Conference Proceedings

2008 Psychology of Women Section 21st Anniversary Conference

'Rights and Changes'
Conference Venue: Cumberland Lodge, The Great Park, Windsor
Psychology of Women Section

From: 16 Jul 2008
To: 18 Jul 2008

 
Peer-Reviewed

Prenatal anxiety and depression

A. Sezer
Instanbul Bilgi University

A.Z. Page
Istanbul Bilgi University


This paper will focus upon some work that is currently being done by the author with a view to producing a guide to the emotional changes women experience during pregnancy which can be used both by pregnant women and also by professionals working with them. Before work on this guide began, a small-scale exploratory study was done which involved interviewing pregnant women about their depressive and anxious complaints, their changing self-image, and also their changing interpersonal relationships. The results of this exploratory study, along with a review of relevant literature informed the choice of issues to be covered in the guide.
An important aim of the guide will be to draw attention away from postpartum depression, which is largely covered in current literature, to what women experience pre-partum, and how that affects their postpartum condition and their relationships with significant others. The guide will address a broad range of issues such as pregnancy as a developmental stage, the effect of taking up the mothering role on the woman’s self-image, pregnancy’s effects on romantic relationships with partners, how men prepare themselves to be fathers and how both partners may begin to see each other in different roles than before the birth. The guide will also outline the symptoms of depression and anxiety that women can experience during pregnancy and provide some useful coping strategies. The author will argue that this is an important aspect of the guide because detecting and treating pre-partum depression and anxiety is an important preventive factor for possible post-partum depression and other psychological problems.