Mental health and worries of pregnant women living through disaster recovery

Abstract

The health and well-being of pregnant women during and after natural disasters remains an international concern. In this mixed methods study we described pregnant women’s mental health, psychosocial concerns and sources of stress living in New Orleans during long term recovery from Hurricane Katrina. Our survey of 402 pregnant women indicated poor social support was associated with higher levels of depression symptomology, post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, and stress. Women were interviewed and described seven common areas of worry. We concluded that pregnant women living in post-disaster communities have stressful lives years after the event, needing innovative models of care to build resilience.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by National Institute of Nursing Research: [Grant Number: 5R03NR012052-02].