The health of pregnant women is a major concern to health care providers. This
grounded theory study of 40 women examined the health of pregnant women and the
special threat that poverty and violence posed to their capacity for health. Pregnant
women experienced their health as an integrated part of their daily lives; that is, they
reported that their health was affected by 'everybody and everything." Women's main
concern during pregnancy was to have a healthy newborn and, to this end, they
engaged in the process of creating a healthy pregnancy by engaging in health-enhancing
behaviours. In this process, the woman focused primarily on ensuring the
birth of a healthy baby. Three conditions were essential to a woman's capacity to
create a healthy pregnancy: (1) the acceptance of the pregnancy, (2) adequate financial
resources, and (3) supportive relationships (especially having a supportive partner).
Pregnancies invariably carried with them some uncertainty, and this caused the
40 women in this study to experience a state of vulnerability which, in turn, triggered
attempts to create healthy pregnancies. This led to a cycle of improving health: the
more energy women had to carry out health-enhancing behaviours the better they felt
physically and mentally; the more able they were to conduct their daily activities; and,
consequently, the better their health. However, living within a context of poverty
and/or violence increased pregnant women's vulnerability and decreased their
capacity for creating a healthy pregnancy, leading to extreme stress and the experience
of threat. Male violence threatened the women's ability to be connected to those who
were important sources of emotional, financial, task-oriented, and knowledge-oriented
support, and, thus jeopardized their ability to meet their fundamental needs.
Furthermore, the lack of sufficient financial resources limited women's abilities to
leave their abusive partners. In order to survive, women in these circumstances
sometimes reverted to previous, often harmful, ways of coping in an attempt to reduce
their high levels of stress. These coping strategies usually took the form of behaviours
that required little energy, such as smoking, not eating properly, and consuming
alcohol.
Having financial support and a safe place to go were crucial with regard to
enabling women to decide to leave abusive partners. Regaining control of their lives in
this way allowed women to refocus their energy on health-enhancing behaviours. The
women in this study showed incredible strength as they met the challenges imposed by
poverty and abuse. They did not remain victims but took hold of their lives with
courage and conviction.
In order to promote the adoption of health-enhancing behaviours by
childbearing women, health care providers must recognize poverty and violence as
factors that significantly threaten women's capacity for health. Further to this, special
efforts must be made to render culturally sensitive care to First Nations women (i.e.,
recognizing their cultural identity and heritage, their connection to nature, and the
importance of the elders of their community). To this end, we must recognize the
connections between racism, colonization, poverty, and violence. For until we have
eradicated poverty, and the cycle of violence and degradation that is its legacy, we will
not have succeeded in doing all we can to ensure the health and well being of our
citizens.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:LACETR/oai:collectionscanada.gc.ca:BVAU.2429/9942 |
| Date | 05 1900 |
| Creators | Roussy, Joanne Marie |
| Source Sets | Library and Archives Canada ETDs Repository / Centre d'archives des thèses électroniques de Bibliothèque et Archives Canada |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Relation | UBC Retrospective Theses Digitization Project [http://www.library.ubc.ca/archives/retro_theses/] |
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