Iranian women's experiences of dealing with the complexities of an unplanned pregnancy: A qualitative study

Objective: The aim of this study was to explore women's experiences of dealing with the complexities of an unplanned pregnancy. Design: Qualitative content analysis was used to analyse the reports of women experiencing unplanned pregnancy and provide meaning to the results. Setting: Participants from Tabriz, Iran were recruited using purposive sampling method from June to September 2016. Participants: Data were gathered using face to face unstructured interviews among 23 women between the ages of 18-48 who recently reported having experienced an unplanned pregnancy. Findings: Outcomes of the data analysis yielded the formation of four distinct themes; disbelief and negative affective responses, fragile justification, perceived supports and post-decision dissonance. Key conclusions: The majority of women, reported that the emotional effects of unplanned pregnancy represented the greatest challenge. This was described as occurring not just immediately after pregnancy recognition, but throughout the course of decision making and selected course of action. Implications for practice: The findings of this study indicate the need for essential counselling services and supportive care for women experiencing an unplanned pregnancy.