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Self-compassion and mindful parenting among postpartum mothers during the COVID-19 pandemic: The role of depressive and anxious symptoms

Self-compassion is an important psychological skill that may facilitate the adoption of a mindful way of parenting, especially during the COVID‐19 pandemic. However, the association between these constructs may be explained by several variables, such as maternal psychopathological symptoms, with a w...

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Autores principales: Fernandes, Daniela Ventura, Canavarro, Maria Cristina, Moreira, Helena
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Springer US 2022
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8905028/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/35283611
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s12144-022-02959-6
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author Fernandes, Daniela Ventura
Canavarro, Maria Cristina
Moreira, Helena
author_facet Fernandes, Daniela Ventura
Canavarro, Maria Cristina
Moreira, Helena
author_sort Fernandes, Daniela Ventura
collection PubMed
description Self-compassion is an important psychological skill that may facilitate the adoption of a mindful way of parenting, especially during the COVID‐19 pandemic. However, the association between these constructs may be explained by several variables, such as maternal psychopathological symptoms, with a well-established interference in parenting. This study aimed to compare mothers who experienced and mothers who did not experience a negative emotional impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on self-compassion, mindful parenting, postpartum depressive symptoms (PPDS) and postpartum anxious symptoms (PPAS). We also explored whether mothers’ self-compassion was associated with mindful parenting and whether this relationship may be mediated by PPDS and PPAS. A sample of 977 Portuguese mothers of infants aged between zero and six months completed an online survey between December 2020 and January 2021, a period of major pandemic-related restrictions. The survey included several self-report questionnaires that assessed sociodemographic, clinical, and COVID-19 information, self-compassion, mindful parenting, PPDS and PPAS. Mothers who reported having felt that the pandemic had a negative emotional impact during their postpartum period (79.5%) presented lower levels of self-compassion and mindful parenting, and higher levels of PPDS and PPAS. Regarding the mediation model, higher levels of self-compassion were related to higher levels of mindful parenting, and this association was mediated by lower levels of PPAS. These results highlight the relevance of mothers’ self-compassion for helping them feel less anxious and to adopt a mindful way of parenting in the postpartum period, particularly during the pandemic. Compassion-based interventions may be particularly important in reducing PPAS and promoting mindful parenting and should be available to postpartum mothers, especially during, but also beyond the pandemic.
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spelling pubmed-89050282022-03-09 Self-compassion and mindful parenting among postpartum mothers during the COVID-19 pandemic: The role of depressive and anxious symptoms Fernandes, Daniela Ventura Canavarro, Maria Cristina Moreira, Helena Curr Psychol Article Self-compassion is an important psychological skill that may facilitate the adoption of a mindful way of parenting, especially during the COVID‐19 pandemic. However, the association between these constructs may be explained by several variables, such as maternal psychopathological symptoms, with a well-established interference in parenting. This study aimed to compare mothers who experienced and mothers who did not experience a negative emotional impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on self-compassion, mindful parenting, postpartum depressive symptoms (PPDS) and postpartum anxious symptoms (PPAS). We also explored whether mothers’ self-compassion was associated with mindful parenting and whether this relationship may be mediated by PPDS and PPAS. A sample of 977 Portuguese mothers of infants aged between zero and six months completed an online survey between December 2020 and January 2021, a period of major pandemic-related restrictions. The survey included several self-report questionnaires that assessed sociodemographic, clinical, and COVID-19 information, self-compassion, mindful parenting, PPDS and PPAS. Mothers who reported having felt that the pandemic had a negative emotional impact during their postpartum period (79.5%) presented lower levels of self-compassion and mindful parenting, and higher levels of PPDS and PPAS. Regarding the mediation model, higher levels of self-compassion were related to higher levels of mindful parenting, and this association was mediated by lower levels of PPAS. These results highlight the relevance of mothers’ self-compassion for helping them feel less anxious and to adopt a mindful way of parenting in the postpartum period, particularly during the pandemic. Compassion-based interventions may be particularly important in reducing PPAS and promoting mindful parenting and should be available to postpartum mothers, especially during, but also beyond the pandemic. Springer US 2022-03-09 /pmc/articles/PMC8905028/ /pubmed/35283611 http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s12144-022-02959-6 Text en © The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature 2022 This article is made available via the PMC Open Access Subset for unrestricted research re-use and secondary analysis in any form or by any means with acknowledgement of the original source. These permissions are granted for the duration of the World Health Organization (WHO) declaration of COVID-19 as a global pandemic.
spellingShingle Article
Fernandes, Daniela Ventura
Canavarro, Maria Cristina
Moreira, Helena
Self-compassion and mindful parenting among postpartum mothers during the COVID-19 pandemic: The role of depressive and anxious symptoms
title Self-compassion and mindful parenting among postpartum mothers during the COVID-19 pandemic: The role of depressive and anxious symptoms
title_full Self-compassion and mindful parenting among postpartum mothers during the COVID-19 pandemic: The role of depressive and anxious symptoms
title_fullStr Self-compassion and mindful parenting among postpartum mothers during the COVID-19 pandemic: The role of depressive and anxious symptoms
title_full_unstemmed Self-compassion and mindful parenting among postpartum mothers during the COVID-19 pandemic: The role of depressive and anxious symptoms
title_short Self-compassion and mindful parenting among postpartum mothers during the COVID-19 pandemic: The role of depressive and anxious symptoms
title_sort self-compassion and mindful parenting among postpartum mothers during the covid-19 pandemic: the role of depressive and anxious symptoms
topic Article
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8905028/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/35283611
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s12144-022-02959-6
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