Sleep disturbances and depressive symptoms in healthy postpartum women: a pilot study

In this pilot study we examined the relationship between objective and subjective sleep disturbances and depressive symptoms in 22 healthy primiparous postpartum women within 3 months after delivery. We found that none of the women in our study had clinically significant depression scores on the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale; nonetheless, a variable duration of night-time sleep from night to night during the 7-day monitoring period and reported awakening too early were significantly correlated with increased depressive symptoms. Results suggest that first-time mothers who complain of irregular night-time sleep duration and waking up too early should be screened and evaluated for potential postpartum depressive symptoms.