The Experiences of Pregnancy and Childbirth in Women with Postpartum Depression: A Qualitative Study

Abstract

Background: Postpartum depression is a common disease with serious consequences for the mother and child. However, a few qualitative studies have been conducted on the lived experiences of mothers. Objectives: This study is aimed at exploring the experiences of mothers with the depression from pregnancy and childbirth. Methods: This qualitative study has been conducted on 16 women with a history of depression after childbirth. To collect data, 16 semi-structured interviews were conducted. The data collected were analyzed using content analysis suggested by Graneheim and Lundman. Results:The data analysis led to the development of 821 inductive codes categorized into three themes: 'experienced problems', 'unmet expectations', and psychological distresses. The experienced problems comprised socioeconomic factors and complications during pregnancy and childbirth. The unmet expectations comprised conditions and reactions women expected to occur during interactions with others such as social support and marital relationship. Further, psychological distress was the women's reaction to pregnancy-related events and relative interactions, including psychological reactions and inefficiency in playing roles and fulfilling responsibilities. Conclusions:The findings emphasize the need for exploration of the psychological processes during pregnancy. Women felt they needed support that was not easily available and were worried about lack of privacy and loss of control over their private life, causing psychological distress for women. Couples should receive the education necessary for the risk of post-partum depression.

Changes in Prenatal Depression and Anxiety Levels in Low Risk Pregnancy Among Iranian Women: A Prospective Study

“…With increasing the gestational age, women's need for social support from the family and support for pregnancy delivery systems increases. A study in this field indicates a reverse relationship between the level of depression in women and the belief in the comprehensive support of the pregnancy care systems [24].In a qualitative study, women with a history of postpartum depression stated that lack of social support from the family and care providers caused them discomfort [26].…”

Partner’s Emotional Reaction to Pregnancy Mediates the Relationship Between Pregnancy Planning and Prenatal Mental Health

“…Many studies have shown that during pregnancy women's mental health is associated with social support [8][9][10], marital relationships [11], as well as socioeconomic factors.…”

“…Other studies have also shown that social support, especially the partner's, is of great importance in maintaining the mental health of pregnant women [8,17,18]. Further, affecting the marital relations, the partner's emotional support has important effects on the mental health of women during pregnancy [9,10] in such a way that some studies have reported that the partner's emotional support has a positive relation to increased marital satisfaction in women [19]. However, during pregnancy, among all the partner's supportive behavior, his emotional reaction to pregnancy such as that on learning about his wife's pregnancy or about pregnancyrelated events such as movement of the fetus or the growth of the abdomen as a result of the growth of the fetus, might be of special importance because it indicates the importance of pregnancy to the partner.…”

“…In many women, occurrence of pregnancy is an event associated with great changes in sensations, emotions, and excitements [20]; which are in uenced by their familial relations [21] and can impact their mental health [10]. Further, the social roles that women play, the reproductive one is of special importance, where pregnancy for women is the realization of their gender roles such that decreased fertility in middle-aged women has been described as a sense of fruitlessness and unproductivity [22].…”

Partner’s emotional reaction to pregnancy mediates the relationship between pregnancy planning and prenatal mental health

“…Therefore, many studies aimed to determine factors which affect the mental health of pregnant women. Many studies have shown that during pregnancy women's mental health is associated with social support [7][8][9], marital relationships [10], as well as socioeconomic factors.…”