Coping with grief after involuntary pregnancy loss: perspectives of African American women.
OBJECTIVE
To present the coping strategies used by African American women following their miscarriages, ectopic pregnancies, fetal deaths, and still-births, which the authors have termed involuntary pregnancy losses or IPLs.


METHODS
Semistructured audiotaped interviews; grounded theory methods used to collect and analyze the data.


METHODS
Urban community-based sites in the Western United States.


METHODS
20 African American adult women who reported a history of involuntary pregnancy loss within 3 years of interview.


RESULTS
In this study, the women's responses to their IPL were grouped into four areas. They coped with personal reactions, reactions of others, memories of the baby, and subsequent pregnancies.


CONCLUSIONS
The women in this study used inner resources to develop self-help strategies to cope with reactions following IPL. Nurses are challenged to harness the influence of family, friends, religion, and cultural traditions to assist women in processing the cognitive, emotional, and social traumas associated with IPL. Educating women to recognize grief responses after IPL and to manage these responses effectively may prevent adverse outcomes to their physical and mental health. A culturally sensitive framework of clinical assessment and intervention for African American women experiencing IPL has been developed.
Van
Paulina
P
University of California, San Francisco, School of Nursing, Department of Family Health Care Nursing, 94143-0606, USA. pvan@itsa.ucsf.edu
Meleis
Afaf I
AI
D000022:Abortion, Spontaneous / Q000451:nursing / Q000523:psychology*; D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American / Q000523:psychology*; D000739:Anecdotes as Topic; D005260:Female; D005313:Fetal Death; D006117:Grief; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D015404:Nursing Methodology Research; D009769:Object Attachment; D011247:Pregnancy; D012944:Social Support; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013997:Time Factors; D014481:United States; D014505:Urban Population; D014930:Women / Q000523:psychology*