Link between spirituality, pregnancy revealed

Women, who are recognised as being highly spiritual, enjoyed higher wellbeing, says study

Spirituality may fill the void left by lack of psychological support among pregnant women, a recently published study suggests.

According to study’s corresponding author Dr. N.D.S Naga Seema, the study titled ‘Spirituality and Wellbeing among Antenatal Women’ showed that women who reported being spiritual enjoyed greater wellbeing during pregnancy. The study used self-reported data from 30 women aged 18 years to 31 years who participated. For the study, authors used Warwick Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing and Daily Experience Scales, both standard scales in research. The study was published late last year in the Indian Journal of Health and Wellbeing.

“This small sample study shows a link between spirituality and wellbeing in pregnancy women. We intend to explore it through future studies,” Dr. Seema, an Assistant Professor at University of Hyderabad’s Centre for Health Psychology said.

The study also showed that women, who were recognised as being highly spiritual, enjoyed higher wellbeing, Dr. Seema said.

“The results also indicated that an increase in personal meaning, religiosity, and spirituality scores of the participants resulted in a significant increase in their wellbeing scores,” the study’s authors wrote.

For the study, religiosity and spirituality were interchangeable and synonymous, Dr. Seema pointed out. The study also factored economic status only to learn to that it did not affect the link.

High stress levels during pregnancy are associated with increased maternal blood pressure and loss of appetite which can have negative pregnancy outcomes including premature birth and low-birth weight.

Studies in the past have also shown that high levels of stress hormones in the mother can negatively impact foetal brain.

The study however, does not show a causal relationship and authors stop short of making a recommendation for spirituality.

“While spirituality without dogmatic religious belief helps in wellbeing during pregnancy, the study does not aim to push women towards spirituality,” said study author Dr. Srinadh, of the city-based Asian Institute of Foetal Medicine and Reproductive Health, where data was collected. “We are also not saying that only spiritual women can enjoy wellbeing though there is a positive outcome associated with spirituality.”