Mood and Somatic Symptoms During Pregnancy

A predominantly white, middle class sample of pregnant women (N = 93) completed the AACL (Anxiety), the DACL (Depressive Mood), the SCL (Somatic Symptoms) and the IPAT Anxiety Questionnaire at the second, fifth and eighth months of pregnancy. A menstrual history questionnaire was administered on the first testing occasion. Analyses revealed that anxiety varied significantly as a function of trimester and that previous pregnancy history interacted significantly with trimester. Depressive mood was not significantly affected by any of the sources of variation. Correlational analysis (average correlations over trimesters) indicated significant relationships between somatic symptoms and anxiety, but not between somatic symptoms and depressive mood; a small but significant relationship between history of menstrual complaint and somatic symptoms; and a significant negative correlation between education and overt anxiety.