TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2022//
TI  - Experience of Late Miscarriage and Practical Implications for Post-Natal Health Care: Qualitative Study
JO  - Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland)
A1  - Kukulskienė, M.
A1  - Zemaitiene, N.
SP  - 
EP  - 
VL  - 10
IS  - 1
N2  - Miscarriage is the most common reason for pregnancy loss, affecting around one in four pregnancies. It is classified as a traumatic event, associated with an increased risk for depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress, alcohol dependence, somatic symptoms, sexual dysfunction, suicide, and complicated grief. This study aimed to analyse experiences of late miscarriage and to describe practical implications for post-natal health care based on characteristics of pregnancy loss revealed in a qualitative study. Seven women who had late miscarriages participated in in-depth biographical interviews. A phenomenological thematic analysis was applied. Experiential characteristics of late miscarriage were described by four themes and 13 subthemes: the initial splitting state (Dissociation, An Opened Void, An impaired Symbiosis, and The Body is Still Pregnant while the Psyche is Mourning); Betrayal of the body (Symbolic Experience of Internalised Death, Shocking Materiality of the Ongoing Miscarriage, Lost control of the Body, and Confusing Body Signals); Disconnecting (Depersonalising Medical Environment, Guilt Falsifies perception, and Retreat as a means of Self-Preservation); and Reconnecting (Collecting Shatters and Reinterpretation of Maternal Identity). Based on the results of the experiential analysis, another four themes represent practical recommendations for post-natal health care: Informing, Opportunity for Goodbye, Attention to Emotional Wellbeing, and Respectful Hospital Environment. © 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 2227-9032
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/healthcare10010079
ID  - ref1
ER  -