Legacies and Futures: Measuring Roles of Resilience and Vulnerability in Pregnancy and Birth Outcomes

When people get pregnant, the healthcare system often assumes they are straight, married women whose gender matches the sex they were assigned at birth. This can make it difficult for lesbian, gay, bisexual, queer, intersex, asexual, and transgender (LGBTQIA+) parents-to-be to receive the personalised and supportive care they need. This study aims to understand what challenges these parents face and what helps them cope during pregnancy, which is sometimes called 'resilience'.

Facing discrimination or not feeling understood by healthcare services can create extra stress, known as 'minority stress'. This type of stress isn't just unpleasant; it can sometimes lead to preventable health problems during pregnancy, such as babies being born too early or with low birth weight. We know that feeling stressed can affect our health, and this study wants to explore how this extra stress specifically impacts LGBTQIA+ parents during pregnancy and childbirth.

By comparing the experiences of LGBTQIA+ parents with those of straight, cisgender parents, this research hopes to gain a clearer picture. The findings will be used to help improve guidelines for healthcare providers and training programs, making sure they can offer more inclusive and supportive care to all pregnant individuals in the future, ultimately leading to better health outcomes for both parents and babies.