A Longitudinal Examination of Mothers' Early Postnatal Adaptation: Relative Stability Across the First Eight Weeks.

OBJECTIVE: Using person-centered analyses, this study examined the trajectories of women's early postnatal adaptation and explored whether there were differences in their trajectories based on women's status as a first-time or more experienced mother. METHODS: Data were collected from women (N = 137; Mage = 28.6 years, SD = 4.49; 48.2% first-time mothers) at 2-, 4-, 6-, and 8-weeks postpartum. At each wave of data collection, mothers reported on their parenting self-efficacy, parenting satisfaction, anxiety, parenting stress, and depressive feelings. RESULTS: The creation of an amalgamated measure of postnatal adaptation demonstrated acceptable fit. Latent class growth analysis revealed four distinct trajectories of postnatal adaptation; two revealed stability across the early postnatal period and two had relative stability except for a change between weeks four to six. Women's parity was not associated with differences in their trajectories. CONCLUSIONS FOR PRACTICE: These findings reiterate the importance of collecting data from women in the early postnatal period and identifying if a woman is struggling in those early weeks, as the women in our sample demonstrated relative stability in their postnatal adaptation across the first eight weeks. Furthermore, the findings suggest that work should be taken to dismantle the commonly held belief that parenting is "easier" after having already navigated the early postnatal period with an infant once before.

Emotional experiences of ghosting.

Although ghosting (i.e., unilaterally ending a relationship by ceasing communication) has only recently entered the lexicon, it is a regularly used form of relationship dissolution. However, little research has examined the emotional experiences of ghosting, particularly the experiences of those on both sides of the ghosting process. In a multi-method study, participants who had both ghosted and been ghosted in previous romantic relationships (N = 80) provided narratives of their experiences and completed questionnaires. The narrative responses were analyzed by coders and by using LIWC. Ghosters and ghostees used similar overall levels of positively and negatively valenced words to describe their experiences, but ghosters were more likely to express guilt and relief, whereas ghostees were more likely to express sadness and hurt feelings. Ghostees also experienced more of a threat to their fundamental needs - control, self-esteem, belongingness, meaningful existence - than ghosters.

Expectations, experiences, and desires: Mothers' perceptions of the division of caregiving and their postnatal adaptation.

First-time and experienced mothers' prenatal expectations, postnatal experiences, and postnatal desires regarding the division of infant caregiving responsibilities with her partner were examined to explore whether postnatal desires may be a better indicator of mothers' postnatal adaptation (self-efficacy, satisfaction, stress, depressive symptoms, and state anxiety) than prenatal expectations and postnatal experiences. Mothers (N = 132) completed a prenatal questionnaire during their third trimester and a postnatal questionnaire at 8 weeks postpartum. Women's parental status (first-time vs. experienced) and their postnatal work status were associated with their expectations, experiences, and desires for the division of caregiving. Women whose partners were involved in the caregiving tasks reported more positive postnatal adaptation, whereas women, and particularly first-time mothers, who desired more partner involvement had poorer postnatal adaptation. The results suggest that mothers' postnatal desires concerning the division of caregiving is important to consider in examining mothers' postnatal adaptation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).