Perceived changes and concerns of women related to sexuality in pregnancy in the context of the importance of being informed

Abstract

Pregnancy is an important life period, often associated with perceived changes and concerns in the sphere of sexuality. This study evaluates these changes and concerns, as well as the awareness of women concerning their sexuality during the period of pregnancy. The research is designed as a quantitative cross-sectional study. The research sample consisted of 242 pregnant women with a mean age of 28.07 years (±5.13 years). The received data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, a chi-squared test and the Pearson correlation coefficient. The majority of the respondents (66.5%) declared that they had experienced shifts in their sexual and intimate life during the period of pregnancy. Fear and fatigue were found to be the most common causes of decreased sexual activity. Overall, 47.5% of pregnant women were worried about sexual intercourse in pregnancy. Most often they were afraid of preterm labour/miscarriage and causing harm to the foetus. Statistically significant correlations (r = 0.13; p = 0.052) between concerns and the period of pregnancy by trimesters were demonstrated. Despite the fact that most women declared they had had sufficient information about sexuality in pregnancy, we cannot rely on this, as their prevalent source of information was the internet and, moreover, the majority of women had not discussed the issue with health professionals (gynaecologists, midwives). A statistical significance (r = 0.23, p = 0.0001) between the level of awareness and the stage pregnancy by trimesters was demonstrated. With regard to the outcomes of the study, healthcare professionals should pay increased attention to sexuality of pregnant women. It is also desirable to enrich the sources of information on sexuality in pregnancy and, simultaneously, to enhance emotional support of health professionals for pregnant women. Understanding the changes and reducing fears of sexual activity in pregnancy would definitely contribute to the reduction of sexual dysfunction and overall improvement of the women’s quality of life during pregnancy.