Dr. Daniela Palombo, an associate professor in UBC’s department of psychology, received a Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) Priority Announcement Grant to explore how memory influences mental health following pregnancy loss.
“This project explores the centrality of autobiographical memory in grieving and mental health in the aftermath of loss. Here, our focus is on pregnancy loss, an incredibly important but overlooked topic. I am thrilled to lead this work, along with a dream team of collaborators. I am grateful for the priority funding as it will help us kickstart this research.”
Dr. Palombo’s collaborators include Dr. Samantha Dawson, Dr. Mohamed Ali Bedaiwy, Dr. Larissa Rossen, Victoria Wardell, and Cheryl Dowling.
Mental Health, Resilience, Memory and Memory Sharing in the Aftermath of Pregnancy Loss
In Canada, 1 in 4 women and people with uteruses will experience pregnancy loss. Pregnancy loss is associated with profound grief, sadness, hopelessness, confusion, shame, relationship strain, and significant mental health risk. These negative outcomes pose significant public health concerns. Despite how common pregnancy loss is, it remains unclear what factors influence one's ability to cope with such a loss. Crucially, what protects a woman or person with a uterus from developing more severe mental health or relationship outcomes post-loss? In this study, we explore the role of memory and memory sharing in shaping mental health and relationship outcomes following pregnancy loss. Our overarching hypothesis is that mental health and relationship satisfaction will show a marked and persistent decline post-pregnancy loss. We also expect that the intrusiveness of memories surrounding this loss will be a critical predictor of those with worse mental health and relationship outcomes. We are also interested in examining potential protective factors that may buffer against the negative sequelae of loss. To this end, we hypothesize that sharing memories of the loss, as well as more positive norms around pregnancy loss, will be associated with better mental health and relationship outcomes post-loss. Using an intensive longitudinal prospective design, we will follow 300 women and people with uteruses who experienced pregnancy loss and 300 without pregnancy loss for a period of 2 years to test our hypotheses. Our work will identify key psychological and social factors that predict outcomes following pregnancy loss, filling a critical gap in academic research and healthcare practices. Specifically, this work will shape knowledge around the types of resources that should be provided towards mental health and well-being following pregnancy loss.
Join us in congratulating Dr. Palombo and her research collaborators!
A total of 47 projects led by UBC researchers were awarded $35.1 million in combined funding through the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) Fall 2025 Project Grant competition. Priority Announcement Grants are part of this funding. On a national level, CIHR approved a total of 421 research grants, for a total investment of approximately $413 million. In addition, 83 priority announcement grants were funded for a total amount of $9.7 million and 17 supplemental prizes were awarded for a total of $450,000.
