Infant colic and maternal depression

Abstract

The combined impact of infant colic and maternal depression on infant, parent, and family difficulties was examined. The sample included 93 consecutive patients seen at an outpatient Colic Clinic. Most mothers had private insurance and completed high school. Infants were approximately 2 months of age. Questionnaires completed by the mother prior to treatment onset were used to measure depressive symptoms in the mothers, infant cry, sleep and temperament, characteristics, parenting stress, maternal self-esteem, social support, and family function. Moderate to severe depressive symptoms were reported by 45.2% of the mothers. More severe depressive symptoms in the mothers were related to fussy/difficult infant temperament, more parenting stress, lower parental self-esteem, and more family-functioning problems. Pediatric health care providers need to be aware that the combined effects of colic and maternal depression can be problematic for the family. ©2005 Michigan Association for Infant Mental Health.

Regulatory Problems in Very Preterm and Full-Term Infants Over the First 18 Months

“…Mother-infant interaction problems, maternal stress and maternal anxiety have been suggested as critical factors in developing crying and feeding problems. [55][56][57][58][59][60][61] Future research may take into account the impact of maternal mental health and/or mother-infant interaction in alleviating or leading to crying and feeding problems.…”

Parenting Stress in Mothers and Fathers of Toddlers with Autism Spectrum Disorders: Associations with Child Characteristics

“…Parental mental health is an important consideration in the study of parenting stress, as studies have shown that parental depression is a strong correlate of parenting stress (e.g., Gelfand et al 1992;Maxted et al 2005). Parents struggling with their own emotional difficulties may have fewer coping resources and feel more stressed by their children's challenging behaviors.…”

The Impacts Of Postpartum Depression On Children Postpartum Depresyonun Çocuklar Üzerine Etkileri

“…Previous studies show that maternal depression were related to fussy/difficult infant temperament such as colic symptoms and more parenting stress (31,32). Similarly, the infant colic or cry-fuss problems were found associated with postpartum depressive symptoms in other studies (33,34).…”