Experience of Taiwanese Women Living with Nausea and Vomiting During Pregnancy

Abstract

Two common symptoms of pregnancy are nausea and vomiting, which, for some women, cause great discomfort and profoundly impact daily life. A descriptive phenomenological method was used to understand how Taiwanese women deal with nausea and vomiting during pregnancy. A purposive sample of 10 expectant mothers participated in the study. A transcription of each informant's verbal description of her nausea and vomiting experience was made and analyzed using Colaizzi's phenomenological methodology. Four themes emerged from the interview data after inductively analyzing the narrative content concerning nausea and vomiting: 1) understanding nausea and vomiting, 2) finding coping strategies, 3) psychosocial adaptation, and 4) needing support. The results also indicated the importance of social support to pregnant women's health, including instrumental and emotional forms of support. Health professionals, however, were not mentioned in the mothers' narratives as a source of support. The issues of social support, language translation, and western and eastern perspectives on nausea and vomiting and cultural differences in perceptions of their severity are discussed.

The Effect of Social Support on State Anxiety Levels During Pregnancy

“…It is thought that supportive relations play an important role in both protecting against and reinforcing the efforts to cope with the effects of stress experienced by pregnant women (Chou, Chen, Kuo, & Tzeng, 2006;Jesse et al, 2005). In our study we found that the participant women belonged to a group who had high social support according to the mean MSPSS scores (67.06±15.1).…”

“…Another factor that negatively affects coping with psychological problems during pregnancy is lack of social support. Social support is described as financial or spiritual assistance given to the individuals under stress by surrounding people such as husbands, friends, or family members (Chou, Chen, Kuo, & Tzeng, 2006;Jesse, Walcott-McQuigg, Mariella, & Swanson, 2005).…”

Nausea and vomiting in pregnancy: associations with maternal gestational diet and lifestyle factors in the Norwegian Mother and Child Cohort Study

“…Those with missing values for the week of onset of nausea or vomiting, yet indicating that they were 'still nauseous/still vomiting' at the time of answering, were given the value 'week 5' (the most common week for the onset of symptoms; n = 2469 women). 5,6 Those reporting a cessation of nausea or vomiting outside of a 26-week range (n = 42), or with missing values for this variable (n = 9933), yet indicating that they were 'still nauseous/ vomiting' at the time of answering, were assigned the gestational week when the questionnaire was answered. The duration of nausea or vomiting was calculated by subtracting the week of onset from the week of cessation.…”

Personal and environmental factors encouraging or preventing healthy lifestyle behaviours among Persian couples: a phenomenological investigation

“…Chou, Chen, Kuo and Tzeng (2006) also reported that the discomfort of nausea and vomiting impacts on women's quality of life during the first half of pregnancy.…”