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Background: Measures to contain the Covid-19 pandemic had major impacts on families, e.g., due to the unpredictable closing of childcare facilities and schools. Parents had to re-arrange their work, childcare and household obligations. Methods: We conducted 17 email interviews with mothers having at least one child aged < =6 years. Topics included adjustments to the pandemic situation, views on motherhood and wellbeing. We analysed data through content analysis. Results: We found differing consequences on the wellbeing of the interviewees. One group articulated a deceleration of daily life and increased satisfaction due to doing more justice to their role as mother. Another group felt highly stressed and overloaded. Some expressed having shaky hands and heart palpitations, others felt mentally exhausted. The idea of not being a ‘good mother’ was expressed by many, provoking guilt and self-doubt. Most interviewees referred to ideological myths of motherhood, picturing mothers as caring and sacrificial, yet well-organized managers of the family. Norms imposed on ‘working mothers’ require their full effort and an ability to manage employers’ demands. These conflicting norms reveal tensions between the roles mothers find themselves in, potentially leading to adverse (mental) health outcomes. Conclusions: Our analysis shows that myths of ‘good motherhood’ act as a perpetuation mechanism of traditional gender roles and increase the social burden many mothers are expected to carry, adding to the challenges the global pandemic brought on families. Negative consequences on (mental) health require mitigation strategies, putting mothers at the centre of Covid19 response policies. Key messages: The Covid-19 pandemic exacerbates traditional gender roles and the multiple social burdens that mothers are expected to carry. Conflicting norms imposed on mothers reveal tensions between the different roles they find themselves in, potentially leading to adverse (mental) health outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Social media offer expecting and new mothers a space to discuss birth-related fears, hopes and experiences. This is particularly the case during the Covid-19 pandemic, which has altered delivery of maternity care. Measures to reduce transmission risk in birth facilities and changes in birth plans are likely to have had an impact on new mothers' experiences of birth and birth care. From a feminist epidemiology perspective, seeking to incorporate more the views of the "researched", we explored themes discussed by (expecting) mothers on social media, hoping that those real-life concerns would find echo in the design of future research instruments for data collection. Methods: Using content analysis, we identified key themes in 200+ comments posted on a social media public page as a reaction to the dissemination of a research survey on maternity care during the Covid-19 pandemic in Germany. Results: In the comments, the most mentioned topics were own mask wearing, having a companion of choice during birth, visiting hours, and the possibility to welcome visitors (e.g. siblings of the newborn, other relatives and friends). Those topics also generated the most reactions, revealing compassion from other women and mixed feeling about health measures (from acceptance to anger). Concerns about quality or appropriateness of care were almost absent from the data. Conclusions: Social media content analysis shows clearly that women giving birth during the pandemic are most concerned with a specific set of disrupting and potentially upsetting measures. These spontaneous testimonies differ content-wise from what research surveys tend to ask women about (e.g. care standards). Those discrepancies are to some extent inevitable, but integrating more bottom-up generated topics from social media into research instruments could help move forward toward better care. Key messages: On social media, women were most concerned with own mask wearing, presence of a birth companion and visits from the newborn's siblings. Social media analysis brings valuable insights into what matters the most to women who give birth during the pandemic and could inform future research developments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]