Antenatal preparedness for motherhood and its association with antenatal anxiety and depression in first time pregnant women from India

Abstract

Background and Aims: Pregnancy is a developmental period demanding special adjustments. Psychologically, pregnancy can be associated with positive preparedness in some and fear of childbirth or doubts of mothering role in others. Anxiety and depression during pregnancy can have negative implications on its outcome. The current study aims to provide insight into factors influencing maternal preparedness for motherhood. Methodology: Hundred first time pregnant women were enrolled after written informed consent and ethical approval. The Pregnancy Experiences Scale-Brief Version was used to study maternal rating of uplifts and hassles experiences specific to pregnancy, indicating affective valence toward the pregnancy. Pregnancy-Related Anxiety Questionnaire (PRAQ-R) helped to identify pregnancy-specific anxiety and depressive symptoms were screened using Whooley’s Questions. Data were analyzed using Microsoft Excel 15.30 (170107). Results: The mean age of the women was 23.1 years. More than half of the pregnancies were unplanned, and the mean duration of pregnancy was 6.8 months. The positive experience was reported more than a negative experience. Negative valence increased in the presence of psychosocial stressors. On PRAQ-R, anxiety symptoms were reported by 52% of the patients, especially high on the domain of “fear of giving birth” and increased with trimester. Depressive symptoms were reported by 23% of the women. Conclusion: Advanced gestation, presence of stressors, past psychiatric illness, ANC complications, and the presence of anxiety/depression influence maternal preparedness for motherhood. There is a need of sensitizing the doctors, nurses, health-care workers, and relatives regarding screening, referral of unmet psychological needs of pregnant women to help new mothers to adjust with their motherhood positively.

Pregnancy stressors and postpartum symptoms of depression and anxiety: the moderating role of a cognitive–behavioural therapy (CBT) intervention

“… 19 Another study conducted in India using the PES-Brief demonstrated that women experiencing psychosocial stressors during pregnancy showed elevated hassles frequency, as well as increased intensity and frequency ratio of hassles to uplifts. 20 …”

“…19 Another study conducted in India using the PES-Brief demonstrated that women experiencing psychosocial stressors during pregnancy showed elevated hassles frequency, as well as increased intensity and frequency ratio of hassles to uplifts. 20 Although negative stressors during pregnancy have been extensively investigated in relation to postpartum mental health, the role of positive stressors has been less explored. Among the studies based on the PES and PES-Brief to date, we found only a single study conducted in Japan that examined the relationship between uplifts and postpartum depression.…”

Development of a brief psychological intervention for perinatal depression (BIND‐P)

“…Research on screening women for PND is limited in India, although several scales are available to screen women for PND, such as the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS), PHQ‐9, and Whooley's questionnaire (Bavle et al, 2016; Dere, Varotariya, Ghildiyal, Sharma, & Kaur, 2019; Ransing, Deshpande, et al, 2020). We preferred to use the PHQ‐2 and PHQ‐9, as these scales have been translated and validated in several Indian languages and used in various contexts (Ganguly et al, 2013; Shidhaye, Gangale, & Patel, 2016) and demonstrated good psychometric properties for screening the population with different disorders (Ambaw, Mayston, Hanlon, & Alem, 2017; Reddy, Philpot, Ford, & Dunbar, 2010).…”

Associated factors of depression in pregnant women in Korea based on the 2019 Korean Community Health Survey: a cross-sectional study

“…Pregnancy carries a positive meaning as a normal developmental process that requires a woman's physiological and psychological adaptation. Pregnant women are, nonetheless, vulnerable to a variety of mental health problems may have fears of giving birth or harbor feelings of inadequacy concerning their role as a mother, as well as experiencing mixed feelings and negative thoughts about pregnancy [1][2][3]. Among these considerations, depression is common among pregnant women, with 25.6% of expectant mothers worldwide experiencing the disease, and contributing to the emergence of a major public health problem [4][5][6].…”