Anxiety, prenatal distress, and resilience during the first trimester of gestation.
Cristina Liébana-Presa, Rubén García-Fernández, Cristian Martín-Vázquez and 2 others
PMID 38743956WHAT IT FOUND
First-trimester mothers who were pregnant for the first time reported more fear of childbirth and worry about the future than those who had given birth before.
Women with higher resilience scores reported less anxiety and stress.
Key findings
01Primiparous women reported higher fear of childbirth than multiparous women.
02Higher resilience was significantly correlated with lower prenatal anxiety and lower stress.
03Women with very high resilience reported less stress and less worry about childbirth than those with normal resilience.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The study is cross-sectional, so it cannot prove that resilience causes lower anxiety, only that they are related. The sample was small (144 women) and recruited from a single region in Spain, limiting generalisability. Women with a history of depression or anxiety were excluded, so the results do not apply to women with pre-existing mental health conditions. Data collection occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic, which may have influenced stress levels and pregnancy experiences.
Declared interests
No conflicts of interest or funding sources were reported in the provided text.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume that building resilience will reduce anxiety in pregnant women. This study shows an association at one point in time; it does not prove that resilience causes lower anxiety, nor does it test any intervention to improve resilience.