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Background The process of entering motherhood is highly stressful for women, with 15–85% of new mothers experiencing postpartum blues or depression. This study was designed to evaluate the efficacy of a mindfulness-based childbirth and parenting program in improving psychological health during the postpartum period. Methods This research was a randomized controlled trial with single blinding. Recruitment began after the participating hospital granted formal approval. A total of 74 women between 13 and 28-weeks gestation were allocated either to the intervention group or to the comparison group. The intervention program included a series of eight, 3-h classes held once weekly and 1 day of 7-h silent meditation. Psychological health was assessed at baseline and 3-months postpartum. Results Significant differences in stress and depression were observed in both groups over time. Stress scores and depression scores were significantly better in the intervention group than in the comparison group at 3-months postpartum (F = 7.19, p  = .009 and F = 7.36, p  = .008, respectively). No significant difference between the groups was identified for mindfulness scores at 3-months postpartum. Conclusions The intervention program effectively reduced postpartum self-perceived stress and depression, suggesting that this program provides acceptable and long-term benefits to women during pregnancy and the postpartum period. The teaching and practice of mindfulness meditation and parenting education during pregnancy may help reduce stress and depression in pregnant women as they transition into parenthood. Trial registration The ClinicalTrials.gov identifier for this study is: NCT03185910 . The study was retrospectively registered on 14 June 2017.

Psychological aspects of labor and birth have received little attention within maternity care service planning or clinical practice. The aim of this paper is to propose a model demonstrating how neurohormonal processes, in particular oxytocinergic mechanisms, not only control the physiological aspects of labor and birth, but also contribute to the subjective psychological experiences of birth. In addition, sensory information from the uterus as well as the external environment might influence these neurohormonal processes thereby influencing the progress of labor and the experience of birth. In this new model of childbirth, we integrated the findings from two previous systematic reviews, one on maternal plasma levels of oxytocin during physiological childbirth and one meta-synthesis of women´s subjective experiences of physiological childbirth. The neurobiological processes induced by the release of endogenous oxytocin during birth influence maternal behaviour and feelings in connection with birth in order to facilitate birth. The psychological experiences during birth may promote an optimal transition to motherhood. The spontaneous altered state of consciousness, that some women experience, may well be a hallmark of physiological childbirth in humans. The data also highlights the crucial role of one-to-one support during labor and birth. The physiological importance of social support to reduce labor stress and pain necessitates a reconsideration of many aspects of modern maternity care. By listening to women's experiences and by observing women during childbirth, factors that contribute to an optimized process of labor, such as the mothers' wellbeing and feelings of safety, may be identified. These observations support the integrative role of endogenous oxytocin in coordinating the neuroendocrine, psychological and physiological aspects of labor and birth, including oxytocin mediated. decrease of pain, fear and stress, support the need for midwifery one-to-one support in labour as well as the need for maternity care that optimizes the function of these neuroendocrine processes even when birth interventions are used. Women and their partners would benefit from understanding the crucial role that endogenous oxytocin plays in the psychological and neuroendocrinological process of labor.

This study evaluated the relationship between sleep quality and symptoms of depression and anxiety in women studied in pregnancy and postpartum. Scores on standardized measures of sleep (PSQI) at 6 months postpartum, and symptoms of anxiety and depression (OASIS, the PHQ9, and EPDS) were assessed by structured interviews in 116 women in pregnancy and/or postpartum. Poor sleep quality was significantly associated with greater symptoms of depression and anxiety. Women who had significantly higher OASIS (anxiety) scores (β = .530, p < .001), PHQ9 (depression) scores (β = .496, p < .001), and EPDS (postpartum depression and anxiety) scores (β = .585, p < .001) also had elevated total PSQI scores after adjustment for covariates, including prenatal depression and anxiety scores. Though inferences about causality are not feasible, these results support emerging research showing sleep quality is a risk factor for negative maternal affect in the postpartum period. Assessment of maternal sleep hygiene is worth consideration as a component of identifying women at risk for postpartum depression and anxiety.

Despite common use of antidepressants to treat postpartum depression, little is known about the impact of antidepressant use on postpartum brain activity. Additionally, although oxytocin has been investigated as a potential treatment for postpartum depression, the interaction between antidepressants and exogenous oxytocin on brain activity is unknown. We explored postpartum depressed women's neural activation in areas identified as important to emotion and reward processing and potentially, antidepressant response: the amygdala, nucleus accumbens and ventral tegmental area. We conducted a secondary analysis of a functional imaging study of response to sexual, crying infant and smiling infant images in 23 postpartum depressed women with infants under six months (11 women taking antidepressants, 12 unmedicated). Participants were randomized to receive a single dose of oxytocin or placebo nasal spray. There was significantly higher amygdala activation to sexual stimuli than either neutral or infant-related stimuli among women taking antidepressants or receiving oxytocin nasal spray. Among unmedicated women receiving placebo, amygdala activation was similar across stimuli types. There were no significant effects of antidepressants nor oxytocin nasal spray on reward area processing (i.e., in the nucleus accumbens or ventral tegmental area). Among postpartum women who remain depressed, there may be significant interactions between the effects of antidepressant use and exogenous oxytocin on neural activity associated with processing emotional information. Observed effect sizes were moderate to large, strongly suggesting the need for further replication with a larger sample.

Background Childbirth and postpartum experience often lead to the significant physiological and emotional changes in mothers. Hormonal fluctuations, coupled with the adaptation to maternal roles, play a pivotal role in postpartum depression and anxiety. The present study aimed to evaluate the effect of home and telephone supportive counseling on postpartum depression and anxiety. Methods This randomized controlled trial was conducted on 93 primiparous women aged 18–45 years attended the Taleghani and Al-Zahra educational and medical centers in Tabriz, Iran. Subjects were randomly assigned to the home supportive counseling, telephone supportive counseling, and control (receiving routine postpartum care) groups. Home and telephone supportive counseling were conducted for three 30–45 min sessions scheduled on postpartum days 3–5, 7–9, and 20–25. Data were collected using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale and the Postpartum Specific Anxiety Scale 10–15 days and 42–60 days postpartum, and analyzed using ANCOVA and Kruskal-Wallis tests. Results The mean (SD) depression score was 6.23 (3.09) in the telephone supportive counseling group, 4.78 (3.85) in the home supportive counseling group, and 5.79 (3.39) in the control group during 10–15 days postpartum ( P  = 0.016). The mean (SD) anxiety score was 28.11 (9.37) in the telephone supportive counseling group, 27.32 (7.38) in the home supportive counseling group, and 39.88 (7.73) in the control group during 10–15 days postpartum ( P  < 0.001). However, no statistically significant difference in depression and anxiety scores was observed among the three groups during 42–60 days postpartum ( P  > 0.05). Conclusion Home supportive counseling effectively alleviates symptoms of postpartum depression within 10–15 days postpartum. Moreover, both home and telephone supportive counseling were found to reduce postpartum anxiety symptoms within 10–15 days postpartum. Considering the cost-effectiveness of phone counseling, it is recommended that healthcare providers use telephone supportive counseling to reduce early postpartum anxiety. Registration clinical trials Iranian Registery of Clinical Trials-Beta vertion, https://irct.behdasht.gov.ir/trial/71775 (IRCT20170506033834N11), registered 2023.8.20.

Abstract Introduction Postpartum smoking relapse is a highly prevalent public health problem. Mood and breast feeding are significantly associated with smoking relapse, although less is known about the temporality of these relationships. Therefore, this study utilized ecological momentary assessments (EMA) to prospectively examine changes in mood and smoking-related symptomatology in relationship to three events—childbirth, termination of breast feeding, and smoking relapse. We expected all three events to significantly alter mood and smoking-related symptomatology. Methods We enrolled a sample of pregnant women who had recently quit smoking and intended to remain quit during the postpartum. Participants were randomized to active/placebo progesterone to prevent postpartum relapse. Participants also completed daily EMA to collect data mood and smoking-related symptomatology as well as our three events of interest. Results Participants (n = 46) were, on average, 26.5 ± 0.8 years old and, prior to pregnancy, smoked 10.1 ± 0.7 cigarettes/day. We noted a number of significant within- and between-subject relationships. For example, participants reported a 24% decline in negative affect after childbirth (p = .0016). Among those who relapsed to smoking (n = 23), participants randomized to placebo had a significant increase in cigarette craving after relapse (β = 1.06, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.62 to 1.49, p value = .0003), whereas participants randomized to active progesterone did not (β = 0.63, 95% CI = −0.35 to 1.62, p value = .1824). Conclusions These observations suggest that mood and smoking-related symptomatology are influenced by childbirth, breast feeding, smoking relapse, and use of exogenous progesterone. Future research should explore how these observations may inform novel postpartum smoking relapse-prevention interventions. Implications Postpartum smoking relapse has been a persistent public health problem for more than 40 years. Although a number of significant predictors of postpartum smoking relapse have been identified (eg, depression and breast feeding), much of these analyses have relied on cross-sectional and/or self-reported retrospective data. Therefore, for the first time, we utilized ecological momentary assessment to explore the effect of childbirth, termination of breast feeding, and smoking relapse on mood and smoking-related symptomatology (eg, craving). Numerous significant relationships were observed, including a 96% increase in craving after smoking relapse. These novel observations can inform new and effective postpartum smoking relapse-prevention programs.

Medical research is moving toward prevention strategies during prodromal states. Postpartum blues (PPB) is often a prodromal state for postpartum depression (PPD), with severe PPB strongly associated with an elevated risk for PPD. The most common complication of childbearing, PPD has a prevalence of 13%, but there are no widespread prevention strategies, and no nutraceutical interventions have been developed. To counter the effects of the 40% increase in monoamine oxidase A (MAO-A) levels that occurs during PPB, a dietary supplement kit consisting of monoamine precursor amino acids and dietary antioxidants was created. Key ingredients (tryptophan and tyrosine) were shown not to affect their total concentration in breast milk. The aim of this open-label study was to assess whether this dietary supplement reduces vulnerability to depressed mood at postpartum day 5, the typical peak of PPB. Forty-one healthy women completed all study procedures. One group (n = 21) received the dietary supplement, composed of 2 g of tryptophan, 10 g of tyrosine, and blueberry juice with blueberry extract. The control group (n = 20) did not receive any supplement. PPB severity was quantitated by the elevation in depressed mood on a visual analog scale following the sad mood induction procedure (MIP). Following the MIP, there was a robust induction of depressed mood in the control group, but no effect in the supplement group [43.85 ± 18.98 mm vs. 0.05 ± 9.57 mm shift; effect size: 2.9; F(1,39) = 88.33, P < 0.001]. This dietary supplement designed to counter functions of elevated MAO-A activity eliminates vulnerability to depressed mood during the peak of PPB.

PurposePostpartum depression (PPD) and anxiety (PPA) affect nearly one-quarter (23%) of women in Canada. eHealth is a promising solution for increasing access to postpartum mental healthcare. However, a user-centered approach is not routinely taken in the development of web-enabled resources, leaving postpartum women out of critical decision-making processes. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness, usability, and user satisfaction of PostpartumCare.ca, a web-enabled psychoeducational resource for PPD and PPA, created in partnership with postpartum women in British Columbia.MethodsParticipants were randomized to either an intervention group (n = 52) receiving access to PostpartumCare.ca for four weeks, or to a waitlist control group (n = 51). Measures evaluating PPD (Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale) and PPA symptoms (Perinatal Anxiety Screening Scale) were completed at baseline, after four weeks, and after a two-week follow-up. User ratings of website usability and satisfaction and website metrics were also collected.ResultsPPD and PPA symptoms were significantly reduced for the intervention group only after four weeks, with improvements maintained after a two-week follow-up, corresponding with small-to-medium effect sizes (PPD: partial η2 = 0.03; PPA: partial η2 = 0.04). Intervention participants were also more likely than waitlist controls to recover from clinical levels of PPD symptoms (χ 2 (1, n = 63) = 4.58, p = .032) and PostpartumCare.ca’s usability and satisfaction were rated favourably overall.ConclusionFindings suggest that a web-enabled psychoeducational resource, created in collaboration with patient partners, can effectively reduce PPD and PPA symptoms, supporting its potential use as a low-barrier option for postpartum women.Trial RegistrationProtocol for this trial was preregistered on NIH U.S. National Library of Medicine, ClinicalTrials.gov as of May 2022 (ID No. NCT05382884).

Postpartum depression affects a huge number of women and has detrimental consequences. Knowing the factors associated with postpartum depression during pregnancy can help its prevention. Although there is evidence surrounding behavioral or psychological predictors of postpartum depression, there is a lack of evidence of biological forecasters. The aim of this study was to analyze the sociodemographic, obstetric, and psychological variables along with hair cortisol levels during the first, second, and third trimesters of pregnancy that could predict postpartum depression symptoms. A sample of 44 pregnant women was assessed during 3 trimesters of pregnancy and the postpartum period using psychological questionnaires and hair cortisol levels. Participants were divided into 2 groups: a group with postpartum depression symptoms and a group with no postpartum depression symptoms. Results showed significant positive differences between groups in the first trimester regarding the Somatization subscale of the SCL-90-R (p < .05). In the second trimester, significant differences were found in the Somatization, Depression, Anxiety, and GSI subscales (p < .05). In the third trimester significant differences between both groups were found regarding pregnancy-specific stress. We found significant positive differences between groups regarding hair cortisol levels in the first and the third trimester. Hair cortisol levels could predict 21.7% of the variance of postpartum depression symptoms. In conclusion, our study provided evidence that psychopathological symptoms, pregnancy-specific stress, and hair cortisol levels can predict postpartum depression symptoms at different time-points during pregnancy. These findings can be applied in future studies and improve maternal care in clinical settings.