The denial of pregnancy can be defined as the fact for a pregnant women to be unaware of her own pregnancy. Dr N. GRANGAUD, paedo-psychiatrist, mentioned it in a thesis : « denial of pregnancy, work for psycho-pathologic understanding. »

One of the generally accepted idea on the denial of pregnancy is that only young or mentally retarded women would be concerned . This is wrong, basing upon a recent French study realised on 2550 women who had been hospitalised in the Valenciennes et Denain maternity hospital during 7 years. The authors noticed and described 56 cases of denial; almost a half of these end before the delivery (« partial denial ») and the other half of the denials go on until the full term of the pregnancy (« total denial » : 29 cases).

This study enhances the fact that almost half of the women who are victim of a denial are already mother of one or two children ( 26 cases among the 56 cases studied). Therefore, the fact to be a mother doesn’t prevent from a denial and doesn’t enable a woman to become conscious of her own pregnancy.

All the social backgrounds are concerned with denial.; it is spread at random in the population. Then, the denial doesn’t have a social explanation, like most of the psychiatric pathologies.

One of its main caracteristic : the body doesn’t present signs of pregnancy. The women doesn’t have belly. They do not notice an intake of weight, and there is no pregnancy mask. They do not feel the baby move. Amenorrhoea, a principal caracteristic of pregnancy, is often transitional and sometimes totally absent ( this means that there are periods or vaginal bleedings even during pregnancy.)

A significant example of total denial, taken from the medical literature : a servicewoman at full term declared that she had not experienced any pregnancy signs, like during her two previous pregnancies and that she had not beien gaining any weight ,she had worm her combat uniform until delivery.

Concerning the people close to the pregnant woman, the caracteristic is that they don’t notice anything; but people who do not often see the same woman can sometimes perceive evidences of the pregnancy. This is not always the case as some doctors, even experienced, did not realise the pregnancies of women in denial, even if they were close to the full-term, and they were led to think their patients suffered from another kind of pathology.

When denial is total, delivery is followed with a shattering state. As said by a patient : « I took a bath because my belly ached/ hurted me; I thought it was due to my periods. And then, something happened; there was blood, and blood , and I stayed in the bath ». This mental state appears to be increased when women deliver in loneliness. In that case, It’s not uncommon that delivery ends with the death of the baby, for accidental reasons or for a lack of cares ( According to the study quoted previously, This concerned 6 cases among the 29 cases of total denial).

For a woman, this late case is a real and intense drama. She first realises that she was pregnant without being aware of it ( here, we can imagine the kind of distress the wowan can feel about the functioning of her body) and then, she faces the death of her own baby ! And as if this double tragedy wasn’t enough, the woman is imprisoned. This A.F.R.D.G. denounces this old-fashioned attitude.

The reality of denial of pregnancy is established on a medical plan. And with 600 to 1800 women concerned with this each year, it can be defined as a real public health issue.

The French Association for the Recognition of Denial of Pregnancy fights for denial of pregnancy to be now legally recognised.

Sign the petition for the recognition of the denial of pregnancy