Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 13, 2025

A Common Marmoset Model of Mother-Infant Intervention for Breastfeeding Disorders in the Presence of Paternal Inhibition and Maternal Neglect
05:04

A Common Marmoset Model of Mother-Infant Intervention for Breastfeeding Disorders in the Presence of Paternal Inhibition and Maternal Neglect

Published on: September 22, 2023

396

Perceived Pressures and Mental Health of Breastfeeding Mothers: A Qualitative Descriptive Study

Abigail Wheeler1, Shanti Farrington1, Fay Sweeting1

  • 1Psychology Department, Faculty of Science and Technology, Bournemouth University, Poole BH12 5BB, UK.

Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland)
|September 14, 2024
PubMed

When a mother is supported to breastfeed, the benefits for her mental health are significant. However, if pressured or unsupported, the opposite is true. This research examines mothers' breastfeeding experiences, exploring how perceived pressure can impact perinatal mental health. A sample of 501 respondents to a research questionnaire was explored using Reflexive Thematic Analysis. Three main themes identified were perceived pressure to breastfeed, perceived pressure not to breastfeed and mental health impact. The main findings were that mothers received conflicting advice from healthcare professionals, and pressures to feed in a certain way came from their support networks, as well as from their internal beliefs. Perceived pressures negatively impacted maternal mental health, while positive breastfeeding experiences benefitted mental health outcomes.

Keywords:
breastfeedingmental healthpostnatal carequalitativesocial support

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