Effect of Instructional Guidelines Regarding Minor Discomforts on Reducing Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Level among Primigravida

Abstract

Hormonal changes during pregnancy lead to minor discomforts in all the women's body as nausea, vomiting, constipation, excessive urination, and fatigue cause anxiety for them. Most of their discomforts can be managed by self-care measures or healthful practices ones can do. Aim: This study aimed to evaluate the effect of instructional guidelines regarding minor discomforts on reducing depression, anxiety, and stress level among primigravida. Subjects and method: Study design: A quasi-experimental research design was used on a convenient sample of 150 pregnant women from a population of through 386 women in six-months, from June 2019, until December 2019, who attended at the antenatal clinic at Sohag University Hospital, Egypt. Tools of data collection: Two tools were utilized to collect the data in this study: (1) A self-administered questionnaire, (2) Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS). Results: The present study revealed that there were statistically significant differences between primigravida pregnant women's knowledge about minor discomforts and their anxiety levels before and after the implementation of the instructional guideline. Also, pregnant women's anxiety was severe before the implementation of the guideline while these levels become low after guideline implementation. Conclusion: The instructional guidelines were effective in minimizing primigravida pregnant women's anxiety regarding minor discomforts and rising their knowledge about minor discomforts after implementation of the instructional guideline. Recommendations: health educational programs about minor discomforts and their self-care practices should be taught to all pregnant women and psychological support to help them to cope and become more resilient during their pregnancy about minor discomforts.