA in media research both from The University of Memphis. Upon completing her PhD, she plans to devote her research to the study of eating disorders regarding an evolving standard of care for individuals of all backgrounds.

Alabama embryo ruling threatened access to IVF across the state and possibly nationwide

By | May 9, 2024
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Image of infant surrounded by IVF injection needles, with two hands cradling the head

After seemingly endless negative pregnancy tests and a few early losses after rounds of alternate fertility treatments, I felt that in-vitro fertilization (IVF) was my only hope of becoming a mother. As I saw others conceiving naturally, or succeeding relatively quickly with less invasive assisted methods, my longing and desperation for motherhood only grew. I… Read More »