Abstract
Author(s): KATARZYNA SIKORA
Introduction. The experince of loosing a child while a woman is pregnant with it concernsa significant number of couples. The chock following the loss of a child before its birth maylead to incorrect ways of communication with the medical staff. This is a situation that burdensemotionally both sides.The aim of the work. The evaluation of the type of feelings the women and men are goingthrough after the loss of a child before its birth. The understanding of this experience maylead to ensuring tothe parents after a miscarriage a care responding to their needs, includingthe appropriate medical staff support and access to professional psychological help. Materials and methods. Weapplied a hermeneutic dialogue and thematic studies on the lifeof the human being. We analysed 26 interviews with pregnant women who underwent miscar-riage in the past.Results. The result of our work is the ‘Pattern of experience after the loss of a child beforeits birth’. They focus on the feelings of a woman after miscarriage. We determined modellingfactors that is circumstances acompanying the miscarriage, the attitude towards pregnancy andways of coping with this problem, including the social support obtained after the loss. Animportant element of the pattern are also the partners’ behaviours described by the examinedwomen, including the support given to the wife and the woman’s own feelings. We alsodiscovered distant consequences of the miscarriage, that is the feelings of the woman in thefollowing pregnancy. The process of accepting the fact of having lost a child before its birthis facilitated by: the presence of the husband; the hope of having a child in the future; theinformation on the circumstances of miscarriage transmitted by the doctor; a conversation witha person showing understanding.Conclusions. The reaction following a miscarriage reminds the grief after the loss of a closeperson. The experience of the loss of a child before its birth can be differentiated on anindividual basis and is of a procesual nature, without distinguishing phases. The situationsthat may intensify the sorrow and grief are encounters with a small child or a pregnant womanand problems in relation with the husband. The behaviour of the medical staff adjusted to theneeds of the patient constitute a significant source of support, and the inadequate behaviourslead to the intensification of the reaction after miscarriage. A remote consequence of the lossof a child before its birth is the miscarriage-related anxiety, appearing in every other pregnan-cy. There is a need of psychological assistance as early as in the hospital in order to obtainfurther professional support.