Anxiety, Stress, and Social Support in Pregnant Women in the Province of Leon during COVID-19 Disease

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has posed a high risk to the mental health of the entire population. Pregnant women are strongly affected by the consequences of COVID-19, resulting in increased anxiety and stress. Social support can be a protective factor when it comes to mental health disturbances such as anxiety, fear, or stress in pregnant women. This research aims to describe the anxiety and stress of women in the first trimester of pregnancy in times of pandemic and its relationship with social support. A quantitative, descriptive, cross-sectional study was conducted. A total of 115 women in the first trimester of pregnancy participated. Anxiety was found in 78.3% of the women. Self-perceived stress correlated significantly with the dimensions “concern for changes in oneself”, “feelings about oneself”, “concern about the future”, and very weakly with social support. In addition, a negative correlation was observed between “feelings about oneself” and social support. During the COVID-19 pandemic, anxiety levels of women in our population are elevated. Pregnant women during the first trimester of pregnancy showed higher levels of fear of childbirth and concern about the future than multiparous women. Increased social support and decreased stress seem to influence “feeling about oneself”.

Fear and Anxiety in Pregnant Women During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Systematic Review

“…Finally, 17 articles were included in the review (30)(31)(32)(33)(34)(35)(36)(37)(38)(39)(40)(41)(42)(43)(44)(45)(46) that measured levels of fear or anxiety in pregnant women during the COVID-19 pandemic.…”

“…Assessing the levels of fear and anxiety in pregnant women was the main objective of this review and both variables were identified in 7 (31)(32)(33)(34)40,42,45) and 13 (30,32,(34)(35)(36)(37)(38)(39)(41)(42)(43)(44)46) studies, respectively. Other factors related to the psychological impact that the COVID-19 pandemic had on the pregnant women were: stress (30,40) or depression (38,39,43,45,46). Both fear and anxiety were assessed using different measurement tools: fear was assessed using, W-DEQ-A (34), FOC-6 (40), and ad hoc Fear scale (42,45).…”

“…Both fear and anxiety were assessed using different measurement tools: fear was assessed using, W-DEQ-A (34), FOC-6 (40), and ad hoc Fear scale (42,45). On the other hand, anxiety was assessed with STAI (32,35,36,44), GAD-7 (36,46), PRAQ-20 (30), KLP-II (35,40), HAM-A (37), Kuas, Spielberg's State Anxiety Inventory (34), HADS (39), BAI (41), and IDAS II (43). Lastly, the PSS (30) and PSS-10 (40) were used to measure stress.…”

A Virtual Exercise Program throughout Pregnancy during the COVID-19 Pandemic Modifies Maternal Weight Gain, Smoking Habits and Birth Weight—Randomized Clinical Trial

“…Although our results do not show direct correlations with baby weight or NICU admission, other previous studies found a higher risk of having a child with low birth weight [ 83 , 84 ] and other negative pregnancy outcomes like spontaneous abortion [ 85 ], preterm birth or respiratory distress [ 86 ], both associated with NICU admission. The current situation caused by COVID-19 is perceived by pregnant individuals as stressful [ 87 , 88 ] and even though in our study all received information on healthy lifestyle (information on smoking included), the CG maintained their smoking habits. Pregnant individuals who smoked during the pandemic [ 89 ] also had lower frequencies of physical activity [ 90 ] and increased chances of anxiety and depression, as well as showing decreased success in quitting smoking [ 91 , 92 ].…”

Maternal Anxiety and Its Associated Factors During the First and Second Wave of COVID-19 Pandemic in Serbia: A Cross-Sectional Study

“…Also, our findings align with studies that reported increased social support during the COVID-19 pandemic perceived by pregnant women. 19,69 On the contrary, it is significant to note that studies reported decreased social support for pregnant women during the COVID-19 pandemic. [70][71][72] Based on such different findings, we noticed that the data about perceived social support in pregnant women during the COVID-19 pandemic is country-specific, similar to the data about maternal anxiety during the COVID-19.…”