The Impact of Mindfulness-based Counseling on the Levels of Anxiety during Pregnancy and on Newborns’ Physiological Parameters

 Anxiety is one of the most common accompanying symptoms in pregnant mothers and is associated with adverse maternal and neonatal consequences. The aim of the present study was to examine the impact of mindfulness-based counseling on the levels of anxiety during the pregnancy period and on newborns’ physiological parameters.

 This study was a semi experimental pretest-posttest with a control group. Sixty primiparous pregnant women who referred to the health clinics of Kermanshah were selected using convenient sampling and were randomly assigned into either experiment or control group. The control group received routine prenatal care, and the experimental group underwent eight groups mindfulness-based counseling sessions (60-90min) twice a week, in addition to routine prenatal care. Before, immediately after and one month after the intervention, both groups completed the Vandenberg Gestational Anxiety Questionnaire. In addition, after delivery, the newborns’ physiological parameters (weight, height, gestational age and Apgar score) checklist was completed. The data was analyzed using Mann-Whitney, Independent t-test, and Friedman's tests using SPSS- 25.

 Pregnancy anxiety was not significant between the control and intervention groups before the intervention (p = 0.694). However, immediately and one month after the intervention the difference was significant (p≤ 0.001). After delivery, the physiological parameters of infants born to women in the intervention and control groups were not significantly different.

 According to the study results, mindfulness-based counseling was effective in reducing pregnancy anxiety, but did not affect the physiological parameters of newborns at birth.