TY - JOUR
T1 - Pregnancy happiness
T2 - implications of prior loss and pregnancy intendedness
AU - Tiemeyer, Stacy
AU - Shreffler, Karina
AU - McQuillan, Julia
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2019, © 2019 Society for Reproductive and Infant Psychology.
PY - 2019/1/1
Y1 - 2019/1/1
N2 - Objective: This study aimed to examine the interaction between pregnancy loss and pregnancy intentions on women’s happiness about a subsequent pregnancy. Background: Anxiety about prior loss persist for women, even during subsequent pregnancies. It is unclear from prior research, whether a prior pregnancy loss shapes attitudes towards and feelings about a subsequent birth. Methods: Using data from the 2002–2013 National Survey of Family Growth (NSFG), we used logistic regression analyses to explore the implications of a prior pregnancy loss for happiness about a subsequent pregnancy that ends in a live birth. We compared births classified as on-time, mistimed, unwanted, and ambivalent. Results: Births were more likely to be characterised as on-time if they occurred following a pregnancy loss, and women were less likely to report being happy about a conception if they were ambivalent about the conception and experienced a previous loss. Overall, pregnancy loss alone was not associated with lower levels of happiness about a subsequent birth. Conclusions: Pregnancy loss can be a highly distressing experience, women’s happiness about a subsequent pregnancy is not reduced due to prior pregnancy loss. Future research should explore why women who were ambivalent about pregnancy reported lower levels of happiness following a loss.
AB - Objective: This study aimed to examine the interaction between pregnancy loss and pregnancy intentions on women’s happiness about a subsequent pregnancy. Background: Anxiety about prior loss persist for women, even during subsequent pregnancies. It is unclear from prior research, whether a prior pregnancy loss shapes attitudes towards and feelings about a subsequent birth. Methods: Using data from the 2002–2013 National Survey of Family Growth (NSFG), we used logistic regression analyses to explore the implications of a prior pregnancy loss for happiness about a subsequent pregnancy that ends in a live birth. We compared births classified as on-time, mistimed, unwanted, and ambivalent. Results: Births were more likely to be characterised as on-time if they occurred following a pregnancy loss, and women were less likely to report being happy about a conception if they were ambivalent about the conception and experienced a previous loss. Overall, pregnancy loss alone was not associated with lower levels of happiness about a subsequent birth. Conclusions: Pregnancy loss can be a highly distressing experience, women’s happiness about a subsequent pregnancy is not reduced due to prior pregnancy loss. Future research should explore why women who were ambivalent about pregnancy reported lower levels of happiness following a loss.
KW - Attitudes
KW - miscarriage
KW - mother/s
KW - pregnancy
KW - psychosocial factors
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85068555813&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1080/02646838.2019.1636944
DO - 10.1080/02646838.2019.1636944
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85068555813
SN - 0264-6838
VL - 38
SP - 184
EP - 198
JO - Journal of Reproductive and Infant Psychology
JF - Journal of Reproductive and Infant Psychology
IS - 2
ER -