Women's perceptions and management of a pregnancy complicated by chronic illness

This exploratory longitudinal study addresses how a group of chronically ill pregnant women managed the medical risk factors associated with their pregnancies through a process termed protective governing. Protective governing was carried out through the strategies of assessing, balancing, and controlling. The respondents were 20 women with chronic illnesses of varying types. Data were gathered by means of four in‐depth interviews, two prior to delivery and two during the postpartum period, and by observations during prenatal visits, in the hospital, and at home. The data were analyzed using the grounded theory method.