The DOI matches its Crossref record; 31 of the 33 references it cites were found in a registry or an index, and 1 are not checked yet.
Experience of miscarriage: an interpretative phenomenological analysis
Open accessAbstract
Objective: The objective of the study was to explore the experiences of those who have experienced miscarriage, focusing on men's and women's accounts of miscarriage. Design: This was a qualitative study using a phenomenological framework. Following in-depth semistructured interviews, analysis was undertaken in order to identify superordinate themes relating to their experience of miscarriage. Setting: A large tertiary-level maternity hospital in Ireland. Participants: A purposive sample of 16 participants, comprising 10 women and 6 men, was recruited. Results: 6 superordinate themes in relation to the participant's experience of miscarriage were identified: (1) acknowledgement of miscarriage as a valid loss; (2) misperceptions of miscarriage; (3) the hospital environment, management of miscarriage; (4) support and coping; (5) reproductive history; and (6) implications for future pregnancies. Conclusions: One of the key findings illustrates a need for increased awareness in relation to miscarriage. The study also indicates that the experience of miscarriage has a considerable impact on men and women. This study highlights that a thorough investigation of the underlying causes of miscarriage and continuity of care in subsequent pregnancies are priorities for those who experience miscarriage. Consideration should be given to the manner in which women who have not experienced recurrent miscarriage but have other potential risk factors for miscarriage could be followed up in clinical practice.
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“This was important, since many men explicitly reported a preference not to engage in formal counselling [78] and/or support groups [56, 61].”
From Men’s grief following pregnancy loss and neonatal loss: a systematic review and emerging theoretical model (2020) · cites this paper as [78]
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“However, other men in 10 studies (some overlapping with the above 14 studies) also reported less intense reactions, including stating that their partners experienced worse grief in comparison to them [56, 61, 69, 71–75, 78, 79].”
From Men’s grief following pregnancy loss and neonatal loss: a systematic review and emerging theoretical model (2020) · cites this paper as [78]
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In the citing paper
“In contrast, men with a history of loss in nine qualitative studies [46, 61, 62, 68, 71, 72, 78, 82, 83] did not report different or increased levels of grief.”
From Men’s grief following pregnancy loss and neonatal loss: a systematic review and emerging theoretical model (2020) · cites this paper as [78]
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In the citing paper
“Three studies noted that providers who worked “extra hard” to provide both medical and practical information to men were valued [81], and parents who experienced the support of specialist bereavement care teams, or follow-up telephone calls from care providers, commented positively on this [68, 78].”
From Men’s grief following pregnancy loss and neonatal loss: a systematic review and emerging theoretical model (2020) · cites this paper as [78]
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In the citing paper
“Across these, men discussed widespread taboo, stigma and silence surrounding miscarriage and/or stillbirth which worsened their grief.”
From Men’s grief following pregnancy loss and neonatal loss: a systematic review and emerging theoretical model (2020) · cites this paper as [78]
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“However, some men in qualitative studies also expressed less extreme reactions to the loss, indicating representation of a range of experiences [56, 61, 69, 71–75, 78, 79].”
From Men’s grief following pregnancy loss and neonatal loss: a systematic review and emerging theoretical model (2020) · cites this paper as [78]
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“Yet, in four studies, men did report increased worry about future pregnancies [59, 62, 75, 78].”
From Men’s grief following pregnancy loss and neonatal loss: a systematic review and emerging theoretical model (2020) · cites this paper as [78]
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“Four qualitative studies described how living children could both enhance the reality of the developing baby (thus worsening grief), and make coming to terms with the loss easier.”
From Men’s grief following pregnancy loss and neonatal loss: a systematic review and emerging theoretical model (2020) · cites this paper as [78]
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“In 10 studies, some men reported positive experiences with healthcare staff [46, 60, 61, 64, 68, 73, 75, 78, 81, 82].”
From Men’s grief following pregnancy loss and neonatal loss: a systematic review and emerging theoretical model (2020) · cites this paper as [78]
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“Experiences of disenfranchisement included questioning their identity as fathers due to confusion surrounding whether their pregnancy was understood as a baby or not [46], only discussing their loss if/when prompted by another bereaved parent [78], and hurtful comments from others which minimised their grief or encouraged them to “move on” from the loss [61, 82].”
From Men’s grief following pregnancy loss and neonatal loss: a systematic review and emerging theoretical model (2020) · cites this paper as [78]
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“A lack of community acknowledgement and understanding for grief following pregnancy loss was explicitly identified by male participants in seven qualitative studies from the USA [58, 65, 66, 82], Ireland [46, 78] and Australia [61].”
From Men’s grief following pregnancy loss and neonatal loss: a systematic review and emerging theoretical model (2020) · cites this paper as [78]
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“The phenomenological qualitative study carried out by Meaney, Corcoran, Spillane, et al. (2017) about the experience of miscarriage indicates that this experience has a considerable impact on men and women, and the participants stated that it was important the acknowledgement of the loss by health professionals and more broadly throughout society.”
From Integrative Review of Emotional Care Following Perinatal Loss (2021) · cites this paper as Meaney, Corcoran, Spillane, et al. (2017)
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“In fact, many participants in this interpretative phenomenological study detailed how they could not enjoy the experience of being pregnant because of the fear of recurrent perinatal losses (Meaney, Corcoran, Spillane, et al., 2017).”
From Integrative Review of Emotional Care Following Perinatal Loss (2021) · cites this paper as Meaney, Corcoran, Spillane, et al., 2017
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“During subsequent pregnancies after a miscarriage the participants manifested high levels of anxiety and they expressed how they focus on gestational weeks as goals, including exceeding the gestational age they had suffered the loss (Meaney, Corcoran, Spillane, et al., 2017).”
From Integrative Review of Emotional Care Following Perinatal Loss (2021) · cites this paper as Meaney, Corcoran, Spillane, et al., 2017
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In the citing paper
“Four qualitative studies described how living children could both enhance the reality of the developing baby (thus worsening grief), and make coming to terms with the loss easier.”
From Men’s grief following pregnancy loss and neonatal loss: a systematic review and emerging theoretical model (2020) · cites this paper as [78]
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Citations
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“A study from the USA also indicated that people believe that miscarriage is a rare complication of pregnancy.(25) The participants from this study believed that improvement of information provision would be beneficial in allowing individuals to better prepare for the possibility that their pregnancy could end in misca…”
Expectant care versus surgical treatment for miscarriage
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“4,18 According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the quality of healthcare is informed by patient experiences and integral to this is person centredness, which is one of the six key dimensions of quality care.”
BackgroundMaternal Perception of Pregnancy Loss: Protocol for a Thematic Synthesis
Freitas, M. C. M., Magalhães, B. M. B. D. S., Martínez‐Galiano, J. M., & Gómez-Salgado, J. C. (2024) · International Journal of Women s Health · doi:10.2147/ijwh.s463461 · Cited by 1
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Saldanha, Z. D. O., Sá, A. M. M., Santos, M. N. D. A., & de Santana, M. E. (2021) · Enfermagem em Foco · doi:10.21675/2357-707x.2020.v11.n5.3289 · Cited by 1
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Grauerholz, K. R. (2022) · Newborn · doi:10.5005/jp-journals-11002-0026 · Cited by 1
Freeman, A. (2020) · UWSpace (University of Waterloo)
The Miscarriage Circle of Care: Towards Leveraging eHealth for Social SupportPreprint
Alqassim, M. Y., Kresnye, K. C., Siek, K. A., Lee, J. R., & Wolters, M. K. (2021) · Research Square · doi:10.21203/rs.3.rs-564669/v1
“While those who have experienced miscarriage seek emotional support by talking to their care network after miscarriage, they often feel unable to express the negative emotions related to their loss, and wish their care network would be more sensitive [20,54,55].”
BackgroundWendołowska, A. M., Kiełek-Rataj, E., Kalus, A. M., & Czyżowska, D. (2021) · Kwartalnik Naukowy Fides et Ratio · doi:10.34766/fetr.v47i3.874
Perinatal Kayıp Sürecinde Babaların Deneyimleri: Sistematik Derleme
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Clinical Risk Factors Associated with Miscarriage
Shaikh, A. G., Lakho, N., & Shah, S. F. (2024) · Pakistan Journal of Medical and Health Sciences · doi:10.53350/pjmhs02023171218
Barriers to and Facilitators of Paternal Engagement for Black Fathers in Fulton County, Georgia
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“This approach allows for a deeper understanding of an individual’s lived experiences and insights into what their situations and lives mean to them (Meaney et al., 2017).”
Satari, H., Vafa, M. A., Farzadi, L., & Panah-Ali, A. (2024) · Nursing and Midwifery Journal · doi:10.61186/unmf.22.9.747
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Atik, R. B., & Hepworth-Jones, B. (2025) · Cambridge University Press eBooks · doi:10.1017/9781009532549.017
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“However, experiencing a high-risk pregnancy or a previous miscarriage may undermine confidence in the body’s ability to sustain a healthy pregnancy (Meaney et al., 2017; Shojaeian et al., 2021).”
Strengthening self-care following miscarriage: empowering women and their partners
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Metadata
- Authors
- Meaney, S., Corcoran, P., Spillane, N., & O'Donoghue, K.
- Affiliations
- University College Cork (IE)
- Corresponding author
- Meaney, S
- ORCID
- Venue
- BMJ Open
- Publisher
- BMJ
- Published
- 2017-03
- Volume
- 7
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- e011382
- ISSN
- 2044-6055 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC5372116
- OpenAlex
- W2600339366
- Cited by
- 136
- References
- 31
- Citations by year
- 2026: 11 · 2025: 14 · 2024: 16 · 2023: 19 · 2022: 20 · 2021: 19 · 2020: 17 · 2019: 11 · 2018: 6 · 2017: 3
- FWCI
- 12.55
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- doi.org
- Licence
- cc-by-nc
- Locations
- BMJ Open (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Arrow@dit (Dublin Institute of Technology) (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc)
- HighWire Press Open Archive (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Grief, Bereavement, and Mental Health
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Reproductive Health and Contraception
- Life Sciences › Immunology and Microbiology › Immunology › Reproductive System and Pregnancy
- Keywords
- miscarriage, lived experience, grief, loss, reproductive history, continuity of care, recurrent pregnancy loss, miscarriage risk factors
- MeSH terms
- Abortion, Spontaneous, Adaptation, Psychological, Adult, Delivery of Health Care, Female, Grief, Humans, Ireland, Male, Parents, Pregnancy, Quality of Health Care, Social Support, Reproductive Health Services, Qualitative Research
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