The influence of lifestyles to cope with stress over mental health in pregnant and postpartum women during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The COVID-19 pandemic affected daily life routines and lifestyles of pregnant and postpartum women and increased their stress and risk of suffering from mental health problems. The aim of this study was to analyse which sociodemographic variables, COVID-19 exposure variables and lifestyles to cope with stress variables predicted anxiety, depression, and PTSD symptoms in pregnant and postpartum women during the COVID-19 pandemic. A cross-sectional design was performed with a sample of 3356 Spanish women participating in the Riseup-PPD-COVID-19 study. These participants completed an online survey composed of measures of anxiety (GAD-7), depression (EPDS), and PTSD related to COVID-19 (Checklist DSM-5), as well as demographics, exposure to COVID-19, and lifestyles to cope with stress. Regarding results, 47.2% showed depression and a third reported anxiety, whereas moderate scores were observed in PTSD symptoms. The most commonly used strategies to cope with stress in the COVID-19 pandemic were talking with friends and family and increasing time with social networks. Better results in mental health were associated with coping strategies such as talking with family and friends or participating in family activities, physical activity, sleeping well at night, eating healthier, and increasing personal care. Furthermore, poor results in mental health were observed in those participants who increased time with screens, ate fast food, reported substance use, and talked more frequently with health professionals. More symptoms were also observed in younger women, primiparous women, and those who reported more exposure to COVID-19. The results underline the need to strengthen the mental health of pregnant and postpartum women. Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT04595123.

Psychometric Properties of the Online Version of the General Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7): A Longitudinal Study in Pregnant and Postpartum Spanish Women.

BACKGROUND: The use of online questionnaires to assess common mental disorders such as perinatal anxiety has spread due to the proliferation of Internet-based psychological interventions and research. This study analyses the validity and reliability of the online version of the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7) in a sample of pregnant and postpartum Spanish women. METHOD: A total of 3082 pregnant (n = 1260) and postpartum (n = 1822) women were recruited via the Internet and underwent three follow-up evaluations during a six-month period. RESULTS: A one-factor solution was assigned by Exploratory Factor Analysis and confirmed by Confirmatory Factor Analysis for both pregnant (CFI = 0.998; RMSEA = 0.035) and postpartum (CFI = 0.998; RMSEA = 0.038) women. The one-factor model showed strict invariance across groups. Validity was confirmed by assessing correlations between GAD-7, the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale, and the 10-item Posttraumatic Stress Disorder checklist at three time points. The reliability coefficient was .92 for the two groups. CONCLUSIONS: This study shows that the Spanish online GAD-7 version has good psychometric properties and can be used to assess anxiety symptoms during the perinatal period.

Sending of Unwanted Dick Pics as a Modality of Sexual Cyber-Violence: An Exploratory Study of Its Emotional Impact and Reactions in Women.

The sending of sexually explicit images by men to women without prior request, a practice commonly referred to as sending or receiving a "dick pic," is a fairly common manifestation of sexual cyber-violence that has grown in recent times. As research on this type of sexual cyber-violence is limited, the current study analyzed the prevalence of this phenomenon in a sample of 347 Spanish women between 18 and 30 years of age, studying the factors that influence the emotional impact reported by women if they received an unsolicited dick pic (using a hypothetical scenario) and exploring the various coping strategies that women would use in that situation. Results showed a significant prevalence of this type of cyber-violence in the sample, as 48.1% of the participants had received an unsolicited dick pic from an unknown man at some point. Women with lower levels of hostile sexism-but not of benevolent sexism-reported a higher depressed and angry/annoyed emotional impact of the sexual cyber-violence scenario. This was also the case for women with a less conservative political ideology, with less religious beliefs, as well as those women who perceived that their female friends receive this type of images frequently (descriptive norm) and who perceived that their female friends are less accepting of these situations (injunctive norm). In addition, from the strategies presented to the participants to cope with this situation of sexual cyber-violence, it was observed that a significant percentage of women would choose strategies, such as talking about the incident with other people and blocking the sender's access. Yet, fewer women would employ effective strategies, such as reporting the perpetrator's profile to the managers or administrators of the social network or reporting the incident to the police. This study is one of the first studies in Spain that addresses this new form of sexual cyber-violence against women by unknown men and suggests that, in online social networks, women experience the same situations of abuse, harassment, and sexual objectification that they have faced offline in everyday life. Therefore, more work needs to be done to raise awareness and try to prevent these situations, while also providing more support to these women so that they can adopt effective coping strategies.

Factors Associated with Post-Traumatic Stress Symptoms in Pregnant and Postpartum Women.

Background: Evidence of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms related to the COVID-19 pandemic during the perinatal period and the associated risk factors are still limited. Thus, we aimed to investigate the PTSD symptoms associated with the COVID-19 pandemic in a large sample of both pregnant and postpartum women. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on 3319 pregnant and up to 6-month postpartum women from Spain. An online survey was completed between June 2020 and January 2021. The assessment included measures of PTSD symptoms associated with COVID-19 (evaluated with 10 questions from the PTSD checklist for Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition), pandemic-related concerns and health background (assessed by the Coronavirus Perinatal Experiences-Impact Survey), and demographic characteristics. Results: We found that >40% of women suffered from symptoms of PTSD associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. Difficulty concentrating and irritability were the most common symptoms, showing marked alterations in arousal and reactivity associated with the traumatic event. Being younger, suffering from pandemic concerns and distress, changes due to the pandemic and previous mental health problems were risk factors associated with PTSD symptoms in perinatal women. In addition, whereas being an immigrant (non-Spanish) was a risk factor for pregnant women, having other children and financial problems were risk factors for postpartum women. COVID-19 infection did not appear to be a risk factor for symptoms of PTSD in perinatal women. Conclusions: The increased risk of PTSD in pregnant and postpartum women highlights the importance of early detection and treatment of PTSD for pregnant and postnatal women, both during and beyond the pandemic. Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier (NCT04595123).

Anxiety and intimate relationships in times of lockdown due to COVID-19.

OBJECTIVE: The virulence of COVID-19 has been particularly problematic in countries such as Spain. This led the government to decide that the population should be locked down at home to reduce the spread of the disease and avoid the collapse of the health system. Considering this, this study analyzed the changes in intimate relationships that occurred during lockdown in terms of dyadic adjustment, conflict, and quality of the relationship, as well as their relationship with anxiety symptoms. METHOD: Cross-sectional questionnaire-based study with adults (N = 342) aged 20-67 years who lived in Spain. Each participant completed self-report measures of anxiety (State-Trait Anxiety Inventory state and trait subscales), dyadic adjustment (Dyadic Adjustment Scale), relationship conflict and quality, and sociodemographic variables. RESULTS: The results showed significant levels of state anxiety, which was associated with poorer dyadic adjustment and a decrease in the perceived quality of relationships since the start of lockdown. Increased partner conflict seems to be an important predictor of dyadic adjustment and relationship quality during social isolation. CONCLUSIONS: This study suggests that the COVID-19 pandemic has negatively affected the mental health of the population, especially women. This finding is closely associated with difficulties with one's cohabiting partner (e.g., worse dyadic adjustment), but the most determining factor seems to be the previous state of the relationship. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Effect of the Lockdown Due to COVID-19 on Sexuality: The Mediating Role of Sexual Practices and Arousal in the Relationship Between Gender and Sexual Self-Esteem.

The scientific evidence suggests that COVID-19 is affecting much more than the physical health of individuals, particularly in places where a lockdown has been established to slow down the spread of the virus. An area that may be particularly affected is human sexuality. This study explored the impact of the situation generated by COVID-19 on the sexuality of 201 adults living in Spain. We collected data cross-sectionally through an online survey during the month of April 2020. Results showed a reduction of sexual self-esteem and a decrease in the number of interpersonal sexual relations, although the frequency of masturbation and the consumption of pornography did not vary compared to previous levels. A regression analysis showed that masturbation, the ability to maintain sexual arousal and interpersonal sex were mediating variables in the relationship between gender - specifically being male - and having higher sexual self-esteem during the lockdown. This study provides new insight on the relevance of certain sexual behaviors in a pandemic situation with considerable social restrictions and on the effect of this situation on sexual self-esteem and arousal. It brings some clarity on the relationship between sexual self-esteem and gender, about which there is currently no consensus in the scientific literature.

The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Perinatal Depression and Anxiety: A Large Cross-sectional Study in Spain.

BACKGROUND: The current COVID-19 pandemic is a unique stressor with potentially negative consequences for pregnant and postpartum women. We investigated the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on perinatal depression and anxiety in Spain. METHOD: This cross-sectional study was conducted from June to December 2020. A total of 3,356 adult pregnant and postpartum women (with infants up to 6 months of age) from all Spanish regions were surveyed. The assessment included measures of Coronavirus Perinatal Experiences (COPE-IS questionnaire) and Generalized Anxiety Disorder Screener (GAD-7=10) and Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS=10). RESULTS: The prevalence of perinatal anxiety and depression (above established cut-offs) was 33.3% and 47.2%, respectively; 29.2% of women screened positive for both conditions. Higher rates of perinatal depression and anxiety were associated with increased concern about threats of COVID-19, especially employment and the financial impact, along with increased overall levels of distress. Exposure to COVID-19 and its symptoms did not appear to be a relevant risk factor. More COVID-19-related predictors and a higher rate of depression were found in postpartum women. CONCLUSIONS: The current study highlights the substantial increase in symptoms of perinatal depression and anxiety, especially in postpartum women. Interventions for perinatal mental health should be a priority.

Psychometric Properties of the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES-9) in a Sample of Active Health Care Professionals in Spain.

Purpose: The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the working, personal and health conditions of health professionals has been highlighted, although it is necessary to verify whether certain instruments used in research on this topic have sufficient psychometric support for their use. This need was the main motivation for undertaking the present study. We aimed to analyse the psychometric properties of the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES-9) in a sample of active health care workers during the pandemic. Patients and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted from March to August 2020 with 2326 active health care workers (78.7% women). The instruments that were applied included the UWES-9 scale, the Sense of Coherence scale (SOC-13), the Goldberg General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12) and an item on self-perceived health. Results: The three-factor structure related to the correlation of pairs of errors presented the best fit. The reliability of the UWES-9 was highlighted by the adequate internal consistency of the items, the existence of invariance according to gender, and its convergent and discriminant validity. Conclusion: The findings of this work support the use of the UWES-9 to assess the work engagement of health personnel during the COVID-19 pandemic and identify it as an adequate measure of this psychological variable and the constructs that comprise it.

Women, negative work-home interaction and stress: Impact of the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic on spanish general and healthcare workers.

The COVID-19 pandemic has come to stay, at least for a while. The initial bewilderment and restrictive measures have given way to the population's mental decay and increased stress on workers facing work and family demands in a difficult-to-manage situation. For this reason, this descriptive cross-sectional study sought to analyze stress levels in a sample of 263 general and healthcare workers (from 24 to 67 years of age) and their relationship with negative work-home interaction (WHI) and with gender in the second wave of contagions and deaths caused by the COVID-19 pandemic in Spain (October-December 2020). The results showed that having a higher level of WHI, the presence of work overload, health concerns, economic concerns, and lower-income were predictors of stress among these workers. Age and health-related occupations were contributing factors to work overload and health-related concerns. In addition, the relationship between being a woman and suffering from higher stress levels was mediated by income level, economic concern, and the WHI. Other variables such as having children or dependents, marital status, concern for the health of others, and teleworking were not associated with the stress levels detected in the sample. This research pays attention to the health state of workers beyond the initial stage of the pandemic, where most studies on this issue have concentrated. Thus, this study provides evidence of the uneven impact this crisis has on women and men, contributing to clarifying the relationship between gender, the WHI, and stress.

Development and criterion validity of the COVID-19 anxiety and fear assessment scale: a cross sectional study.

BACKGROUND: The emergence of the new severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, which causes COVID-19 disease, has been a major public health challenge and an increase in the feeling of uncertainty of the population, who is also experiencing an increase in levels of anxiety and fear regarding the COVID-19 disease. OBJECTIVE: The objective of the study was the construct and criterion validation of the Escala de evaluación de la Ansiedad y MIedo a COVID-19 (AMICO, for its acronym in Spanish) to measure both constructs in the general Spanish population. METHODS: Descriptive study of psychometric validation. A field study was carried out to execute univariate and bivariate analyses, in addition to the exploratory and confirmatory factorial analysis of the scale. For the criteria validity study, the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) and sensitivity and specificity values were calculated. RESULTS: The study sample was composed of 1036 subjects over 18 years of age, who resided in Spain, where 56.3% were women with a mean age of 48.11 years (SD = 15.13). The study of construct validity reported two factors and 16 items, with a Cronbach's alpha value of 0.92. The scale was concurrently valid with the used gold standard and obtained sensitivity values of 90.48% and specificity values of 76%. CONCLUSIONS: The AMICO scale is valid and reliable for assessing the level of anxiety and fear of COVID-19 in the adult Spanish population and is highly sensitive.

Work Engagement in Nurses during the Covid-19 Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Study.

In some areas of Spain, health services and professionals working in the front line against the Sars-Cov-2 virus have been widely overwhelmed at all levels. Therefore, the objective of this study was to assess the level of work engagement of Spanish nurses during the COVID-19 pandemic. A cross-sectional study was carried out. The sample consisted of 510 active nurses from all over Spain, without age exclusion, who voluntarily accepted to participate in the study. Work engagement was assessed with the 9-item Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES) questionnaire, through an online questionnaire and non-probabilistic snowball sampling. The results showed a mean age of 45.9 years (SD = 10.7 years), most of them women (78.1%), and 58.5% were in primary care. The mean score for the UWES-9 questionnaire was 4.6 points (SD = 1.35). The categorical regression analysis performed revealed an R2 value of 0.75 and a significance of p < 0.01 in the sex, type of unit, and training variables. The Spanish nurses in the sample present high levels of work engagement in all dimensions in general, although the lowest mean scores are found in the vigor dimension, among men, and nurses working in hospital and critical units.

Psychological distress during the COVID-19 pandemic in the population of Argentina.

ABSTRACT: In addition to the implications that this pandemic has had on physical health, there are other circumstances that threaten the mental health of the population, such as lockdown measures to prevent the spread of the virus, uncertainty, and the increase in infections and deaths. For this reason, this study explored indicators of psychological distress in the Argentine population, as well as its relationship with sociodemographic and health variables.Cross-sectional observational study, with data collection from May to August 2020. A total of 1112 people over the age of 18 who responded to various measurement instruments through an online questionnaire participated. A bivariate analysis and logistic regression were carried out in order to determine predictive factors of psychological distress.The data revealed that 60.9% of the sample presented psychological distress. A greater number with this condition was observed in women, apart from younger people, with a greater number of symptoms associated with the disease and with worse self-perceived health. There was no evidence of association between psychological distress and contact with people infected with coronavirus disease 2019 or with material suspicious of being infected.This research provided an overview of the mental health status of a significant population sample in Argentina, months after the onset of the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic. These findings complement those found in other national and international studies, allowing the accumulation of evidence that states the need to demand to draw attention to the mental health of the population, especially the most vulnerable groups, on behalf of the public authorities.

Gender perspective of psychological discomfort during COVID-19 confinement among Spanish adult population: a cross-sectional study.

OBJECTIVE: COVID-19 disease has affected more than a hundred countries worldwide and has exposed the population to an increase in mental health problems. The objective of this study was to assess the emotional impact of the pandemic from a gender perspective, as well as to study the modulating variables of that impact. DESIGN: A descriptive and cross-sectional study through the General Health Questionnaire scale and the Sense of Coherence (SOC) scale is developed. SETTING: General population of Spain was the target of this study PARTICIPANTS: The sample consisted of 3801 adult subjects living in Spain, without diagnosis for Sars-Cov-2 virus infection during confinement. INTERVENTION: Data collection was carried out using an online questionnaire, from 26 March 2020 to 26 April 2020. PRIMARY AND SECONDARY OUTCOMES MEASURES: A sample profile description was obtained, regarding to the study variables. Later, a regression model was implemented in order to test the relationship between these variables, and to achieve a predictive model of psychological discomfort controlling the gender variable. RESULTS: The results showed that women, as compared with men, had increased psychological discomfort during confinement (t=-12.877; p<0.001; d=0.470). In contrast, significantly higher scores were observed on the SOC scale (t=6.336; p<0.001; d=0.231) in men, as compared with those obtained by women. CONCLUSIONS: Women have higher levels of psychological discomfort, increased concern about getting infected with COVID-19 and infecting others, as well as a lower level of SOC and perceived health. In addition, low levels of SOC predict greater concern about contagion and increased psychological discomfort.