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Adverse Childhood Experiences and Current Psychosocial Stressors: Exploring Effects on Mental Health and Parenting Outcomes from a Mother–Baby Partial Hospital Program.
- Source :
- Maternal & Child Health Journal; Feb2022, Vol. 26 Issue 2, p289-298, 10p, 3 Charts
- Publication Year :
- 2022
-
Abstract
- Objectives: Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) can detrimentally impact perinatal mental health, birth outcomes, and parenting behaviors. Proximal psychosocial stressors also increase risks to perinatal health and wellbeing. Additional research on effective perinatal mental health programs is needed, especially for individuals and families with historical and concurrent adversity, and those with moderate to severe symptoms. Methods: The Mother-Baby Day Hospital at Hennepin County Medical Center provides trauma-informed, multi-generation treatment for perinatal women. Data were collected from patients between January 2016 and September 2019. Self-reported depression, anxiety, and maternal functioning assessments were administered pre- and post-treatment. Patients completed the ACE questionnaire and indicators of current psychosocial stressors (i.e., food insecurity, housing insecurity, and social support) at intake. A series of bivariate tests and hierarchical regression models examined relationships among variables, including whether distal and proximal adversity predicted post-treatment symptoms. Results: 159 Perinatal patients consented to research and completed the ACEs questionnaire at first admission. High proportions of patients reported 4+ ACEs and current psychosocial stressors. Effect sizes for associations between ACEs, psychosocial stressors, and self-report symptoms were small to moderate. Individuals with food or housing insecurity entered treatment with higher anxiety. In regression models, the most robust predictors of post-treatment symptoms were pre-treatment symptoms. Effects of ACEs on post-treatment depression and food insecurity on post-treatment maternal functioning approached the adjusted significance cut-off (p <.01). Conclusions for Practice: Current psychosocial stressors and ACEs did not substantially limit post-treatment depression, anxiety, and maternal functioning outcomes. High prevalence of ACEs and psychosocial stressors highlight the need for trauma-informed, multi-generation treatments to improve maternal mental health and parenting capacity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Subjects :
- ADVERSE childhood experiences
WELL-being
EVALUATION of human services programs
ATTITUDES of mothers
PSYCHOLOGY of mothers
SELF-evaluation
MENTAL health
HOSPITAL health promotion programs
PARENTING
PREGNANCY outcomes
PRE-tests & post-tests
MENTAL depression
QUESTIONNAIRES
WOUNDS & injuries
ANXIETY
PSYCHOLOGICAL stress
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 10927875
- Volume :
- 26
- Issue :
- 2
- Database :
- Complementary Index
- Journal :
- Maternal & Child Health Journal
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 155063846
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-021-03345-7