Mindfulness during pregnancy: an evaluation of mindfulness and negative mood over the perinatal period

Perinatal depression is widespread and disabling with a number of negative consequences for the mother, father and child. Prenatal depression, stress and anxiety and a history of depression are significant predictors of perinatal depression suggesting a need for preventative interventions. Helpful psychological interventions for this period are currently scarce and expensive and research examining preventative interventions is lacking. Preliminary evidence suggests that generic and pregnancy-tailored mindfulness courses can reduce stress, anxiety and depression in this population. Because, more broadly, access to mindfulness courses is inequitable, research has begun to focus on the possibility of delivering such courses online, resulting in potentially beneficial courses becoming available with a reduction in cost to the participant and health service. The aim of this doctorate was to conduct a series of sequenced studies culminating in an overall evaluation of mindfulness courses for expectant mothers. In cross-sectional analyses, higher levels of dispositional mindfulness were associated with healthier mood levels suggesting that increasing mindfulness in this population (via a course) may be beneficial. A preliminary evaluation of a face-to-face mindfulness-based course for childbirth and parenting showed promising results for prospective mothers and fathers and further research would be useful. An online mindfulness course delivered to expectant mothers improved prenatal mood compared to a waitlist control group but there was a high level of drop-out for course completers. This high attrition rate, though often noted in internet intervention research, is concerning and warrants further investigation. More generally, mindfulness courses for expectant parents show potential and future work would benefit from larger samples and control group comparisons.