Perinatal Anxiety

What is perinatal anxiety?

Anxiety is the feeling of fear or panic. It is a normal feeling which we all experience when faced with situations we find threatening or difficult. Some women experience anxiety about childbirth which is normal. Perinatal anxiety is anxiety experienced during pregnancy or in the first year after childbirth. It can be also called Antenatal anxiety when experienced during your pregnancy.

Some women may also experience depression (feeling sad, unhappy or low in mood).

The signs and symptoms of perinatal anxiety can be different from person to person.

What are the physical symptoms? What are the psychological (emotional) signs?
Physical symptoms may include: Psychological symptoms may include feeling:
• Tense muscles • Anxious, scared or overwhelmed
• Headaches • Irritable
• Pins and needles • Ashamed or embarrassed
• Feeling dizzy • Avoidance, feeling powerless or frozen
• Fast breathing • Impatience, pacing, or fast speech
• Sweating • Sleeping difficulty
• Fast heartbeat • Worried or concern for safety of self or others
• Panic attacks • Panic
  • The need for control or perfection
  • Obsessive, unpleasant thoughts

Perinatal anxiety for most women has more than one cause. Common risk factors may include:

  • Personal or family history of mental health issues
  • Depression and/or anxiety during pregnancy
  • Lack of household support and emotional support
  • Stressful life events
  • Complications during pregnancy or delivery

Treatment for perinatal anxiety will focus on treating anxiety. There are treatment options for anxiety which may include:

  • Medicine: There are medicines your doctor can prescribe to help manage anxiety. If you have any concerns about taking medicine during pregnancy or while breastfeeding, please share your concern with your doctor.
  • Talking Therapy: You may have the option of receiving cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) or counselling for anxiety. Talking to a trained professional is one way to help manage anxiety and stressful life situations.

Experiencing anxiety can feel very overwhelming and leave you struggling to cope with daily tasks and interactions.

  • Try shifting your focus. If you are feeling immediately anxious about something, focus on something small, like the details of a picture or the texture of something you are wearing. If you can, try to keep your thoughts on this one thing taking in all the small details. This can help you take a moment to calm down.
  • Learn some breathing exercises. Controlling your breathing can help counter some of the physical sensations of anxiety and help you to relax.
  • Try doing some physical activity. This can help distract you from any thoughts, making you anxious. This doesn’t have to be playing a sport or going to the gym. For example, you may want to go for a 30-minute walk or do some physical activity around the house.

For questions or concerns, you can reach out to Perinatal Mental Health Services – Women’s Wellbeing Clinic:

Email: WMHnurses@sidra.org
Clinic phone numbers: +97440037109; +97440037177; +97470675153

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