relationship issues during pregnancy
Relationship Issues During Pregnancy
The following article brings forth the various relationship issues during pregnancy that couples experience, as well as ways to handle them appropriately to build a stronger relationship.
- Understanding: According to estimates, around 20% of pregnant women feel depressed, experience mood swings and irritability, and are constantly fatigued. Hormones play havoc with a woman's mind and body during pregnancy. A man might not be able to fully understand what his wife/girlfriend expects from him, and the woman on her part may often taunt that her husband/boyfriend does not do anything to help her situation. To the man, the woman's behavior might seem very strange. On the other hand, the woman feels that he is being insensitive towards her. This lack of understanding can cause lots of problems during pregnancy.
- Physical Intimacy: Relationship strain during pregnancy could be attributed to the unsatisfied sexual needs of the man and the woman. Usually what happens is that when a woman gains weight during pregnancy, she does not feel comfortable being intimate with her partner. Somehow, she starts to feel that she is not attractive enough. Also, other symptoms, such as tiredness, body pain, nausea, etc., may further alienate her from getting physically close with her partner. The man on his part, due to lack of knowledge, starts believing that if they have sex, it might hurt the unborn baby in some way. Due to these various reasons, the couple does not have sex and it further deteriorates the relationship.
- Communication: One of the worst changes in a relationship during pregnancy is when both the partners fail to convey their needs to one another. The woman might feel neglected by her husband/boyfriend, who on his part could be working round the clock to meet the added expenses which a pregnancy and a newborn bring. This can create a rift and communication gap between the couple, with the woman feeling angry that her husband/boyfriend is not caring enough and the man feeling overwhelmed, managing both work and his wife/girlfriend's hormonal outbursts.
- Finances: Issues may also arise due to finances, especially if it's only the man who is working. Pregnancy and taking care of a child costs a lot, so if the couple have not planned the finances in advance, it can trouble their relationship.
- Attention: It's not just the women who feel neglected, even fathers can experience the same things. When it comes to pregnancy, it's all about the woman, although technically it takes two to make a baby. So, if the husband/boyfriend is not directly involved during medical check-ups or social events like baby showers, he might find himself isolated from his wife/girlfriend and the unborn baby. This causes a lot of disconnect between them, leading to problems.