Mother-to-Infant Bonding is Associated with Maternal Insomnia, Snoring, Cognitive Arousal, and Infant Sleep Problems and Colic

Background: The longer-term impact of the pandemic on autistic adults' sleep are yet to be revealed, with studies concentrating on sleep in autistic children or mental health outcomes and coping strategies of autistic adults. Given the prevalence of sleep problems experienced by autistic adults and the changes in routine that have occurred as a result of COVID-19 societal restrictions, this study assessed the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on sleep problems via a longitudinal subjective assessment method.Methods: Sleep data were gathered at three time points from 95 autistic adults, namely prior to the pandemic, at the start of COVID-19 and several months into COVID-19 to obtain a rich longitudinal dataset ascertaining how/if sleep patterns have changed in autistic adults over these several months.Results: In comparison to pre-lockdown, several sleep components were shown to improve during the lockdown. These improvements included reduced sleep latency (time taken to fall asleep), longer sleep duration, improved sleep efficiency, improved sleep quality, as well as improved daytime functioning. Pre-sleep cognitive arousal scores were found to decrease compared to pre-lockdown, meaning cognitive arousal improved. Approximately 65% of participants reported that they felt their sleep had been impacted since COVID-19 since Time 1, with the most common reasons reported as waking up exhausted (36.92%), not being able to get to sleep (33.85%), waking up in the night (29.23%), having a disrupted sleep pattern (27.69%), and nightmares (18.46%).Conclusions: Improvements in sleep may be related to societal changes (e.g., working from home) during the pandemic. Some of these changes are arguably beneficial for autistic adults in creating a more autism-inclusive society, for example telehealth opportunities for care. Further exploration of the associations between mental health and sleep are warranted.

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Mother–Infant Sleep and Maternal Emotional Distress in Solo-Mother and Two-Parent Families

Journal of Pediatric Psychology ◽

10.1093/jpepsy/jsz097 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 45 (2) ◽

pp. 181-193

Author(s):

Hamutal Ben-Zion ◽

Ella Volkovich ◽

Gal Meiri ◽

Liat Tikotzky

Keyword(s):

Sleep Quality ◽

Family Structure ◽

Emotional Distress ◽

Sleep Problems ◽

Infant Sleep ◽

Sleep Diaries ◽

Maternal Sleep ◽

Sleeping Arrangements ◽

Age Range ◽

First Time

Abstract Objective This study examined for the first time mother–infant sleep and emotional distress in solo mother families compared with two-parent families and explored whether the links between mother–infant sleep and maternal emotional distress differ as a function of family structure. Methods Thirty-nine solo-mother families and 39 two-parent families, with an infant within the age range of 6–18 months participated in the study. Actigraphy and sleep diaries were used to assess maternal and infant sleep at home. Mothers completed questionnaires to assess maternal depressive and anxiety symptoms, social support, sleeping arrangements, breastfeeding, and demographics. Results Solo mothers were older and more likely to breastfeed and share a bed with their infants than married mothers. There were no significant differences between the groups in mother–infant sleep and maternal emotional distress, while controlling for maternal age, breastfeeding, and sleeping arrangements. Family structure had a moderating effect on the associations between maternal emotional distress and mother–infant sleep. Only in solo-mother families, higher maternal emotional distress was associated with lower maternal and infant sleep quality. Conclusions Our findings suggest that, although there are no significant differences in maternal and infant sleep between solo-mother families and two-parent families, the strength of the associations between maternal emotional distress and both infant and maternal sleep quality are stronger in solo-mother families, compared with two-parent families. Hopefully, understanding which aspects of parenting may contribute to the development of sleep problems in solo-mother families could be helpful in tailoring interventions to this growing population.

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