Mother–infant sleep patterns and parental functioning of room-sharing and solitary-sleeping families: a longitudinal study from 3 to 18 months

Volkovich, Ella; Bar‐Kalifa, Eran; Meiri, Gal; Tikotzky, Liat

doi:10.1093/sleep/zsx207

Cited by 43 publications

(23 citation statements)

References 46 publications

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“…Actigraphy has been previously validated against polysomnography [ 30 ]. It has been deemed a reliable measure of objective sleep [ 31 , 32 ]. Actigraphy is a watch-like device that is placed on the wrist of participants’ non-dominant arm.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Investigating the link between sleep and postpartum depression in fathers utilizing subjective and objective sleep measures

et al. 2021

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Background While fathers are at risk of developing poorer sleep and depressive symptoms in the postpartum period, they represent an understudied population in the literature. The present study aimed to explore the association between sleep and postpartum depressive symptoms in fathers using subjective and objective sleep measures. Methods Fifty-four fathers reporting no history of depression took part in this cross-sectional study. At 6 months postpartum, paternal sleep was assessed for 2 weeks utilizing a self-report daily sleep diary, a self-report perceived sleep quality rating, and actigraphy. In the same period, depressive symptoms in fathers were assessed with the Center for Epidemiologic Studies–Depression Scale (CES-D). Results Regression analyses showed that paternal subjective sleep variables captured by the sleep diary (total nocturnal sleep time and number of night awakenings) were not related to postpartum depressive symptoms. However, self-reported perceived sleep quality was significantly associated with postpartum depressive symptom severity in fathers independently of demographic variables related to depression. Alternatively, the objective sleep variables (total nocturnal sleep time, number of night awakenings, sleep efficiency, and wake after sleep onset), measured by actigraphy, did not demonstrate a significant relationship with paternal depression scores. Conclusions These findings highlight the importance of perceived sleep quality, along with better understanding its association with postpartum depressive symptoms. Implementing a multi-measure approach enabled us to expand our knowledge about how different facets of sleep relate to postpartum depression, specifically in fathers. The results have important implications for the development of clinical interventions targeting paternal sleep and mood in the postpartum period.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Investigating the link between sleep and postpartum depression in fathers utilizing subjective and objective sleep measures

et al. 2021

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“…Longitudinal studies employing actigraphy (i.e., wearable wrist accelerometry) measurements of sleep indicate that, whereas mothers' sleep duration does not deteriorate from the pre-to postpartum period, their sleep continuity, defined as wakefulness after sleep onset, significantly decreases (Montgomery-Downs, Insana, Clegg-Kraynok, & Mancini, 2010). Following an initial postnatal drop in sleep continuity, mothers' sleep continuity improves across the first four months postpartum (Montgomery-Downs et al, 2010;Park, Meltzer-Brody, & Stickgold, 2013); however, as many as 20-30% of all infants and toddlers have night-waking problems, and, accordingly, the sleep of many parents continues to be disturbed PREPRINT ACCEPTED TO SLEEP MEDICINE King 4 well beyond the first few months after birth (Mindell, Sadeh, Kwon, & Goh, 2013;Piteo et al, 2013;Tikotzky et al, 2015;Volkovich, Bar-Kalifa, Meiri, & Tikotzky, 2017).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mothers' postpartum sleep disturbance is associated with the ability to sustain sensitivity toward infants

et al. 2020

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Infancy is a period of rapid development when the quality of caregiving behavior may be particularly consequential for children's long-term functioning. During this critical period for caregiving behavior, parents experience changes in their sleep that may affect their ability to provide sensitive care. The current study investigated the association of mothers' sleep disturbance with both levels and trajectories of maternal sensitivity during interactions with their infants. At 18 weeks postpartum, mothers and their infants were observed during a home-based ten-minute "free play" interaction. Mothers' nighttime sleep was objectively measured using actigraphy and subjectively measured using sleep diaries. Maternal sensitivity was coded in two-minute intervals in order to characterize changes in sensitivity across the free play interaction. We used exploratory factor analysis to reduce the dimensionality of the objective and subjective measures of mothers' sleep, identifying a subjective sleep disturbance and an objective sleep continuity factor. Using multi-level modeling, we found that mothers with poorer objective sleep continuity evidenced decreasing sensitivity toward their infants across the interaction. Mothers' self-reports of sleep disturbance were not associated with maternal sensitivity. Although future research is necessary to identify the mechanisms that may explain the observed association between poor sleep continuity and the inability to sustain sensitivity toward infants, mothers' postpartum sleep continuity may be one factor to consider when designing interventions to improve the quality of caregiving.

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“…Compared to mothers whose infants were solitary sleepers by 6 months of age, mothers of infants in consistent cosleeping arrangements throughout the first 6 months have been found to be more aware of their infant's night wakings (Teti et al., ; Volkovich et al., , ). Although the reasons behind the sleeping arrangements have not been investigated, mothers who notice and view their infant's night wakings to be more negative and disruptive, might have changed their sleeping arrangement to solitary sleeping within the first 6 months.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Cosleeping (i.e., bed sharing, room sharing, or the combination of both) has also been examined in relation to infant sleep in accordance with the proposition that parental nighttime availability fosters infant's dependency on their parents to go or return to sleep and thus might lead to sleeping problems. When compared to mothers of solitary sleeping infants, mothers of cosleeping infants have reported more infant night wakings (e.g., Teti, Shimizu, Crosby, & Kim, ; Volkovich, Bar‐Kalifa, Meiri, & Tikotzky, ; Volkovich, Ben‐Zion, Karny, Meiri, & Tikotzky, ). Maternal reports of increased night wakings, however, were not supported by objective infant sleep measures: Use of actigraphy recordings revealed no differences in sleep disruption between cosleeping and solitary sleeping infants (Teti et al., ; Volkovich et al., , ).…”

Section: This Studymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…When compared to mothers of solitary sleeping infants, mothers of cosleeping infants have reported more infant night wakings (e.g., Teti, Shimizu, Crosby, & Kim, ; Volkovich, Bar‐Kalifa, Meiri, & Tikotzky, ; Volkovich, Ben‐Zion, Karny, Meiri, & Tikotzky, ). Maternal reports of increased night wakings, however, were not supported by objective infant sleep measures: Use of actigraphy recordings revealed no differences in sleep disruption between cosleeping and solitary sleeping infants (Teti et al., ; Volkovich et al., , ). In another study, at 4 months of age, the longest mother‐reported single sleep period for solitary sleepers was longer than that for room sharing infants; by 9 months of age, infants who had become solitary sleepers before 4 months of age had relatively longer mother‐reported total sleep and single sleep periods compared to other infants (Paul et al., ).…”

Section: This Studymentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Parent–Infant Room Sharing During the First Months of Life: Longitudinal Links With Behavior During Middle Childhood

Beijers¹,

Cassidy

Lustermans³

et al. 2018

Child Development

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Current recommendations encourage parent–infant room sharing for the first 6 months of life. This longitudinal study (N = 193) is the first to examine long‐term relations of early room sharing with three domains of child behavior: sleep, behavior problems, and prosocial behavior. Information on room sharing was collected daily for infants’ first 6 months. At ages 6, 7, and 8 years, outcomes were assessed with maternal and teacher questionnaires and behavioral observations. Early room sharing was not related to sleep problems or behavior problems. Additionally, more weeks of room sharing were positively related to higher maternal ratings of child sleep quality and more prosocial behavior. In conclusion, early room sharing appears to be related to positive, but not negative, behavior outcomes in middle childhood.

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Mother–infant sleep patterns and parental functioning of room-sharing and solitary-sleeping families: a longitudinal study from 3 to 18 months

Cited by 43 publications

References 46 publications

Investigating the link between sleep and postpartum depression in fathers utilizing subjective and objective sleep measures

Investigating the link between sleep and postpartum depression in fathers utilizing subjective and objective sleep measures

Mothers' postpartum sleep disturbance is associated with the ability to sustain sensitivity toward infants

Parent–Infant Room Sharing During the First Months of Life: Longitudinal Links With Behavior During Middle Childhood

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