The childbirth experience: obstetric and psychological predictors in Italian primiparous women

Abstract

BackgroundThe experience of childbirth crucially impacts a mother’s psychological well-being and the mother-infant relationship. It is recognised that negative births can be linked to different forms of discomfort, both for the mother as well as for the infant. This prospective longitudinal study aimed to study the effect of obstetric and psychological variables on women’s subjective experience of childbirth.Methods111 primiparous Italian women completed a set of questionnaires at 38–40 weeks of pregnancy (Time 1) and 1–5 days after childbirth (Time 2). Sociodemographic and obstetric information were collected. Data about the childbirth were obtained from the mother’s ward birth records. Women completed the Wijma Delivery Expectancy/Experience Questionnaire both before and after childbirth.ResultsThe subjective experience of birth was significantly predicted by the duration of the expulsive phase (β = .26; p < .05), the use of epidural analgesia (β = .21; p< .05) and by fear of birth (β = .21; p < .05). The effect of mode of birth and duration of the dilatation phase on women’s birth experience was not found.ConclusionsIn our study, neither instrumental childbirth nor caesarean section have a significant effect on women’s birth experience. Instead, both a longer expulsion phase and epidural analgesia contribute to the negative experience. Moreover, the higher the fear of birth, the worse the women’s emotional experience. These findings confirmed the role of obstetric and psychological variables on birth experience. More investigation about this topic could be useful to develop specific interventions to prepare women for birth.

Motherhood in the Time of Coronavirus: The Impact of the Pandemic Emergency on Expectant and Postpartum Women’s Psychological Well-Being

“…First, mothers' subjective experience of childbirth has been found to predict their postpartum well-being (MacKinnon et al, 2017;Molgora et al, 2020b). The quality of this experience can be shaped by numerous variables (e.g., medical, demographical, psychological, social) that have been analyzed as risk/protective factors (Fenaroli et al, 2016(Fenaroli et al, , 2019. For example, fear of birth, the use of epidural analgesia, and the duration of the expulsive phase have been found to significantly predict the mothers' experience of birth (Fenaroli et al, 2019).…”

“…The quality of this experience can be shaped by numerous variables (e.g., medical, demographical, psychological, social) that have been analyzed as risk/protective factors (Fenaroli et al, 2016(Fenaroli et al, , 2019. For example, fear of birth, the use of epidural analgesia, and the duration of the expulsive phase have been found to significantly predict the mothers' experience of birth (Fenaroli et al, 2019). Considering the interpersonal dimension, women who received more intra-partum support and care, especially from their partner, had shorter labors, a more positive birthing experience characterized by higher levels of satisfaction, and a better postnatal psychological functioning (Collins et al, 1993;Hodnett, 2002;Hodnett et al, 2011;Michels et al, 2013).…”

Comparison of Childbirth Experiences and Postpartum Depression in Three Groups of Primiparous Women with no Participation, Irregular Participation and Regular Participation in Childbirth Preparation Classes

“…Considering that prenatal anxiety is known as an important risk factor for postpartum depression [13], childbirth preparation classes seem to reduce postpartum depression levels [6] by reducing prenatal fear and anxiety [25,34] and preparing women psychologically for childbirth [34].…”

“…This is while childbirth experience significantly affects physical and mental health of women in the postpartum period as well as their relationships with their children. Positive childbirth experiences improve maternal health, enhance mothers' self-worth and self-esteem and facilitate mother-child relationships [6,7], whereas negative experiences both affect women's breastfeeding abilities [8], their decisions to get pregnant again (9), and the type of delivery in subsequent pregnancies [10,11] and can cause psychological stresses and, in extreme cases, may lead to postpartum depression [6,7]. This reduces the mother's quality of life, weakens mother-child relationships and leads to abnormal physical, psychological and emotional development of the child [12].…”

“…This reduces the mother's quality of life, weakens mother-child relationships and leads to abnormal physical, psychological and emotional development of the child [12]. The effects of a positive or negative childbirth experience may linger for years [6,13].…”