“It feels a bit like drowning”: Expectations and Experiences of Motherhood during COVID-19

What is the result of bringing unrealistic and overwhelming conditions of motherhood into the context of a global pandemic? This article aims to explore the impacts of maternal expectations and experiences in the context of COVID-19. Through first-person accounts of eighty self-identified mothers parenting through COVID, we aim to explore “good” mother myths, feelings of failure, and the paradoxical freedoms that occur under pandemic time.

Helpless Mothers Dropping Out of the Workplace: The Italian Case of Voluntary Resignation

In the Italian social context difficulties in remaining in the labor market characterizes working mothers, leading them sometimes to resign from their jobs. The aim of this research is to explore narratives of those women dropping out of the workforce during pregnancy and soon after childbirth and their experiences in these circumstances. The study analysed 30 interviews with working mothers with an average age of 35.4 years, living in Naples, Italy, who “spontaneously” left their jobs. Grounded Theory Methodology allowed a deeper understanding of these women’s thoughts, feelings, and experiences. The content of the interviews was categorized into 4 macro-areas: (1) The role of the family and of the working contexts, (2) Mothering and caregiving (3) Identity conflicts, and (4) The consequences of resignation. A sense of helplessness towards fulfilling maternal expectations, role assignments, and employers’ requests ultimately led to the individuals’ response to the requirements of motherhood. The narratives highlighted how respondents feel powerless and oppressed by the burden of guilt and feelings of ambivalence towards both work and motherhood and how all these subjective feelings were supported and had been induced by external social factors (discriminatory business strategies, organizational time management, lack of support services, familial cultural models idealizing maternity).

Maternal Expectations Among Pregnant Women from Single, Lesbian, and Heterosexual Parented families

Little is known about the psychological processes of pregnant women in different family structures. Aiming to fill this gap, the present study examined the prenatal maternal expectations (common cultural beliefs about what women can expect during the transition to motherhood) of women from lesbian ( n = 51), single ( n = 57), and heterosexual ( n = 893) parented families. The results suggest that maternal expectations differ by family structure. While single women reported relatively high levels of natural-fulfillment maternal expectations, women from lesbian parented families reported relatively low levels of these expectations. Single women reported the highest levels of sacrifice (a belief that parenting requires significant sacrifices from the self) and infant-reflects-mothering maternal expectations (a belief that the infant’s behavior reflects one’s maternal skills). These differences may reflect the different social pressures and personal challenges each group encounters in the process of deciding to become a mother and implementing the decision.

Therapeutic delivery from a solid formulation during breastfeeding: a feasibility study

ABSTRACTBackgroundEnteral drug and nutrient delivery to breastfed infants depends on the use of oral syringes and liquid formulations. This can pose both practical and emotional challenges to drug delivery.ObjectivesThe presented study aimed to explore the potential of using solid formulations for therapeutic delivery during breastfeeding.MethodsSingle centre feasibility study within a tertiary level neonatal unit in the UK, involving twenty-six breastfeeding mother-infant dyads. Vitamin B12 was delivered to infants during breastfeeding from a solid formulation within a commercial silicon nipple shield. Outcomes included the quantitative measurement of change in serum vitamin B12 and a mixed methods assessment of maternal expectations and experiences.ResultsParticipants described the surprising ease of ‘drug’ delivery, with no negative impact on breastfeeding behaviour or sensation reported. Vitamin B12 levels rose on average from a baseline of 533 pg/mL (236 - 925 pg/mL) to 1871 pg/mL (610 – 4981 pg/mL) at 6 - 8 hours post-delivery. All mothers expressed their support for this approach, 85% a preference over the use of oral syringes. Reasoning for support related to the reduced medicalisation of this procedure compared to the use of oral syringes, and a desire for choices in relation to their infants’ health.ConclusionsThis study demonstrated that therapeutic delivery from a solid formulation within a nipple shield was feasible and acceptable to mothers and infants.

CONGENITAL ZIKA VIRUS SYNDROME: KNOWLEDGE AND HOW TO COMMUNICATE THE DIAGNOSIS

ABSTRACT Objective: to know how mothers affected by the Zika virus during pregnancy became aware on the diagnosis of Congenital Zika Virus Syndrome in their child and to understand the way in which the communication of the diagnosis was transmitted. Method: a qualitative approach study, with interpretative research, based on the Resilience, Stress, Adjustment and Family Adaptation Model. The research was conducted in a Specialized Rehabilitation Center in a city of Paraíba (Brazil), from June to November 2017, with 40 mothers of children with congenital Zika virus syndrome. The empirical material was produced from a semi-structured script developed by the researcher, related to the different phases and components of the adaptation and resilience process. The findings were submitted to content analysis. Results: two thematic categories were unveiled: The discovery of Congenital Zika Virus Syndrome: period of diagnosis and maternal expectations, and How to communicate the diagnosis: implications for the discovery of Congenital Zika Virus Syndrome. Conclusion: Communication of the diagnosis and professional conduct at the time of information play important roles in re-signifying the meaning of congenital malformation. The interaction established by the health professional and their posture are directly related to the satisfaction about the information received.

Performance of Integrated Healthcare Center Cadre and Scope of Community Participation

Integrated Healthcare Center is one of the social institutions that play a role in the approach of community participation in the health sector. Integrated Healthcare Center serves as a real entrance to all basic health services especially for infants, toddlers, and pregnant women. This study aims to assess the performance of Integrated Healthcare Center cadres and the scope of community participation in Pangali-Ali Village, Banggae District, Majene Regency 2016. This research was conducted with analytical methods with cross-sectional approach to assess the performance of Integrated Healthcare Center cadres and the scope of community participation in Pangali-Ali Village, Banggae District, Majene District. This research was conducted at Integrated Healthcare Center Village Pangali-Ali Banggae District Majenen Regency, a total sample of 400 mothers who have children under five. The results of research on community participation in Integrated Healthcare Center services on the growth of children under five in Pangali-Ali Village Majene Regency, West Sulawesi Province) that the Integrated Healthcare Center cadre performance in the five-table system at the Integrated Healthcare Center in Pangali-Ali village is categorized as good, only for counseling (table IV) there are things that are lacking effective in particular the provision of information and counseling by cadres is still not in accordance with maternal expectations. Keywords: performance, cadre, integrated healthcare center

Family Processes and Adolescent Achievement Motivation in Poor Chinese Single-Mother Families

This study examined the moderation effect of family functioning on the relationship between maternal expectations of the children’s future and adolescent achievement motivation in a sample of 432 Chinese single-mother families experiencing economic disadvantage in Hong Kong. Results indicated that family functioning moderated the influence of maternal expectations of the children’s future on adolescent achievement motivation. The relationship between maternal expectations and adolescent achievement motivation was significantly positive in single-mother families having higher family functioning, while the relationship was not significant in those families with relatively lower family functioning. The main and moderating effects were found stable between immigrant and nonimmigrant mothers. The present study provides important insight into how single-mother families living in poverty strive to nurture their children in the face of adversity. The theoretical and practical implications of the findings are discussed.