This book focuses on the unique challenges for women in a pandemic situation, both as caretakers and patients. It has been noted that in the last two years medical doctors, psychologists, and health workers have seen a huge impact of the pandemic experience on women and their families. Children and adolescents suffered from a strong reduction of social contacts, while families had often to resort to cramped living condition that put a strain on normal life activities, especially in underprivileged areas of society. Fear and uncertainty reigned. All these factors caused a wide range of psychosocial symptoms, from loneliness to domestic violence, depression, and psychosomatic reactions. As health professionals, women have been influenced by the pandemic experience as well. Hospital staff, who had to care for a huge number of seriously ill patients in a very short time, were confronted with considerable expectations, which often turned into hostility, especially in the period before vaccinations became available. Psychotherapists received increased requests for appointments and had to adjust to video consultation for those they were able to accommodate in their practice.Seeing the pandemic crisis as an opportunity to learn from mistakes, and lack of preparation, fostering a greater understanding of women's health in general, and the unique experiences of pregnancy, childbirth, trauma, adolescence, body experience, and gender identity that affects their health. This book gathers our current state of knowledge about women in the extreme situation of a pandemic crisis and points the way to an improved level of care for the future."e;This timely view of women's mental health in pandemics provides a vision to the path we must all take now to assist women in some of the most important elements of preventive care: their mental and emotional well-being ... [T]his book emphasizes that the mental health of a mother must be considered in all circumstances. Well done for being the conscience we need!"e;- Jeanne Ann Conry, MD, PhD, President, The International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Past President, The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, Immediate Past Chair, The Women's Preventive Health Initiative (WPSI)

​Table of Contents

1           1         (Post) Pandemic World 1.1         1.1          “Stupidity” in a Pandemic World>
Heidi Kastner, Vienna, Austria 1.2         1.2          The impact on Women’s health during times of Pandemic
Mechthild Neises , Heidelberg, Germany 1.3         1.3          Old and new orders of touch
Barbara Ulrike Kadi, Vienna, Austria 2           2         Psychosomatic Obstetrics – giving birth in pandemic times 2.1         2.1          Transfer of “Knowledge” (fake and facts) regarding to Covid-positive pregnancies and deliveries and its impact on delivering women and staff.
Barbara Maier, Vienna, Austria 2.2         2.2          The Impact of Working conditions on postpartum mental health and family relations – re-evaluated considering COVID-19.
Susan Garthus-Niegel, Ronja Schaber (Dresden, Germany) 2.3         2.3          Veiled Powers of Culture: Looking at fear of childbirth through the lens of time
Annica Kempe (Stockholm, Sweden) 2.4         2.4          Health beliefs, concerns about foetus health, neuroticism and preventive health behaviours during the COVID-19 pandemic among pregnant Israeli women
Talma Kushnir, Shir Nahum, Ariel, Israel 2.5         2.5          Peripartum Mental Disorders - Enhancement of Mother-Child Bonding
Kerstin Weidner, Dresden, Germany 3           3         Trauma, violence, and resilience – Is suffering a part of a female identity? 3.1         3.1          Stress and resilience in the (post)pandemic world. Psychobiological considerations
Ulrike Ehlert, Zurich, Switzerland, 3.2          3.2          Recognizing and healing inherited wounds. Therapy of transgenerational traumatization
Katharina Drexler, Cologne, Germany 3.3         3.3          Maternal perception of threat during childbirth contributes to the prediction of subsequent childbirth-related posttraumatic stress (CB-PTSD) symptoms
Leah Gilbert, Vania Sandoz, Camille Deforges & Antje Horsch, Lausanne, Switzerland 3.4         3.4          Developing a woman-centred, inclusive definition of a traumatic childbirth experience: A discussion paper
Julia Leinweber, Yvonne Fontein-Kuipers, Gill Thomson, Sigfridur Inga Karlsdottir. Christina Nilsson, Anette Ekström-Bergström, Ibone Olza, Eleni Hadjigeorgiou, Claire Stramrood, Berlin, Germany 3.5         3.5          Premenstrual disorders in adolescents and effects of major environmental events (Covid-19)
Takashi Takeda, Osaka, Japan 4           4         Medical Ethics in Times of the Pandemic 4.1         4.1          Moral dilemmas for health care professionals during the Covid-19 pandemic.
M. Caroline Vos, Tilburg, The Netherlands 4.2         4.2          Corona Pandemic,  Human Rights, Global Health Ethics and a need to overcome traditional Psycjosomatics  
Karl-Heinz Wehkamp, Bremen, Germany 4.3          4.3          Challenges egalitarian couples with small children had to face during the COVID-19 lockdown in Germany in spring 2020, A qualitative content analysis
Ronja Schaber, Stefanie Dost, Susan Garthus-Niegel, Dresden, Germany 4.4         4.4          Attitudes toward Korean transgenders from a survey of National Human Rights Commission
Chulmin Lee, Ji-Young Lee, South Korea 5           5         Assessing Mental Health in Perinatal Care: Opportunities for change 5.1         5.1          Exploring mental health using the Wellbeing in Pregnancy measure
Fiona Alderdice, Oxford, UK 5.2         5.2          Maternal perception of threat during childbirth contributes to the prediction of subsequent childbirth-related posttraumatic stress (CB-PTSD) symptoms
Antje Horsch, Lausanne. Switzerland 5.3         5.3          Postpartum anxiety - relationships with childbirth experience
Vicky Fallon, Liverpool, UK 6           6       Health System and Healthcare professionals in POG 6.1         6.1          Management of the Mental health crisis of women as long-lasting consequence of COVID-19: What worked- what was missing? – An Analysis of the European Federation of Psychologists‘Associations (EFPA)
Beate Wimmer-Puchinger, Vienna, Austria 6.2         6.2          Burn-out among midwives – before and after covid-19 outbreak in Hungary
Zsuzsa Török, Debrecen, Hungary 6.3         6.3          Secondary Trauma and Loss of Healthcare Professionals in Perinatal Death Events
Eva Zsak, Budapest, Hungary 7           7         Traumatic experiences and life events 7.1         7.1          Covid pandemic vs war-both catastrophic events, different impact on the pregnancy outcome
Ena Radić, Matilda Zadro, Daria Hadžić, Vesna Košec, Vesna Gall, Zagreb, Croatia 7.2         7.2          The influence of covid pandemic and earthquake on mood change and subjective experience of pregnancy
Vesna Gall, Daria Hadzic, Ana Meyra Potkonjak, Ena Radic, Hrvojka Soljacic Vranes, Zagreb, Croatia 7.3         7.3          Dying in hospital - love in times of final goodbye
Mechthild Neises, Heidelberg, Germany 8           8       Family planning and IVF 8.1         8.1          Implications of the Covid-19 pandemic for sexuality, family planning and mental health among reproductive-age women with rheumatic disease
Nora Rosenberg, Antonia Mazzucato-Puchne, Nadja Valenta, Tanja Stamm, Valentin Ritschl, Klara Rosta , Vienna, Austria 8.2         8.2          The impact of acute covid-19 infection in pregnancy on depression
Marijana Vidmar Šimic, Mirjam Druškovič, Vita Mesarič, Tina Pavlin, Tanja Premru Sršen Ljubljana, SIovenia 8.3         8.3          Postpartum Post-traumatic Stress Symptoms during COVID-19: a Longitudinal Study
Noga Shifman, Hadar Gluska, Shiri Margalit, Rinat Gabbai Ben-Ziv, Liat Helpman, Israel 8.4         8.4          Psychosomatic Aspects of Fertility Preservation in Transgender Men and Women.
Dov Feldberg, Helen Schneider, Tel Aviv, Israel 8.5         8.5          Counselling in Reproductive Medicine
Tewes Wischmann, Heidelberg, Germany 9           9         Epilogue: Teaching Mindfulness. Advancing POG in medical Education 9.1         9.1          Setting Standards for Teaching Psychosomatic Obstetrics and Gynecology
Jonathan Shaffir, Columbus, OH, USA & Vivian Pramataroff-Hamburger, Munich, Germany