The Natural Evolution of Postpartum Fatigue among a Group of Primiparous Women

Abstract

A prospective, longitudinal study was conducted to examine the natural evolution of levels of fatigue, as measured by the Visual Analogue Scale-F, among a group of 36 primiparous women during the first 6 weeks postpartum. The results revealed that this group of women experienced higher levels of morning fatigue across the 6 weeks than had previously been reported. Their morning fatigue peaked at 4 weeks and then slowly decreased. At the 6th week, the group mean for morning fatigue was 1.42 points (on a 100-point scale) lower than at the 1st week postpartum, suggesting women do not completely recover from the effects of pregnancy, childbirth, and transition to parenthood by 6 weeks postpartum. Maternal age and length of labor were found to be significantly related to the levels of fatigue and energy at various times during the 6 week postpartum period.