Parents’ psychological distress, post-traumatic stress, and emotional
suppression in a pregnancy following a perinatal death: A questionnaire
study
Abstract
Objective – To evaluate parents’ psychological distress and emotional
suppression in the antenatal and postnatal periods of a pregnancy
following a perinatal death. Design – Questionnaire. Setting –
Tertiary Maternity Unit in the UK. Sample – Parents who were pregnant
and attending a specialist antenatal clinic for pregnancy after loss.
Methods – Partners and mothers completed questionnaire measures which
evaluated their levels of depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress
(PTS) and emotional suppression at 23 and 32 weeks’ gestation, and 6
weeks postnatally. Levels were plotted over time and examined to
determine if there were significant changes between time points. The
proportion of partners and mothers scoring above threshold for each
measure was identified, and differences in scores between mothers and
partners were examined. Main outcome measures – Psychological distress
and emotional suppression Results – Parents’ depression levels
significantly decreased after the birth of a live baby and anxiety
levels significantly decreased for mothers but not partners. PTS did not
change across the course of a pregnancy, and symptoms continued into the
postnatal period for mothers. Partners are more likely to hide their
emotions during pregnancy than mothers. Conclusion – Both parents who
have experienced a prior perinatal death are likely to experience high
levels of psychological distress in a subsequent pregnancy which may
continue into the postnatal period. Specialist mental health support
offered within a dedicated pregnancy after loss service is one way to
support parents. Further research is needed to determine whether
psychological distress impacts on parent-child bonding.