Table 3 Themes and subthemes of perinatal concerns
Illness relapse | Early mothering and mood episodes | Perinatal impact on child | Illness impact on partner |
|---|---|---|---|
The unknown | Medication | ||
“I am concerned about how my body will react after giving birth, how things will work hormonally and all that. We don’t know, even if all is well now.” (P17, PP) 7 PP | “It’s about the attention. When you are depressed, you don’t have the energy. When you are hypomanic, you don’t have the time. So it impacts you as a mother in both states.” (P12, MP) 9 PP; 8 MP | “I have been afraid that there will be something wrong with the baby, because of the medication, especially since I take so many different kinds of medications.” (P10, MP) 4 PP; 4 MP | “He is very good at not letting the depression affect him so much. He manages to see the positive in things and tries to have me do the same. But the postpartum psychosis I had, that was heavy for him.” (P2, MP) 7 PP; 10 MP |
Depression | Heredity | ||
“If I have a bad day, I get a little panicked, because I’m so afraid that the bad day will stay there for a long time. What if this is the start of a depression?” (P23, PP) 6 PP; 6 MP | “I hope it’s the father’s genes that are passed on. I think a lot about it, and hope that he won’t become ill and unstable, like me.” (P11, MP) 4 PP; 4 MP | ||
Psychosis | Mood episodes affecting foetus or infant | ||
“I had psychosis after my last birth. So, of course there is this fear that it will come back again (…) It’s frightening to think that I have it in me.” (P2, MP) 4 PP; 2 MP | “I have been afraid that I won’t be patient enough, and if I have a “down trip”, will he notice?” (P21, PP) 8 PP; 1 MP |