More women going online for childbirth support —study

Published by rudy Date posted on October 19, 2011

Pregnancy is certainly a roller coaster of emotions for mums-to-be, but sadly, the journey from conception to birth ends all-too soon for some. Approximately 15 percent of recognized pregnancies end in miscarriage in the United States, and another 1 percent end in stillbirth. So how do these grieving individuals cope?

A new study in Elsevier’s Women’s Health Issues reveals many women are turning to the Internet, seeking comfort, information and convenience via online pregnancy support groups.

The study sheds new light on who is visiting these sites, their usage patterns and perceived benefits. More than 1,000 online surveys were completed, with links to the questionnaire featured on 18 different message boards catering to women who had suffered a stillbirth or miscarriage.

Results revealed that respondents were overwhelmingly white, well-educated, and well-insured. More than half of the losses reported (54 percent) were stillbirths or losses after 20 weeks gestation age. The other 46 percent were miscarriages or losses before 20 weeks.

Most women reported posting on the board frequently (53 percent once a week or more), and all generally expressed satisfaction with the pregnancy loss boards in terms of learning new information.

In fact, 89 percent agreed or strongly agreed a professional health worker should participate on the boards, and 86 percent felt similarly about a mental health professional participating to help moderate and facilitate discussions.

Additionally, various themes emerged that revealed the boards provided a forum in which women saw they were “not alone,” and that their grief reactions were normal. They also appreciated the physical ease of being able to use the Internet anytime, since physical support groups often meet just once or twice a month.

Together, this data suggests there is the potential to use on-line support as part of a structured perinatal grief bereavement program. As several women noted, there is a comfort with the message boards because people cannot see you when you cry and get upset.

“I like the fact that you can talk without the pitying stares one can get face-to-face,” one comment said.

In conclusion, Internet message boards offer an attractive source of free, anonymous, and immediate peer-support and feedback for bereaved parents. — Newsbytes.ph

April 2025

World Day for Safety and Health at Work
“Safety and health at work every day!”

Invoke Article 33 of the ILO constitution
against the military junta in Myanmar to carry out the 2021 ILO Commission of Inquiry recommendations against serious violations of Forced Labour and Freedom of Association protocols.
Accept National Unity Government
(NUG) of Myanmar.
Reject Military!
#WearMask #WashHands #Distancing #TakePicturesVideos

Time to support & empower survivors. Time to spark a global conversation. Time for #GenerationEquality to #orangetheworld!

Monthly Observances:

March – Women’s Role in History Month
April – Month of Planet Earth

Weekly Observances:
Last Week of March: Protection and Gender Fair Treatment of the Girl Child Week
Last Week of April – World Immunization Week

Daily Observances:
Mar 25 – International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transallantic Slave Trade
Mar 27– Earth Hour
Apr 21 – Civil Service Day
Apr 22 – World Earth Day
Apr 28 – World Day for Safety and Health at Work

Trade Union Solidarity Campaigns

No to Trafficking

Jobs! Jobs! Jobs!

Categories