Mothers' perceptions of their body image after childbirth.

Abstract

The research question of this study is to find out if there are any body changes after childbirth and if women are aware of these differences. The aim of this study is to explore the mothers' perceptions of their body image and their satisfaction of their body appearance. Furthermore, I wanted to explore if they get enough support at home as according to research, this influences the body image perceptions of new mothers. Even in the choice of infant feeding method, mothers may be considering body image effects and this could effect whether the neonate is given breast or artificial milk. A convenience sample of 10 mothers who had given birth between two months and eighteen months earlier, were interviewed at the Well-Baby Clinics in the various health centres. A semi- structured interview was used. This small- scale study revealed that the majority of women are satisfied with their image after giving birth. They mostly worry about the weight they had gained and the speed with which this could be lost. A few of the women dislike the stretch marks due to the pregnancy while others don't like the lack of muscle tone in the abdominal areas. They also try to find time to improve their general appearance mostly by walking and controlling their food intake. From my small- scale study, one can understand the importance and need of support to offer to mothers who have just given birth because this helps the woman to feel appreciated and good about herself This in turn affects the care given to the neonate. One can understand the importance to discuss with the new mothers their degree of satisfaction with their bodies and offer suggestions about what they could do to improve their looks and therefore feel good postpartum. What is certain is that explanations about fetal growth and health antenatally are certainly not enough because uncertainty and doubt still remain about how the mother might experience back pain, incontinence or a feeling of loss about her appearance especially during the last trimester and immediately after childbirth. For now, till more research will be done about body image and mothers' perceptions of their body image after childbirth, we have to keep in mind that just the process of discussing these experiences and the women's expectations may in themselves may in themselves be reassuring.