Can Oxytocin Be Used to Treat Postpartum Depressive Symptoms?
Intranasal oxytocin improves mood in postpartum women but has no impact on mood in women with more severe depressive symptoms.
A Novel Collaborative Group Intervention for Mothers with Perinatal Mental Illness and Their Infants
“Together in Mind” is a group intervention for mothers diagnosed with moderate to severe mental illness and their infants.
How Has the Pandemic Affected Mother-Infant Bonding?
Pandemic-related grief, but not anxiety, was associated with lower quality bonding.
Breastfeeding Difficulties May Affect Bonding: How Can We Help New Moms?
Although new mothers describe breastfeeding as a meaningful and fulfilling aspect of caring for their infants, breastfeeding is also a common source of stress and anxiety. A recent study suggests that difficulties with breastfeeding may [...]
Understanding the Psychological Consequences of Hyperemesis Gravidarum
Most women have some nausea or vomiting, or “morning sickness”, during the first trimester of pregnancy. Some women, however, have a more severe and persistent pattern of nausea and vomiting called hyperemesis gravidarum (HG). [...]
CBT-Based Group Intervention Improves Perinatal Depression and Maternal Sensitivity
Previous research has shown that higher levels of depressive symptoms during pregnancy may be associated with lower levels of maternal-fetal attachment (MFA). Other studies have indicated that poor MFA is a significant predictor of worse [...]
Bonding Problems Emerge Early and Persist Across the First Year of Life
A mother’s emotional relationship with her baby begins during her pregnancy. After her baby is born, the mother’s feelings about her baby, described as bonding, typically grow and intensify and become the foundation of the [...]
![By Vera Kratochvil [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons](https://womensmentalhealth.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/Mother_Kissing_Baby-320x202.jpg)
Maternal Depression and Its Effects on the Child: What is the Role of Oxytocin?
There is significant literature indicating that a mother’s depression may adversely affect her young child. Studies have demonstrated that the children of depressed mothers are more likely than the children of non-depressed mothers to exhibit [...]
Depression in Fathers Affects Bonding
Multiple studies have shown that postpartum depression can interfere with bonding between the mother and her infant. While new fathers may also develop depression, little is known about how depression in the father affects bonding. [...]
Perinatal Dyadic Psychotherapy for the Treatment of Postpartum Depression
Many studies have observed that postpartum depression may negatively affect the mother-infant relationship and may thus impede bonding and attachment and negatively affect the development of the young child. A recent study explores the use of Perinatal Dyadic Psychotherapy (PDP), a dual-focused mother-infant intervention designed to prevent and/or decrease depressive symptoms in the mother and to improve aspects of the mother-infant relationship related to child development.