The potential for depression in previously infertile new mothers is a noteworthy, though unstudied phenomenon. While it is known that the stress of infertility contributes to a significant risk for depression among infertile women, and that approximately 50 percent of these women achieve motherhood through pregnancy, it is not known what risk exists for development of depression in these new mothers, who have experienced multiple and repeated losses.
The specific aim of the research component of this project are to: 1) Describe the: (a) occurrence of depression at two timepoints using repeated measures, once during the 20th to 32nd week of pregnancy and again at four months after birth in first time mothers with a history of infertility; and (b) factors that are associated with depression in these women during these time periods: sense of self, mood state, marital satisfaction, social support, prenatal psychosocial experience, postpartum psychosocial experience; 2) Explore the subjective experiences of depression at four months post- birth in these new mothers; and 3) Test the feasibility and short-term effectiveness of a nursing intervention, based on an interpersonal approach, to treat depression in these women. The goal of this program of research is to develop a full scale intervention study, based on the knowledge gained in this proposed study. In order to do so, the specific aims of the career development component of this project are to: 1) Expand the investigator's knowledge of women's depression by: (a) gaining expertise in the theoretical work of women's relational self as key in understanding women's psychological growth and development of depression, and (b) developing a better understanding of the biological factors associated with women's depression; 2) Expand the investigator s scientific work to enable development of intervention research by gaining expertise in: (a) research methods and data analysis for both longitudinal cohort and intervention studies, and (b) psychometrics to enable development of instruments to measure sense of self and depression as related to infertility; and 3) Test an interpersonal intervention for depressed, previously infertile mothers, as the basis for a full-scale intervention study to be developed.
| Olshansky, Ellen (2003) A theoretical explanation for previously infertile mothers' vulnerability to depression. J Nurs Scholarsh 35:263-8 |
