Tutelman Perri R, Dawson Samantha J, Schwenck Gracielle C, Rosen Natalie O
Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada.
Department of Psychology, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.
Fam Process. 2022 Mar;61(1):278-293. doi: 10.1111/famp.12661. Epub 2021 Apr 30.
New parents experience significant disruption to their sexual relationships such as lower desire and sexual frequency relative to prepregnancy. Little is known about the sexual distress new parents feel related to these changes, how sexual distress evolves over time, or how coping with stress relates to this distress. New parent couples who engage in more adaptive, joint coping with mutual stressors-common dyadic coping (CDC)-may be better able to manage distress related to their sexuality and thus, experience less sexual distress at 3-months postpartum and experience more marked improvement over time. In 99 first-time parent couples, we examined the link between CDC measured at 3-months postpartum and trajectories of sexual distress across 3-, 6-, and 12-months postpartum. Analyses used dyadic latent growth curve modeling informed by the actor-partner interdependence model. Mothers' sexual distress at 3-months postpartum was clinically elevated and higher than their partner's. Mothers' sexual distress declined significantly over time, whereas partners' sexual distress remained low and stable. An individual's higher perceptions of CDC was significantly associated with their own (but not their partner's) lower sexual distress at 3-months postpartum. No significant associations were found between CDC and change in sexual distress over time. How new parents jointly cope with stressors early in the postpartum period may lessen the distress they have about their sexuality at a time when most couples have just resumed sexual activity. Results identify CDC as a possible novel target for interventions aimed at helping couples manage sexual distress during the transition to parenthood.
初为人父母者的性关系会受到重大影响，比如与怀孕前相比，性欲和性频率降低。对于初为人父母者因这些变化而感到的性困扰、性困扰如何随时间演变，或者应对压力与这种困扰之间的关系，我们知之甚少。采用更具适应性的共同应对方式来应对共同压力源的初为人父母的夫妻——即共同二元应对（CDC）——可能更有能力管理与性相关的困扰，因此在产后3个月时性困扰较少，并且随着时间的推移会有更明显的改善。在99对初为人父母的夫妻中，我们研究了产后3个月时测量的CDC与产后3个月、6个月和12个月时性困扰轨迹之间的联系。分析采用了基于行为者-伙伴相互依赖模型的二元潜在增长曲线模型。产后3个月时，母亲的性困扰在临床上有所升高，且高于其伴侣。母亲的性困扰随时间显著下降，而伴侣的性困扰则保持在较低且稳定的水平。个体对CDC的更高认知与他们自己（而非伴侣）在产后3个月时较低的性困扰显著相关。未发现CDC与性困扰随时间的变化之间存在显著关联。初为人父母者在产后早期共同应对压力源的方式，可能会减轻他们在大多数夫妻刚刚恢复性活动时对自身性方面的困扰。研究结果表明，CDC可能是旨在帮助夫妻在向父母角色转变过程中管理性困扰的干预措施的一个新目标。
