When to Worry About Worry During Pregnancy

Written By Amy Brown

When you’re pregnant, it’s hard not to worry. It’s widely known that worrying is normal during pregnancy, at least to some degree. I know I worried daily, but I also know some people who stayed calm throughout their pregnancy. Somehow.

Stress during pregnancy is…well…stressful. There’s so much conflicting information out there. One article will say, “Anxiety during pregnancy is normal,” but another will say, “Stress can harm a baby.” Sometimes, I even see articles that say a stressed pregnant mom can forever impact her child’s personality.

I wish you could see my face as I write this. Because if they say a stressed pregnant mom can impact her child’s stress and anxiety level, HOW IS THAT SUPPOSED TO MAKE YOU STRESS LESS? When I saw that, I was stressed about managing my stress. Completely counterproductive!

Today, we’ll explore what the normal level of worry during pregnancy is—and when that crosses into anxiety.

First, I do want to say pregnancy hormones be crazy, so if you are experiencing anxiety during pregnancy and need to chat with someone, there’s literally no shame in it. I wish I had talked to someone during my first pregnancy. Lord knows I needed it!

Is Worrying Normal During Pregnancy?

A resounding YES! Some degree of stress and anxiety is completely normal. [1] This is a huge event in life. It’s normal to wonder if it’s going well. Even if your worries turn into anxiety, it’s more common than prenatal depression [4].

Pregnancy Anxiety Symptoms

So, anxiety symptoms are common during pregnancy. Studies show “up to 54% of women” experience anxiety at some point in their pregnancies [2]. If you’re experiencing any of these symptoms, you’re not alone!

Ok-worrying during pregnancy is normal, but anxiety can cause issues…so, how the heck do you know when worry turns into anxiety? Here are a few symptoms to watch out for:

  • Your concerns are impacting your daily life and ability to function

You can also take this free assessment, which I created based on research and other scales being used but made more human-friendly. Disclaimer: It’s not a fancy, scientific scale, but it should give you a good idea of where you’re at.

The Scoop on Clinically Measuring Anxiety

Here’s where things get tricky, and it makes it hard to parse through information on pregnancy-related anxiety.

Currently, there are many different ways to measure pregnancy-related anxiety. And that’s a problem because we haven’t decided on one standard definition to measure anxiety [3].

So, really, there’s no good way to measure it definitively, which means it could be even more than 54% of women experiencing anxiety during pregnancy!

Effects of Anxiety or Stress on Pregnancy

There are negative impacts of anxiety on pregnancy. I didn’t want it to be true, but the research out there consistently backs this fact up. I guess this makes it even more important to manage anxiety during pregnancy.

Anxiety during pregnancy can cause:

  • Pre-term birth

  • Small birth size

Anxiety is a more powerful predictor of these than exposure to disasters [4]. I feel the need to reiterate that anxiety during pregnancy is not your fault. And there are other variables that can lead to pre-term birth and lower weight in babies.

Reflecting on this, though, I realize that my own experience backs this up a bit. With my first child, I had no idea that pregnancy-related anxiety was a thing. He did arrive early, but it didn’t end up causing any issues that required him to stay in the hospital (thank goodness). He was also in preemie clothes for a bit, so his weight was lower than average.

With my second child, my anxiety was managed much better using coping strategies and meds, so he was definitely larger and came later.

Interesting. Of course, that’s just a single case study (of myself), so if you’ve had any experiences, please share!

Tips to Stop Worrying During Pregnancy

You can do some things to help manage your stress during pregnancy. Keep in mind that it will not work immediately, and it will take some effort on your part!

Here are some self-help tips to manage the stress and anxiety that comes up during pregnancy:

  • Learn more about it.

  • It sounds SO cliche, but try meditating - it is proven to reduce anxiety!

    • Here’s a good one I enjoy.

    • I also love the app Calm.

    • Some people really like the app Headspace, but I haven’t tried that one.

  • Journaling. I know, I know, lame…but it seriously helps.

I want to reiterate that stress and worry are completely normal. Anxiety can be managed with some of the coping skills I listed out, and I will go over more in the course I create, but there’s always a chance you may need more help.

If You Need More Help

Sometimes, self-help isn’t enough. And that’s okay! The first step is to figure out you need more than what is out there that you can do alone.

Contacting and discussing with a professional can help. You have two professional options:

  • Going to Therapy: Attending therapy can help reduce pregnancy-related anxiety and other mood disorders related to pregnancy [1]

  • Getting Medicine: There is absolutely no shame in getting medicine for your anxiety during pregnancy. In fact, any potential side effects of medicine are better than keeping the anxiety during pregnancy. [1]

It can be harder to get a doctor to give you anti-anxiety medication when pregnant. I know I had to go to an internal medication specialist to talk through the options and discuss medications in more detail. But, if talk therapy and the resources you have aren’t helping, it’s essential to push for your rights as a patient. Mothers matter, too. And remember, you’re doing this for your baby and yourself.

References

[1] Amy Wenzel. (2011). Anxiety in childbearing women. American Psychological Association. 10.2307/j.ctv1chs12s

[2] Adhikari, K., Patten, S. B., Williamson, T., Patel, A. B., Premji, S., Tough, S., Letourneau, N., Giesbrecht, G., & Metcalfe, A. (2021). Assessment of anxiety during pregnancy: Are existing multiple anxiety scales suitable and comparable in measuring anxiety during pregnancy? Journal of Psychosomatic Obstetrics and Gynaecology, 42(2), 140–146. 10.1080/0167482X.2020.1725462

[3] Schetter, C. D., & Ponting, C. (2022). What is pregnancy- related anxiety? Pregnancy-Related Anxiety, 5–23. 10.4324/9781003014003-3

[4] Schetter, C. D., Julian, M., & Ponting, C. (2022). Pregnancy-related anxiety and birth outcomes. Pregnancy-Related Anxiety, , 61–73. 10.4324/9781003014003-7

Amy Brown
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