Low confidence in new IVF mums: study
(sz) IVF mums are less confident in caring for their babies than women who conceive naturally, a study has found.
And the longer it takes for women to conceive using assisted reproduction technologies, the more their confidence is eroded in the months after their child’s birth, a women’s mental health conference in Melbourne has been told.
The study by the University of Melbourne showed IVF mothers were over-represented among those admitted to residential early parenting centres.
About three per cent of babies in Australia are born to parents who have assisted reproduction procedures, but these mothers make up almost 20 per cent of women in these mother-baby units.
A survey of 183 IVF mothers showed that levels of anxiety and low confidence were high among the group.
“Over half of the women felt anxious about baby care when they took their baby home from hospital,” said Dr Karin Hammarberg of the Key Centre for Women’s Health in Society.
Over time, the women felt more confident, but by 18 months about a third were still not totally confident, she said.
“And by 18 months, 17 per cent had been admitted to a residential mother-baby unit because of early parenting difficulties, which is three times higher than the general population rate of admission.” more…
From: »Sydney Morning Herald«