COVID-19 Birth Stories

COVID-19 birth stories shine light on best way to support women in the pandemic

October 2020

For many women, pregnancy is a time of excitement and anticipation, but it can also be filled with anxiety and uncertainty over what is to come, especially for first-time mothers. Throw in a global pandemic, hospital restrictions, and social distancing requirements that limit family visits, and being pregnant in 2020 has proven to be an entirely different experience.

Maria Brann and Jennifer Bute, professors in the Department of Communication Studies in the IU School of Liberal Arts at IUPUI, are collecting COVID-19 birth stories to identify the best ways to support women giving birth during the pandemic. They are finding that many women are experiencing uncertainty and altered expectations.

“This is a whole new world for women, and we want them to find value in their experiences and their stories and to feel support from that,” Brann said. “We need to be supporting mothers as they enter this new realm of life. We want it to still be celebrated.”

Maria Brann

Expanding on a previous study that explored the motivations that compelled women to engage in storytelling about birth, Brann and Bute decided to take a different approach to see how COVID-19 is affecting women’s relationships with other people. To do so, they invited women from across the country who gave birth after their city or state’s stay-at-home orders were issued to join Zoom focus groups to share their COVID-19 birth stories.

“Women use each other for social support and sharing about experiences they have, and with the pandemic, we recognize there is a whole new issue with women communicating,” Brann said. “Focus groups have often been helpful in giving women a supportive environment so they can bounce ideas off each other and talk about shared experiences. They recognize that while some of their experiences may be unique, they are not alone.”

So far, more than 50 women from 18 states have joined the focus groups and shared their birth stories. For 28 of the women, this was their first time giving birth. They answered questions about how they were able to share their stories during the pandemic, negotiate visits with friends and family, and what challenges they faced. They were also asked where they received information about COVID-19, to see whether those sources are trustworthy and credible.

“We are interested in the birth experience itself, but also how experiences after birth might be different,” Bute said. “Because of the pandemic, women may not have had access to the same level of support they might have had otherwise – things like grandparent help or having meals provided.”

Jennifer Bute

Through the discussions, Brann and Bute have seen “uncertainty” emerge as an overarching theme. Women are experiencing uncertainty about birth, risk, constantly changing information, protecting their babies, and managing social relationships. A specific area of interest is how COVID-19 has affected conversations women have with their social networks, particularly around balancing the safety of their baby with the social expectations of family members – something made even more difficult when there were differing views of the pandemic.

Brann and Bute say many of the women have also shared how they had to adjust expectations for giving birth and then caring for their child. While some women expected a strong in-person support system following the birth, visitor restrictions at hospitals and the need to self-isolate at home to protect their baby affected the help they could receive from family and friends. This often led to feelings of isolation and loneliness.

Through the experience, Brann said, the women learned to advocate for themselves and their families. They felt the pandemic gave them permission to set boundaries that they may not have done otherwise. While some women were initially disappointed they could only have one support person at the hospital, they also often found value in the experience, and the uninterrupted bonding time with their baby. That experience often gave these mothers the strength to be able to communicate their needs more clearly to others.

Brann and Bute also noted that some women struggled with their mental health and found it difficult to distinguish postpartum depression and anxiety from COVID-19 depression and anxiety. This was observed more commonly in first-time moms who missed out on so many of the normal rituals associated with childbirth, such as family meeting the baby at the hospital or having newborn photos taken.

Listen to women in Brann and Bute's study discuss their experiences of giving birth during the pandemic.

Description of the video:

[Music plays]

[Woman wearing white and holding baby appears on screen]

[The words, Valerie Arambula, displayed at bottom of screen]

My name is Valerie, and I gave birth to Elliott during the COVID-19 pandemic.

[Valerie appears on screen without baby]

I assumed that because I had been tested for COVID and it came back negative that that was kind of the extent of the difference that I would have to do in terms of giving birth.

[Photo of pregnant woman in hospital bed wearing a mask appears on screen

But the nurse staff informed us off the get-go that

[Valerie reappears talking on screen]

we would have to wear masks while they were in the room with us.

[Newborn baby swaddled in blanket and surrounded by ring of facemasks appears on screen]

And when he came out, it was really emotional in the sense that,

[Valerie reappears talking on screen]

you know, you're wearing your mask. You kind of think in your mind like is he going to be okay with all these other people, which I know nursing stuff and everybody they're keeping you safe, they're keeping your baby safe, but of course it goes to your mind. My whole family was like when can we see him, you know. Can we see him through the window? Can we see him outside?

[Photo of face of newborn baby, sleeping, appears on screen with inset of faces at upper right]

It was so hard for my family to not want to,

[Valerie reappears talking on screen]

you know, do all the oh smell him and kiss him and all those things that you do with a brand new baby.

[Photo of man in red shirt and baseball hat holding newborn baby appears on screen]

It was really hard to just tell themselves that it was enough to just look at him.

[Female professor appears on screen, speaking.]

[The words, Maria Brann, professor of communication studies, appear at bottom of screen]

We were interested in looking at women who had find out about their experiences with the birth process, how they communicated with people in a time when women often feel like they're losing some of their support network because of the pandemic, this gave them opportunity to talk to other women and provide them that type of informational support and emotional support they needed and really validate their experience in knowing that they weren't the only ones who had to make difficult decisions, and that the decisions they made for their family, the choices that they made, were right for them and that was okay.

[A different female professor wearing glasses appears on screen, speaking]

[The words, Jennifer Bute, associate professor of communication studies, appears at bottom of screen]

One thing that we know is that the pandemic is ongoing in the United States and there will be additional women who are experiencing pregnancy and birth throughout this pandemic, so I think giving women some tools and resources to think about things like how to manage a sense of isolation that you might not have expected to be part of your birth experience or how to manage some of those uncomfortable conversations that you might be having with friends and family members who expect to come and visit you after the baby so just knowing what's coming I think can go a long way in helping people prepare.

[Woman appears on screen holding newborn baby wearing large pink bow on her head]

[The words Jessica Meyer appear at bottom of screen]

This is Zoey, and she was born during the global pandemic. March was when they were like really buckling down on things.

[Photo of man and pregnant woman standing on bridge and making the shape of a heart with their fingers appears on screen]

I had been going to the doctor's office,

[Photo of a man wearing a mask and holding an ultrasound photo in gloved hands appears on screen]

and I was able to have him with me. And then

[Jessica Meyer reappears on screen, talking, holding baby]

it was like the pandemic hit, and then all of a sudden I wasn't allowed to have him with me at all.

[Photo of man and woman wearing masks and newborn baby in a bassinet wearing breathing tubes appears on screen]

With her being premie, her breathing was a little bit

[Jessica Meyer reappears on screen, talking, holding baby]

shallow and fast so they rushed her actually right away to the NICU.

[Photo of woman and man wearing masks and holding newborn baby appears on screen. Man touches the pinky of the baby with his pinky]

We weren't able to, nobody was allowed. It was just me and him.

[Jessica Meyer reappears on screen, talking, holding baby]

We had this brand new baby and we couldn't share, you know, with anybody at all because, you know, COVID.

[Photo of Jessica smiling over bassinet with newborn baby appears on screen]

There we had to wear masks. You couldn't even have your phone inside the NICU at all.

[Photo of 3 month old wearing green pajamas appears on screen]

Now she's three months old. They don't know

[Jessica reappears on screen, talking]

what the virus would do with a baby. It's different. It's very different than what I imagined it would be.

[Black and white photo of sleeping baby on a rug wearing white knitted cap and diaper cover appears on screen]

After, I think, has been harder. Whatever she

[Jessica reappears on screen, talking]

is exposed to is from me. I'm her advocate so whatever she's doing, or if she, you know, gets infection, or she gets the virus, that's because of me allowing a person or allowing her to be exposed to that. Now it's not just I have to worry about the virus for myself, now it's I have to worry about the virus for her and me. And so going back to work, I do get exposed to things. I go in, I change in the basement, I come upstairs, I take a shower, and then I deal with her. You have to be extra, extra careful.

[Maria Brann appears on screen, talking]

One piece of advice that we could give from our results is recognize that you're not alone. There are others who are experiencing this with you and there are people there to support you. You are your biggest advocate. Feel comfortable and confident in explaining what it is that you need whether that be to your healthcare provider, to your partner, to anyone in your support network. Trust your gut. Know your instincts are accurate and just go with what you think is most important for your health and the health of your child.

[Valerie appears on screen, talking]

It's important to understand that the wheel keeps turning despite a pandemic, despite every single thing in that, you know, whether it's your first baby, your tenth baby, your rainbow baby

[Newborn baby swaddled in blanket and surrounded by ring of facemasks appears on screen]

that every single perspective gives you this sense of

[Valerie reappears on screen, talking]

understanding. When I gave birth to Elliott, I had so much guilt that my husband wasn't with me.

[Photo of newborn in bassinet appears on screen. Sign behind baby’s head reads ELLIOT JACK ARAMBULA, MAY 8, 2020 3:20 PM 7 LBS 15OZ 19.25IN]

And in talking with those women and hearing all of those stories, I thought,

[Valerie reappears on screen, talking]

Why did I even for a second feel guilty about what you do to survive? As soon as the Zoom meeting was over, I immediately called my husband, and I said I cannot tell you how validated I feel hearing all of these other stories of women that had to make tough decisions

[Photo of pregnant woman in hospital bed wearing a mask appears on screen

just like me, and that I'm not so singular and alone in

[Valerie reappears on screen, talking]

making those decisions.

[Jessica Meyer appears on screen, talking]

For moms-to-be, enjoy that time that you do have and focus on the actual positive of this life that you brought into the world and that you are able to share

[Photo of woman and man wearing masks and holding newborn baby appears on screen. Man touches the pinky of the baby with his pinky]

it with that person that you brought it in with.

[Jessica reappears on screen, talking]

Now that I look back, me and my husband were able to have a super intimate time having this baby. There's nobody that would understand that experience that we went through together.

[Photo of man and woman wearing masks and newborn baby in a bassinet wearing breathing tubes appears on screen]

It's just an amazing experience in life to have, and it was nice

[Jessica reappears on screen, talking]

to be able to just enjoy it with him and you know, like we created this and this is what we did and we're okay.

[Jennifer Bute appears on screen, talking]

For friends and family members who know somebody who is currently pregnant or just recently gave birth, try to be patient and understanding as parents are making these very difficult decisions where they might feel like they're disappointing people or offending on things like visitations. Offer women some grace during this really, really difficult period and try to respect the decisions that they're making under really unprecedented circumstances.

[Screen fades to black; the IU trident and the words Indiana University, research.impact.iu.edu appear against black screen.]

[Words fade out; music ends]

Valerie Arambula gave birth to her son Elliott in May. She said her birth experience was very different from her two previous pregnancies. She was happy to share her perspective with the researchers and the other women in the group.

“I think it’s important to understand that the wheel keeps turning despite the pandemic, and whether it’s your first baby, your 10th baby, or your rainbow baby, every single perspective gives you a sense of understanding,” said Arambula, who attended the IU School of Liberal Arts at IUPUI. “As soon as the focus group was over, I felt so validated hearing these other stories of women who had to make tough decisions just like me.”

Brann and Bute hope their findings will be used to support pregnant women as we move forward through the pandemic, to understand their experiences during this time, and to help guide how giving birth is talked about today.

“We are committed to finding practical ways to support women giving birth during this time and to disseminate that information more broadly so that others will know how to be supportive in a different way, and we can help guide women’s expectations as they prepare to give birth,” Bute said. “As the pandemic continues to persist, we can help pregnant women and new moms manage their uncertainty by sharing the wisdom we’ve gained through this study.”

Ph.D. candidate Susanna Scott and Dr. Nicole Johnson are also members of the research team.

The project, “Understanding COVID-19 birth stories”, is one of 17 projects to receive funding as part of the OVCR COVID-19 Rapid Response Grant Program.

COVID-19 Birth Stories

COVID-19 birth stories shine light on best way to support women in the pandemic

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