Agreeableness and pregnancy: Relations with coping and psychiatric symptoms, a longitudinal study on Spanish pregnant women

Agreeableness is associated with good mental health during pregnancy. Although different studies have indicated that agreeableness is related to adaptive coping, this relation has scarcely been studied in pregnant women. The aim of this study was to analyze the possible differences between high and low agreeableness in relation to coping strategies and psychiatric symptoms in pregnant women. We conducted a longitudinal prospective study between October 2009 and January 2013. Pregnant women (n = 285) were assessed in the first trimester of pregnancy, and 122 of them were assessed during the third. Data were collected using the Coping Strategies Questionnaire, the Symptom Check List 90-R, and the agreeableness subscale of the NEO-FFI. Using the SPSS 21 statistics package, binary logistic regression, two-way mixed analysis of variance, and multiple regression analyses and a Sobel test were conducted. Higher levels of agreeableness were associated with positive reappraisal and problem-solving, and lower levels of agreeableness were associated with overt emotional expression and negative self-focused coping. Women with low agreeableness had poorer mental health, especially in the first trimester. These findings should be taken into account to improve women's experiences during pregnancy. Nevertheless, given the scarcity of data, additional studies are needed.

From Infertility to Successful Third-Party Reproduction: The Trajectory of Greek Women

The purpose of our phenomenological hermeneutic study was to explore the lived experiences of Greek infertile women who achieve a pregnancy through the use of sperm, oocyte, or embryo donation or surrogate motherhood. Semistructured interviews were conducted with 15 infertile women. Findings suggest that conceiving a child through assisted reproductive technologies (ART) is lived as a highly distressing experience, comprising long waiting periods for medical results, several failed attempts, and treatment options with uncertain outcomes. The analysis of women's accounts revealed a constitutive pattern, journeying between hope and despair, and three associated themes: (a) coping with uncertainty and treatment failures, (b) exploring options and decision making, and (c) being supported by spouse and professionals. Findings illuminate the specific meaning-based coping processes, decision-making patterns, and sources of support that help women who pursue treatment until they give birth to a child, to manage highly stressful situations and critical decisions.

Coping with infertility: Comparison of coping mechanisms and psychological immune competence in fertile and infertile couples

This study compared coping strategies and psychological immunity of parents with a child conceived with assisted reproductive technology (n = 84) and parents with a naturally conceived child (n = 84) in a Hungarian fertility-age population. Results showed that in vitro fertilization parents are able to control their emotions in a better way than comparison couples. They interpret trials as challenges and consider themselves more worthy than the members of the control group. Our research confirms that consideration and management of psychological factors in treating infertility have an important preventive role to play.

Coping strategies of Spanish pregnant women and their impact on anxiety and depression

The aims of this study were to analyze the coping strategies used by women in the first trimester of low-risk pregnancies, their relationships to sociodemographic and pregnancy variables, and their ability to predict anxiety and depression in the third trimester. Participants in the first trimester were 285 Spanish pregnant women, of whom 122 were followed into the third trimester. The use of problem-focused coping was stable, whereas variations occurred in emotion-focused coping. Age, educational level, employment, planned pregnancy, previous childbirth, and previous miscarriage were associated with adaptive coping. Coping strategies predicting anxiety and depressive symptoms were overt emotional expression and social support seeking. Coping through religion predicted anxiety. Coping is a complex process influenced by sociodemographic and obstetric factors that can contribute to the onset of psychological symptoms.