Beyond couvade: Pregnancy symptoms in couples with a history of infertility

Abstract

Thirty‐six couples with a history of infertility reported their physical, positive emotional, and negative emotional symptoms during pregnancy. The women experienced more physical symptoms than did the men. Both the men and women experienced second‐trimester decreases in negative emotional symptoms and third‐trimester increases in negative emotional symptoms. The women's physical symptoms also showed a second‐trimester dip. Each symptom type was correlated for husbands and wives, but only 6 husbands showed evidence of couvade syndrome by exhibiting exact correspondence with their wives’ symptoms. Symptom attunement appears to be a better term than couvade for most infertile men's experiences of pregnancy.