Welcome. Healthtalkonline, an award-winning charity website, lets you share in other people's experiences of health and illness. This information is based on qualitative research into patient experiences led by experts at the University of Oxford.
You may also be interested in conditions listed elsewhere on the website such as Parents of children on the autism spectrum and Parents of children with congenital heart disease.
Antenatal screening
Antenatal screening tests during pregnancy can check the health of the baby. We interviewed 37 women and 8 couples about their experiences of antenatal screening for various conditions. Select from the key topics below, choose from the full list of topics, or explore all the interviews.
We interviewed 49 women and 2 men about their experiences of breastfeeding.
While pregnancy and childbirth is safer now in the United Kingdom than at any time in history, there are still occasionally women who experience life-threatening complications during their pregnancy. These events are rare - about 1 in 100 births. They are caused by a range of conditions including; haemorrhage (heavy uncontrolled bleeding), placental disorders (placenta praevia), hypertensive (blood pressure) disorders such as pre-eclampsia, thrombosis (blood clots), the rare condition amniotic fluid embolism or infections that lead to sepsis (an illness caused by the body overreacting to an infection). We interviewed 35 women who experienced a life-threatening complication during childbirth, and 11 fathers or partners, to find out more about their experiences and their long-term impact.
Discovery of a fetal abnormality may lead to the decision to terminate a pregnancy. We interviewed 40 people (including some male partners) about their experiences of ending a pregnancy for this reason.
Childhood immunisation is available against a wide range of diseases. We interviewed 45 parents about their experiences of immunising their children.
It is estimated that one in seven couples in the UK have fertility problems. Infertility, failing to get pregnant after two years of regular unprotected sex, is the most common reason that women aged 20-45 visit their GPs. Difficulties conceiving a child can be devastating for individuals and couples. We interviewed 39 people (women and men) about their experiences of infertility and fertility treatment. Some had successful treatment, others did not and either chose to adopt or live without children. Some were still in treatment and did not yet know the outcome of their infertility journey.
We interviewed 27 women about their experiences of caesarean birth and about their decisions and experiences related to the birth of their next child.
Congenital heart disease includes a range of conditions affecting the heart from birth. In partnership with the British Heart Foundation we interviewed the parents of 30 children with congenital heart disease about their experiences during their child's early years.
We interviewed 51 people (including some male partners) about their experiences of pregnancy.
We interviewed 39 people about their experiences of antenatal and newborn screening for sickle cell, beta thalassaemia and other haemoglobin variants.
