How can my partner support me during pregnancy
Pregnancy can be both; wonderful and stressful, it means a big change in a couple’s life and such can come with communication problems or with somebody feeling left out.
Here we will talk about some options on how to make this process less stressful and more joyful for you as a couple.
How do I make my partner feel included in pregnancy?
It’s common to get all the attention and care from the people around you when you are carrying a baby, this is a challenging experience in which you need understanding and support; but this can make your partner feel left out, even as he/she isn’t carrying the baby, he/she will become parent too and has many thoughts and emotions around it.
First of all, it’s important that you both know about pregnancy, what it means and what it takes; sometimes the belief is that just the pregnant person has to know about it, but this is actually a team work.
Also, if your partner knows about biological and psychological changes during pregnancy it’s easier to understand you more and to avoid misunderstandings while you are experiencing mood swings or overtiredness and seem less interested in things that you used to do before.
This period can also be a great opportunity to strengthen your relationship by working on your communication skills, problem solving and acceptance before becoming parents; it can also help you enjoy your time alone before your baby arrives.
What can my partner do during pregnancy?
Keep in mind that you both are having a baby, even if only one of you is carrying him/her. So, it’s important to communicate with each other regarding the topic of your health and your baby´s.
Here are some things that are important to do together during pregnancy:
- Make decisions about prenatal tests: which ones are you taking, when and where. (Talking about how you both feel about them it’s important too, since it can make you anxious).
- Talk about money and house arrangements that you will have and how you each wish to handle them in order to find an agreement where you both feel comfortable.
- Make time to go together to the doctor visits, your doctor will tell you how things are going and will answer all of your doubts.
- Childbirth classes are a great way to feel more comfortable on what’s coming to this new chapter and to be prepared together.
- While pregnant, it’s common that some smells may make you feel sick, so your partner can take care of the cooking or cleaning or the things that could make you feel sick.
- As pregnancy is close to an end, you can experience some back pain or other aches, ask your partner for a massage for some pain and stress relief.
- Your partner can take care of the things that risk your pregnancy, such as carrying the heavy stuff and other duties around the house.
- It’s important to maintain your health and to be far away from toxins, so if your partner smokes for example, he/she can do it in a place where you don’t get exposed to it.
How can my partner be supportive during pregnancy?
Carrying a baby may bring you big emotional roller coasters, so it’s normal and ok to need extra encouragement and reassurance; get close to your partner and let him/her know how you are feeling and what your needs are.
If you are having trouble changing your routine or some habits like drinking coffee or alcohol you can ask your partner to help you out by doing it with you or avoid doing it in front of you and you both can find new habits to do like going for a walk instead of going to a happy hour.
Keep in mind that your partner doesn’t have to “guess” how you are, it’s ok to ask for help, patience, affection and support.
Talking about your sexual needs during this period, pregnancy could make you feel overtired, or there could be some periods when you may feel more like it.
Be mindful that even as your partner isn’t experiencing biological changes he/she may be on an emotional roller coaster as well while getting into this new experience; always maintain a clear and kind communication with each other, and if you are having trouble doing so, you can always get professional help.
How do partner support impact pregnancy
Studies have found that emotional, tangible and informational support are positively related to the mom´s overall health, some findings even say that support and companionship of the spouse during labor and delivery have fewer complications during birth and less postpartum depression.
Experiencing support while pregnant impacts your baby as well! As it can reduce pregnancy complications that could lead to health problems and even mental health trouble, research shows that moms who perceived stronger support mid pregnancy had lower emotional distress postpartum and their kids were reported to be less distressed in response; enjoying yourself and taking care of you during pregnancy its only good for you, it’s good for you baby as well!
In Breastfeeding 101 we hope this information has helped you to understand more of the impact of being supported by your partner during pregnancy and some of the things that you can do in order to do so.
We love to have you here and invite you to follow all of our content to learn more about this topic.
If you want to deepen more in the topic of partner´s support during pregnancy, here we share with you some of the research that made this article possible:
- Childbirth Classes I Alberta
- Couples Communication Skills and Anxiety of Pregnancy: A Narrative Review I National Library of Medicine
- Feelings, relationships and pregnancy I NHS
- Investigating partner involvement in pregnancy and identifying barriers and facilitators to participating as a couple in a digital healthy eating and physical activity
- intervention I BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth
- Male partner participation in maternity care and social support for childbearing women: a discussion paper I The Royal Society
- Parenting Fears and Concerns during Pregnancy: A Qualitative Survey I National Library of Medicine
- Partner Support During Pregnancy I Alberta
- Perceived Partner Support in Pregnancy Predicts Lower Maternal and Infant Distress I National Library of Medicine
- Romantic partner support during pregnancy: The discrepancy between self-reported and coder-rated support as a risk factor for parental psychopathology and stress I SageJournals
- The effects of social support on women’s health during pregnancy, labor and delivery, and the postpartum period. I Europe PMC
- The Influence of Antenatal Partner Support on Pregnancy Outcomes I The National Library of Medicine
Annie Rueb
