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Feeling the Void: Lack of Support for Isolation and Sleep Difficulties in Pregnant Women during the COVID-19 Pandemic Revealed by Twitter Data Analysis

Author

Listed:
  • Joey Talbot

    (Interdisciplinary School of Health Sciences, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1N 6N5, Canada
    These authors contributed equally to this work.)

  • Valérie Charron

    (School of Psychology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1N 6N5, Canada
    These authors contributed equally to this work.)

  • Anne TM Konkle

    (Interdisciplinary School of Health Sciences, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1N 6N5, Canada
    School of Psychology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1N 6N5, Canada
    Brain and Mind Research Institute, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1N 6N5, Canada)

Abstract

Pregnant women face many physical and psychological changes during their pregnancy. It is known that stress, caused by many factors and life events such as the COVID-19 pandemic, can negatively impact the health of mothers and offspring. It is the first time social media, such as Twitter, are available and commonly used during a global pandemic; this allows access to a rich set of data. The objective of this study was to characterize the content of an international sample of tweets related to pregnancy and mental health during the first wave of COVID-19, from March to June 2020. Tweets were collected using GetOldTweets3. Sentiment analysis was performed using the VADER sentiment analysis tool, and a thematic analysis was performed. In total, 192 tweets were analyzed: 51 were from individuals, 37 from companies, 56 from non-profit organizations, and 48 from health professionals/researchers. Findings showed discrepancies between individual and non-individual tweets. Women expressed anxiety, depressive symptoms, sleeping problems, and distress related to isolation. Alarmingly, there was a discrepancy between distress expressed by women with isolation and sleep difficulties compared to support offered by non-individuals. Concrete efforts should be made to acknowledge these issues on Twitter while maintaining the current support offered.

Suggested Citation

  • Joey Talbot & Valérie Charron & Anne TM Konkle, 2021. "Feeling the Void: Lack of Support for Isolation and Sleep Difficulties in Pregnant Women during the COVID-19 Pandemic Revealed by Twitter Data Analysis," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(2), pages 1-12, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:18:y:2021:i:2:p:393-:d:475833
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Raul Antunes & Roberta Frontini & Nuno Amaro & Rogério Salvador & Rui Matos & Pedro Morouço & Ricardo Rebelo-Gonçalves, 2020. "Exploring Lifestyle Habits, Physical Activity, Anxiety and Basic Psychological Needs in a Sample of Portuguese Adults during COVID-19," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(12), pages 1-13, June.
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    Cited by:

    1. Schwab Bakombo & Paulette Ewalefo & Anne T. M. Konkle, 2023. "The Influence of Social Media on the Perception of Autism Spectrum Disorders: Content Analysis of Public Discourse on YouTube Videos," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(4), pages 1-15, February.
    2. Ruth G. Abebe & Schwab Bakombo & Anne T. M. Konkle, 2023. "Understanding the Response of Canadians to the COVID-19 Pandemic Using the Kübler-Ross Model: Twitter Data Analysis," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(4), pages 1-13, February.

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