Prevalence and factors associated with maternal loneliness during the postpartum period in Gondar city

Azmeraw Ambachew Kebede; Dereje Nibret Gessesse; Nuhamin Tesfa Tsega; Mastewal Belayneh Aklil; Wubedle Zelalem Temesgan; Marta Yimam Abegaz; Tazeb Alemu Anteneh; Nebiyu Solomon Tibebu; Haymanot Nigatu Alemu; Tsion Tadesse Haile; Asmra Tesfahun Seyoum; Agumas Eskezia Tiguh; Ayenew Engida Yismaw; Muhabaw Shumye Mihret; Goshu Nenko; Kindu Yinges Wondie; Birhan Tsegaw Taye

doi:10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e09891

Prevalence and factors associated with maternal loneliness during the postpartum period in Gondar city

Heliyon. 2022 Jul 8;8(7):e09891. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e09891. eCollection 2022 Jul.

Authors

Azmeraw Ambachew Kebede¹, Dereje Nibret Gessesse¹, Nuhamin Tesfa Tsega², Mastewal Belayneh Aklil¹, Wubedle Zelalem Temesgan¹, Marta Yimam Abegaz¹, Tazeb Alemu Anteneh¹, Nebiyu Solomon Tibebu¹, Haymanot Nigatu Alemu¹, Tsion Tadesse Haile¹, Asmra Tesfahun Seyoum¹, Agumas Eskezia Tiguh¹, Ayenew Engida Yismaw¹, Muhabaw Shumye Mihret¹, Goshu Nenko³, Kindu Yinges Wondie¹, Birhan Tsegaw Taye⁴

Affiliations

¹ Department of Clinical Midwifery, School of Midwifery, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Gondar, Gondar, Ethiopia.
² Department of Women's and Family Health, School of Midwifery, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Gondar, Gondar, Ethiopia.
³ Department of Psychiatry, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Gondar, Gondar, Ethiopia.
⁴ School of Nursing and Midwifery, Asrat Woldeyes Health Science Campus, Debre Berhan University, Debre Berhan, Ethiopia.

Abstract

Background: Mental health problems have increased worldwide, particularly in developing countries. Currently, loneliness is widely understood as a painful subjective experience when the social connections a person has do not meet their interpersonal needs in respect to the quality or quantity of friendship or social interaction. It has been linked to unpleasant health consequences for both the mother and child. Therefore, this study aimed to assess maternal loneliness during the postpartum period and associated factors in Gondar city.

Methods: A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted from July 1^st to August 30^th, 2021 in Gondar city. A cluster sampling technique was employed to select 858 postpartum women. Data were entered into epidemiological data (EPI data) version 4.6 and exported to SPSS 25 for further cleaning and analysis. The multivariable logistic regression analysis was fitted to identify factors associated with maternal loneliness during the postpartum period. The adjusted odds ratio (AOR) with its 95 % confidence interval (CI) was performed and the level of significance was claimed based on a p-value of ≤0.05.

Results: A total of 858 women were included in the analysis, giving a response rate of 98.4%. Two-fifths (40.9%) of the study participants have experienced loneliness during the postpartum period (95% CI: 37.6, 44.2). Low household decision-making power (AOR = 11.2; 95% CI: 7.59, 16.4) and poor social support (AOR = 2.44; 95 CI: 1.58, 3.76) were significantly associated with maternal loneliness.

Conclusion: In this study, 4 out of 10 women have experienced loneliness during the postpartum period. Thus, it highlights the potential risks of the mother's loneliness on her postnatal well-being, particularly if the woman has poor social support and low household decision-making power. Encouraging women to be involved in all aspects of the household decision-making and promoting the need for social support for all women during the postpartum period may be optimal initial targets to reduce the impact of loneliness.

Keywords: Ethiopia; Loneliness; Maternal health; Postpartum period.