Background: Although giving birth is a positive experience for many, some 10% of pregnant Swedish women suffer from severe fear of childbirth (FOC), which impairs their daily functioning and poses a risk for a negative delivery experience. This thesis focuses on the mental and health-economic effects of severe FOC, and explores new treatment options for childbirth-related anxiety. Aims: (i) to investigate the prevalence of and variables associated with severe FOC, (ii) to estimate the cost of illness of severe FOC and (iii) to explore whether Internetbased cognitive behaviour therapy (ICBT) is feasible for treating pregnant women with severe FOC and those with childbirth-related symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Design and Results: Study 1: In a cross-sectional study 1635 pregnant women were asked about their FOC via the Wijma Delivery Expectancy/Experience Questionnaire (W-DEQ), and provided socio-demographic data and information of their preferred mode of delivery. It was found that 15.6% of the participants had a severe FOC, which also strongly correlated with the preference of a caesarean section. Study 2: In a prospective case-control cohort study we mapped all visits, in-patient care, sick leave and delivery variables from medical records and estimated the societal costs in two groups of women; one group with severe FOC and one with low FOC. The costs for the group with severe FOC were 38% higher than for the low FOC group. Study 3: Twenty-eight nulliparous women with severe FOC were self-recruited to an eight weeks ICBT program for severe FOC. Fifteen women followed the entire program. Their FOC decreased significantly after treatment (Cohen’s d=0.95, p<0.0001), which means that ICBT is feasible and an option for treating women with severe FOC. Study 4: Fifteen participants in Study 3 wrote narratives of the imminent delivery before as well as after therapy. After treatment, the women had a more realistic attitude towards childbirth, more self-confidence and more active coping strategies. Partners and staff were perceived as more helpful, and the women were more aware of the child they were bearing. Study 5: Fifty-six women with a traumatic delivery experience were included in a randomized wait-list controlled study (RCT) of the effects of an eight week long ICBT program for childbirth-related PTSD symptoms. These symptoms decreased in both groups during active therapy, while the between-group effect size varied depending on measurements. Psychiatric comorbidity decreased in both groups after active treatment. Conclusion: Severe FOC is prevalent among Swedish pregnant women, and the cost of illness of this marker of peripartum psychological vulnerability is considerable when treated using standard care. A new treatment option for this group with ICBT seems feasible and is associated with more realistic attitudes towards the imminent delivery. An RCT with eight weeks of ICBT for parous women with PTSD symptoms also had promising results. As severe FOC is prevalent and associated with mental and economic burdens for the individual and the society, there is an urgent need to expand the research field. It is important to find feasible and effective treatments that can be applied on a large scale. / Denna avhandling undersöker (i) hur vanligt det är att svenska gravida kvinnor lider av rädsla för förlossningen, och (ii) hur detta påverkar kvinnornas sjukvårdskonsumtion under denna period samt vilka kostnader detta innebär för samhället; testar och utvärderar (iii) nya behandlingsmetoder för rädsla för förlossningen och för posttraumatiska stressymptom efter en traumatisk förlossning. Avhandlingen består av fem delstudier: Studie 1 var en studie bland 1635 gravida kvinnor och visade att mer än var tionde gravid kvinna har svår förlossningsrädsla. Denna hade samband med kvinnornas önskemål om planerat snitt som förlossningssätt, och hos omföderskor, med tidigare negativa upplevelser av förlossningen. Studie 2 jämförde sjukvårdskonsumtion och sjukskrivning under graviditet och den första tiden efter förlossningen hos förstföderskor med svår respektive lindrig förlossningsrädsla, vilka omhändertagits i den ordinarie förlossningsvården. Gruppen med svår förlossningsrädsla visade sig ha avsevärt högre kostnader orsakade av att de i genomsnitt hade högre sjukskrivningstal under graviditet och fler besök på grund av psykiska besvär, samt oftare förlöstes med kejsarsnitt och hade komplicerade förlossningar. I Studie 3 testade 28 förstföderskor med svår förlossningsrädsla en ny behandlingsmetod med kognitiv beteendeterapi (KBT) via internet. Behandlingen medförde att kvinnornas rädsla kraftigt minskade från företill efter behandling. I Studie 4 skickade 15 av kvinnorna i Studie 3 in berättelser via nätet om hur de föreställde sig att deras förlossning skulle bli, såväl innan terapin startade som när den var avslutad. Efter genomförd terapi hade kvinnorna en mer realistisk attityd till förlossningen än före terapin och visade tecken på att ha ett bättre självförtroende och mer aktiva strategier att hantera den kommande förlossningen. Studie 5 utforskade om kvinnor, som upplevt en traumatisk förlossning, kan bli hjälpta av behandling med KBT via internet. Traumatiserade kvinnor slumpades till att antingen få behandling direkt eller få behandlingen efter en väntetid (kontrollgruppen). I båda grupperna minskade kvinnornas posttraumatiska stressymtom, liksom förekomsten av depression och andra ångestproblem. Sammanfattning: Avhandlingen visar att svår förlossningsrädsla är vanligt förekommande och medför lidande för kvinnor och ökade kostnader för samhället i samband med graviditet och förlossning, när detta problem hanteras i den vanliga vården. Två internetbaserade studier testar kognitiv beteendeterapi som behandling för svår förlossningsrädsla och för problem efter en traumatisk förlossning och visar att dessa behandlingsformer tycks fungera väl och i framtiden skulle kunna utgöra ett alternativ som medför att vård görs tillgänglig också för kvinnor som inte har tillgång till kvalificerade hjälpinsatser på andra sätt. Svår förlossningsrädsla och ångestproblem efter en traumatisk förlossning föreligger ofta tillsammans med annan psykisk sjuklighet varför diagnostik och behandling behöver utföras av personer med tillräcklig kompetens för dessa uppgifter. Otillräckligt behandlad/icke behandlad svår förlossningsrädsla ökar riskerna för att kvinnan upplever en kommande förlossning som traumatisk. Avhandlingens slutsatser behöver undersökas i fler och större studier, och, avseende behandlingsstudierna, i undersökningar som har tillräckligt stora kontrollgrupper. Om sådana studier bekräftar dessa preliminära fynd, blir frågan om screening för svår förlossningsrädsla aktuell eftersom det då finns såväl bra screeninginstrument som behandling som skulle kunna göras tillgänglig för stora grupper. Kommer samhället i denna situation att ha råd att inte försöka förebygga individuellt lidande och stora merkostnader för kvinnor med svår förlossningsrädsla? / Tämän tutkimuksen tavoitteena on tutkia (i) kuinka yleinen synnytyspelko on ruotsalaisten raskaana olevien naisten keskuudessa ja (ii) kuinka se vaikuttaa heidän terveyden‐ ja sairaanhoitopalveluiden kulutukseen raskauden aikana ja sen jälkeen, sekä selvittää miten synnytyspelko vaikuttaa yhteiskunnan kustannuksiin; kehittää, testata ja arvioida (iii) uusia hoitomuotoja synnytyspelon sekä synnytyksestä johtuvien psykologisen trau man (posttraumaattinen stressi, PTSD) hoitoon.' Tämä väitöskirja koostuu viidestä osatyöstä: 1. Ensimmäinen osatyö tutki synnystyspelon yleisyyttä 1635 raskaana olevan naisen keskuudessa. Tutkimus osoitti että joka seitsemäs raskaana oleva nainen Ruotsissa kärsii vakavasta synnytyspelosta. Keisarinleikkaus toiveen takana on usein vakava synnystyspelko. Uudelleen synnyttäjillä synnytyspelkoon vaikuttaa myös aiempi traumaattinen synnytyskokemus. 2. Toisessa osatyössa verrattiin ensisynnyttäjien terveyden- ja sairaanhoitokustannuksia sekä sairaslomapäiviä raskauden aikana, synnyksen yhteydessä sekä sitä seuraavan kolmen ensimmäisen kuukauden aikana. Vertailuryhmät seurasivat tavallista äitiysneuvolaohjelmaa, ryhmistä toisella oli vakava ja toisella lievä synnytyspelko. Vakavasta synnytyspelosta kärsivien naisten terveyden ja sairaanhoitopalvelujen käyttö osoittautui huomattavasti korkeammaksi kuin vertailuryhmässä. 3. Kolmannessa osatyössa 28 vakavasta synnytyspelosta kärsivää ensisynnyttäjää, testasi uutta ratkaisukeskeiseen terapiaan (KBT) pohjautuvaa Internetin kautta ohjattua psykologista hoito-ohjelmaa. Hoito lievensi huomattavasti osallistujien synnytyspelkoa. 4. Neljännessä osatyössä 15 naista (edellisestä osatyöstä 3) kirjoittivat osana terapiaansa kertomuksen tulevan synnytyksensä odotuksista. Sama tehtävä kertautui ennen terapian alkua sekä sen jälkeen. Kertomusten yhtäläiset teemat tunnistettiin minkä jälkeen ennen ja jälkeen hoitoohjelmaa kirjoitettujen kertomusten teemoja vertailtiin. Hoidon jälkeen naisten odotukset pohjautuivat suuremmassa määrin tietoon, he kuvailivat itsensä varmemmiksi sekä paremmin  valmistautuneiksi tulevaa synnytystä ajatellen. 5. Viides osatyö tutki Internetin kautta ohjatun ratkaisukeskeisen terapian (KBT) vaikutusta naisiin jotka kärsivät synnytyksen jälkeisestä henkisestä traumasta. Naiset satunnaistettiin tutkimuksessa joko välittömän hoidon ryhmään tai odotuslista ryhmään, joka sai saman hoidon myöhemmin. Hoidon jälkeen PTSD oireet vähenivät sekä hoitoettä kontrolliryhmässä. Myös masentuneisuus ja ahdistusoireet väheniväthoidon myötä. Yhteenvetona voidaan oheisista tutkimuksista todeta että synnytyspelko on yleinen ruotsalaisten raskaana olevien naisten keskuudessa. Synnytyspelko aiheuttaa kärsimystä sekä raskaana olevalle naiselle mutta myös lisäkustannuksia yhteiskunnalle. Kahdessa Internetin kautta ohjatussa ratkaisukeskeisessä hoito-ohjelmassa testattiin uusia hoitomuotoja raskaana oleville ensisynnyttäjille sekä synnytyksen jälkeisistä traumaoireista kärsiville naisille. Tulokset osoittavat, että Internetin kautta ohjattu hoito toimii näissä ryhmissä hyvin ja saattaisi tulevaisuudessa olla vaihtoehto kohderyhmille, joille sopivaa terapeuttista hoitoa nykytilanteessa ei voida tarjota. Koska vaikea synnytyspelko ja synnytystä seuraavat PTSD oireet esiintyvät usein muiden mielialahäiriöiden rinnalla, on tärkeää, että näitä naisia hoitavalla henkilökunnalla on tarpeellinen pätevyys hoitaa myös mielenterveysongelmia. Hoitamatta jätetty tai puutteelisesti hoidettu synnytyspelko lisää raskaana olevan naisen riskiä kokea synnytyksensä traumaattisena. Tulevissa tutkimuksissa tämän tutkimusprojektin tulokset ja johtopäätökset on syytä toistaa useammissa ja ennen kaikkea suuremmissa ryhmissä. Jos tutkimustemme alustaville tuloksille löytyy tukea, nousee kysymys synnystyspelon seulonnasta äitiysneuvoloissa ajankohtaiseksi; sekä seulontamenetelmä että tehokas hoitotapa ovat olemassa ja voitaisiin tarjota suuremmille kohderyhmille. Onko yhteiskunnalla sellaisessa tilanteessa varaa olla ennaltaehkäisemättä synnystyspelkoisten naisten kärsimystä?

O nascimento é um evento natural que através dos tempos sofreu diversas modificações, levando o parto, que até então era privado, íntimo e feminino, a ser vivido de maneira pública e institucional. Atualmente vivencia-se a desmedicalização do parto e um aumento na procura das gestantes pela opção de parir em casa. No domicílio toda ação é desenvolvida em função das necessidades da mulher, e este modelo, não se resume apenas no parto domiciliar planejado, mas também na assistência pré-natal e puerperal. O puerpério é um período de adaptação física e emocional, a assistência puerperal deve garantir um olhar voltado já às primeiras alterações após o parto, devendo ser iniciado e executado um plano de cuidado. Tem-se como objetivo geral compreender o cuidado prestado pela enfermeira obstetra e/ou obstetriz no período puerperal de um parto domiciliar planejado. Trata-se de uma pesquisa qualitativa, que contou com a participação de doze parteiras que assistem partos domiciliares em algumas regiões do estado de São Paulo. Os dados foram coletados por meio de uma entrevista semi-estruturada, com a seguinte questão norteadora: \"Me fale sobre a assistência que você presta no período puerperal de um parto domiciliar\". Os dados coletados foram transcritos na íntegra e, posteriormente, analisados, utilizando o método de Interpretação dos Sentidos. Da análise emergiram três categorias: \"Motivações e valores que levaram as parteiras de volta para o domicílio\", \"O parto em casa tem que ser planejado\" e \"O cuidado puerperal de um parto domiciliar planejado\", diversos cuidados foram descritos na assistência domiciliar prestada para a mulher e para o recém-nascido. A síntese apresentada infere que a assistência puerperal domiciliar prestada pelas parteiras é individualizada, entretanto, se faz necessário, uma melhora na qualidade da abordagem emocional e pessoal da puérpera. Os resultados evidenciaram que as parteiras enfatizam mais os cuidados biomédicos do que os emocionais e humanísticos, dessa maneira é fundamental apontar que essa assistência deve ser ampliada para uma abordagem integral e individualizada / Childbirth is a natural event that has suffered several changes over time, and what was once experienced in a private, intimate, and feminine world, became public and institutional. Currently, there has been a demedicalization of childbirth, and an increase in the search by pregnant women to give birth at home. In the household, every action is developed considering the woman\'s needs, and this model is not only applied to the planned home birth, but also to prenatal and postpartum care. Postpartum is a period of physical and emotional adaptation, and postpartum care must ensure attention is given to the first changes after birth, when a care plan must be started and executed. The main objective of this study was to understand the care provided by nurse midwives in the postpartum period following a planned home birth. A qualitative study was developed with twelve nurse midwives who assist planned home births in different regions in the state of São Paulo. Data were collected by means of a semi-structured interview with the following guiding question: \"Tell me about the care you provide in the postpartum period following a planned home birth\". The collected data were fully transcribed and later analyzed using the Interpretation of Meanings method. Analysis resulted in three categories: \"Motivations and values that led the nurse midwives back to the household setting\", \"Home childbirth must be planned\", and \"Postpartum care for a planned home birth\", and different care measures were described in the home care provided to women and newborns. The synthesis presented suggests that the postpartum home care provided by nurse midwives is individualized, however the quality of the postpartum women\'s personal and emotional approach must be improved. The results evidenced that the nurse midwives emphasize biomedical care rather than an emotional and humanizing assistance, thus it is fundamental to point out that this care must be broadened to a comprehensive and individualized approach

Women prepare for childbirth in a variety ways. These preparations include visits to healthcare providers, seeking information from family, friends, and the media, and attendance at childbirth classes. Documentation of birth preparation comes primarily from studies of middle class white women. Few researchers have identified or included middle class black women in their samples. Instead, research with black women often highlights pregnancy problems in low income populations. Also unexamined, except tangentially, is how the social context impacts childbirth for black women. Therefore, nursing practice knowledge lacks an understanding of the processes black women use to prepare for birthing within their social context. The aim of this qualitative study was to identify a theory that described the processes used by urban black women to prepare for childbirth. Also explored was the social context within which these processes occurred. Women in the last four months of pregnancy were recruited through churches, hair salons, newspapers, radio and internet web sites. Data were collected from five focus groups and two individual interviews (n=22). More than half the women reported income adequate for daily needs, were partnered or married, were employed, had at least a high school education and were younger than 23 years. Data analysis followed the grounded theory methods advocated by Strauss and Corbin (1998). The theory describing the processes used by the participants was weighing the impact on me. These women actively engaged in determining the best course of action for themselves. They weighed and considered advice from others, what relationships were crucial, what information was most important to them, and many other issues. Woven throughout were the importance of relationships and the social context in which the women lived. The processes used for birth preparation were divided into four, discovering pregnancy, managing pregnancy, preparing for delivery, and experiencing personal change. These processes were not sequential but represented the dynamic and constant need to assess and decide the best choices in preparing for childbirth. Building on this theory, future research should identify ways in which black women can more readily access the quality healthcare and services they so desire. / text

This dissertation is an historical examination of the crimes of infanticide and the concealment of birth in Natal between 1860 and 1935, where more than thirty such cases were tried before the Supreme, Magistrate, and District Circuit Courts. This study does not look at the crime of infanticide and concealment of birth in isolation, however, but also considers the crime in relation to cases of „child murder,‟ still-births, and abortion, since the term infanticide itself was highly contested and only fully defined in legal terms in South Africa by 1910. Some of the key themes this study covers include the ways in which legislation changed over time (for instance, the concept of “concealment of birth” altered to “infanticide” and the naming of the potential perpetrator from “woman” to “person.”); the problems posed for medical jurisprudence in trying to prove a separate existence of an infant from its mother; and whether a „live birth‟ had occurred before a charge could be proffered. In Natal, it is clear that legislation shaped interpretation and practice, but practice and interpretation, across many social and institutional settings, also shaped legal definitions. Other arguments raised in this study relate to the “instability of the womb” and how puerperal insanity and emotional or psychological mental evidence began to outweigh the physical, bodily evidence in the courtroom. Furthermore, such issues as illegitimacy, baby-farming, infant life protection, mothercraft, miscegenation, incest, respectability, and local cultural practices are integral to understandings of the possible underlying motives for the acts of infanticide and concealment of birth. By tracing the meaning and incidences of infanticide and the concealment of birth across the social spectrum, this study offers insights into a range of issues in social, legal and medical history. These include: the study of the domain of the family; of labour and political economy; of medico-jurisprudence and clinical medicine; of changing gender power and hierarchies; and of gendered discourses of criminality / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2011.

Thesis (M.S.)--University of Michigan, 1994. / Spine title: CNM and MD outcomes for pain control in labor.

Thesis (M.S.)--University of Michigan, 1994. / Spine title: CNM and MD outcomes for pain control in labor.

Submitted by Ana Carolina Bittencourt Morais Negrão (morais_carol@yahoo.com.br) on 2017-12-19T15:32:23Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertação_14.12.2017_vf.pdf: 2266229 bytes, checksum: dee1387dc5d019d1ae580ed223f521e1 (MD5) / Rejected by Mayara Costa de Sousa (mayara.sousa@fgv.br), reason: Prezadas, boa noite Alguns itens a serem ajustados no trabalho: 1. Não é necessário o texto MESTRADO EM GESTÃO E POLÍTICAS PÚBLICAS na capa 2. As palavras-chave devem estar separadas por ponto e virgula Att, Mayara SRA - 3799-3438 on 2017-12-21T22:24:58Z (GMT) / Submitted by Ana Carolina Bittencourt Morais Negrão (morais_carol@yahoo.com.br) on 2017-12-22T17:53:40Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertação_22.12.2017_vf.pdf: 2574705 bytes, checksum: bdd48212380a62b7365d6a143c072aaa (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Vera Lúcia Mourão (vera.mourao@fgv.br) on 2017-12-28T13:43:30Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertação_22.12.2017_vf.pdf: 2574705 bytes, checksum: bdd48212380a62b7365d6a143c072aaa (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-12-28T16:28:13Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertação_22.12.2017_vf.pdf: 2574705 bytes, checksum: bdd48212380a62b7365d6a143c072aaa (MD5) Previous issue date: 2017-11-29 / Nesse estudo, discutimos o modelo de assistência ao parto – o parto humanizado, analisando tanto fatores que possibilitam quanto os que dificultam sua implementação e como é promovido pelo Programa Rede Cegonha do governo federal. Nossa metodologia consiste em levantamento bibliográfico, análise documental de materiais relativos à humanização da assistência ao parto, do programa Rede Cegonha, do Guia de Assistência ao Parto Normal, publicado pela Organização Mundial da Saúde, e documentos públicos e privados relativos a tais temas; além de entrevistas qualitativas com acadêmicos e gestores no que diz respeito à assistência ao parto e à Rede Cegonha. No Brasil, se de um lado há condições que possibilitam o parto humanizado – movimento de mulheres, inserção de equipe multidisciplinar na assistência ao parto, mudança em estruturas físicas de maternidades, observância das recomendações da Organização Mundial de Saúde quanto à assistência ao parto normal e gestores comprometidos com o modelo, de outro, existem fatores que o dificultam, como o modelo de atenção intervencionista, medicalizado e médico-centrado. Os resultados de nossa pesquisa sugerem que, embora passível de críticas, a Rede Cegonha se mostra como um facilitador na adoção do parto humanizado – um modelo ainda em construção e que exige amplo debate. / In this study we discussed the childbirth assistance model – the humanized childbirth, analyzing both factors that make possible and those that hinder its implementation and how it is promoted by the 'Rede Cegonha' Program of the federal Government in Brazil. Our methodology consists of bibliographic analysis, documentary analysis of materials concerning the humanization of birth assistance, 'Rede Cegonha' Program, the document 'Care in Normal Birth: a practical guide', published by the World Health Organization, and public and private documents relating to those themes; in addition to qualitative interviews with academics and managers about childbirth assistance and the 'Rede Cegonha'. In Brazil, if there are conditions that allow the humanized childbirth assistance – like women's movement, insertion of a multidisciplinary team in the childbirth assistance, change in physical structures of maternities, compliance with the recommendations of the World Health Organization related to the normal childbirth and managers committed to the model - on the other hand there are factors that make it difficult, as the interventionist, medicalized attention and physician-centered childbirth assistance model. The results of our study suggest that, although liable to critics, the 'Rede Cegonha' Program shows itself as a facilitator in the adoption of Humanized childbirth – a model still under construction and that requires wide-ranging debate.

Clinical Psychology / M.A. (Clinical Psychology)

This work has as its object the speeches about childbirth studied from the analysis of discourse. Using speeches about childbirth as relays for public policies and between technicians and users of the health system in Aracaju, social movements and the humanization of childbirth step to formulate the question: were the modes of naturalization in childbirth practices reflecting modeling conduct, production of stereotypies and determinism in the effects of this experience? The goal is to study how the disciplining and control bodies traverse the speeches on labor and the extent to which discourses about childbirth presented as progressive or liberating subdues can produce. To this end, the article shows a brief genealogy of the birth, the trajectory of their practices, biopolitical crossings and State policies, and discuss and give visibility to the affective, economic, aesthetic, ecological implications. The trajectory analysis ends up unfolding the relationship between the proposed humanized labor and the emergence of a pedagogy of childbirth and pregnancy anchored in the role of Doula. The research method is based on the concepts of institutional analysis implication and superimplication, regarded to research on the implications of the research are considered the essence of scientific work. / O presente trabalho tem como objeto os discursos sobre o parto estudado a partir da análise do discurso. Utilizando os discursos sobre o parto tal como se veicula pelas políticas públicas e entre técnicos e usuários do sistema de saúde em Aracaju, e pelos movimentos sociais de humanização do parto passo a formular a questão: estariam os modos de naturalização nas práticas de parto refletindo modelação de condutas, produção de estereotipias e determinismos nos efeitos dessa experiência? O objetivo é estudar de que forma a disciplinarização e/ou o controle dos corpos atravessam os discursos sobre o parto e em que medida os discursos sobre o parto apresentados como progressistas ou libertadores podem produzir assujeitamentos. Para tanto, o texto percorre uma breve genealogia do parto, a trajetória de suas práticas, atravessamentos biopolíticos e das políticas de Estado, além de discutir e dar visibilidade às implicações afetivas, econômicas, estéticas, ecológicas. A trajetória da análise acaba desdobrando as relações entre a proposta de parto humanizado e a emergência de uma pedagogia do parto e da gestação ancorada na função da Doula. O método da pesquisa se baseia nos conceitos da análise institucional de implicação e sobreimplicação que se refere à pesquisa em que as implicações do pesquisador são consideradas como o essencial do trabalho científico.

Nowadays, women have a wide range of sources of information about childbirth. Women's attitudes toward childbirth are made by sharing experiences between women and in families but also they are based on information from media and internet. Consequently attitudes toward childbirth influence the choice of kind of delivery and women's childbirth experience. These days we can see some trends in obstetrics - the rising interest in natural births, on the one hand, and the rising number of women delivering their babies by cesarean section on the other hand. The goal of this socio-psychologically oriented thesis is to map women's attitudes to these most striking birth trends, and also to identify the reasons for these women's attitudes. The research part is thus focused qualitatively and uses the data from the analysis of the internet discussion forums for mothers. In the previous theoretical part are presented the key information necessary to understand the studied topic, such as the issues of attitudes, the specifics of the communication on the internet discussion forums and above all the current scientific knowledge about the attitudes of women to childbirth in the Czech Republic and the world. Key words Attitudes of women, natural childbirth, assisted childbirth, homebirth, caesarean section, internet...