Psychological distress and resilience among women with recurrent miscarriage in lagos state, nigeria

Recurrent miscarriage is associated with substantial psychological burden, yet little is known about its association with resilience among women in Nigeria. This study examined levels of depression, anxiety and stress among women with recurrent miscarriage in Lagos State, Nigeria, and whether resilience was associated with these outcomes. A cross-sectional survey was completed by 200 women aged 18 to 50 years with a history of two or more miscarriages, recruited through five healthcare facilities and online maternal health platforms. Depression, anxiety and stress were measured using the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS-21), and resilience using the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC-10). Hierarchical linear regression examined associations between resilience and each distress outcome, controlling for sociodemographic and reproductive history variables. Levels of distress were high, with 86.5% of participants reporting at least mild depression, 89.0% at least mild anxiety and 60.0% at least mild stress. Higher resilience was significantly associated with lower depression (β = -.371), anxiety (β = -.371) and stress (β = -.432, all p < .001), explaining additional variance beyond sociodemographic factors alone (ΔR² = .144 to .179). These findings indicate that resilience is a consistent and clinically meaningful correlate of lower psychological distress among Nigerian women with recurrent miscarriage, suggesting the potential value of developing resilience-focused psychosocial interventions within reproductive healthcare services in Nigeria.