How to Deal When Your Relationship Changes During Pregnancy

This fact is hard to digest, but it is true that relationships change during pregnancy, whether you want it to or not. If you feel that pregnancy is killing your relationship, continue reading this article ahead.

Nothing changes a marriage like a phrase, “Let’s have a baby!” Maybe you talked about the possibility before getting married, but now that you’ve been together for a while, you feel as if this is the next step.

But are you ready for relationship problems during pregnancy?

Hopefully, you can relax knowing that even experienced parents have had marriage problems during pregnancy. When we talk about marriage and pregnancy, parents feel apprehension and anxiety when thinking about possibly adding another baby into the mix.

It’s a huge decision that will change not only everyone’s lives but the marriage as well. Just how will it change?

So, if you are pregnant and having pregnancy relationship problems, you aren’t alone. Even if you do not wish for it, sometimes, pregnancy can change love.

Her health and body will change

Right away, hormones will significantly increase in the woman to prepare her body for the baby, then to help support the baby. This can cause her to feel sick—some women get really sick—and her body will change.

Some changes will be quick, and others will come on more slowly. This can cause the woman to feel insecure about herself and her body, and perhaps if she is feeling unwell, she may feel unmotivated to do normal things she did before.

So, when it comes to pregnancy and relationships, this can cause a bit of a strain. So, here comes the role of the husband. It is not expected from the husband to be perfect, just a tad more understanding and flexibility is expected.

The husband may need to pick up the slack on things the wife generally took care of before; he can hopefully get through it cheerfully, knowing it should be temporary, and it is for a good cause.

Worst case scenario thinking

Along with the hormones and impending new little person coming into the house, the woman—and even sometimes the man—can start to take on the worst-case scenario thinking.

Life insurance is suddenly important, in case something happens to either parent, to make sure the baby is taken care of. The couple will shop around for baby gear, including a car seat.

Thinking about a possible car crash, some parents feel guilty and spend as much as possible in order to get the best. This can really kill the excitement of having a baby and make the couple focus on what could possibly go wrong with the pregnancy or the baby.

This is one of the primary marital problems during pregnancy, which, in turn, could bring long-term negative feelings into the marriage.

You both have mixed feelings about the future

Perhaps one of you feels more “ready” for this next step in life than the other. Or, maybe both of you bounce back and forth about if this is what you want. Once pregnant, you can’t go back. You have to forge ahead. 

This can be scary, and especially if the other spouse is excited, the other with mixed feelings may not feel comfortable saying anything about it. 

This can cause their feelings to fester, and they may want to stifle the excitement of the other spouse. In a marriage, this can cause some friction and lead to more fights.

It’s all about the woman and the baby

You must be wondering how having a baby changes your relationship when, in actuality, it is the most beautiful thing happening in a marriage.

So, when a pregnancy enters a marriage, it can become all about the woman and the baby. The mother gets all the attention, she gets all the questions, and she is expected by some to make all the big decisions about the pregnancy and the baby.

Even though it’s a joint effort, sometimes the husband gets ignored. He may feel like he doesn’t matter, but of course, he has an integral part in creating this new family.

If he feels left out, he may withdraw or have negative feelings towards the whole life change in general. This can cause issues in the marriage; he may not speak up and then become sad or angry because his feelings are not being heard.

This is how pregnancy affects relationships, even when you think about it the least. Do not fear these pregnancy and relationship problems; in fact, try to be more aware of them, so that you can tackle them efficiently when they occur.

Sex will change during the course of the pregnancy

One great thing about pregnancy—at least for many women—is that during part of the pregnancy, their sex drive increases. This is a hormonal phenomenon, plus the excitement of the new pregnancy could also help it.

This can help the husband and wife feel more connected and loving towards each other as they spend more intimate time together. Unfortunately, later in the pregnancy, many women’s sex drives lessen quite a bit, especially as their bellies get large and sometimes impede regular sexual positions. Women tend to feel less sexy and have less energy for sex.

These are some of the glaring relationship problems when pregnant as this can cause couples to feel less connected and loving towards each other as they spend less intimate time together.

But, these marriage issues during pregnancy can be sorted efficiently if the spouses have the right level of understanding and undying love for each other. All they have to realize is that marriage during pregnancy can hit the rocks, but it is ephemeral. 

If both the partners have the will, they can get over these relationship changes during pregnancy and come back to normalcy.

Pregnancy is a critical time in the lives of parents to be. It can be an exciting time as the husband and wife think about all the possibilities and what their new child will be like. However, pregnancy can change the marriage relationship—sometimes for the negative—if the couple allows it to.

While celebrating the new pregnancy as a couple, be sure to discuss your feelings freely, help each other feel loved, and create a happy environment where your baby—and both of you—can thrive together.

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Sylvia Smith Author

Sylvia Smith loves to share insights on how couples can revitalize their love lives in and out of the bedroom. As a writer at Marriage.com, she is a big believer in living consciously and encourages couples to adopt this principle... Read more in their lives too. Sylvia believes that every couple can transform their relationship into a happier, healthier one by taking purposeful and wholehearted action. Read less

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