Background: One in three breastfeeding women sustain a chest complication. Many mothers feel that breastfeeding counselors have been the key to initiate and maintain the breastfeeding. Aim: The aim of this study was to investigate mothers’ experiences of breastfeeding problems and the advice given from a breastfeeding clinic in a large Swedish city. Method: A qualitative interview study with an inductive approach was made. Ten mothers were interviewed through a semi-structured interview guide. Data were analyzed by using content analysis. Results: Three categories and six sub-categories of mothers' perceptions of breastfeeding pro- blems and the advice they got from the breastfeeding clinic were identified. The mothers often experienced that breastfeeding problems had a strong negative impact on their mental health. Emotions such as anxiety, depression, grief and pain were common among the mothers. The majorities were positive with the advice given and many mothers stated they felt strengthened by the clinics support. Some mothers though expressed uncertainty whether the clinics advice really had helped them solving their problems. Conclusion: Strikingly many of the mothers in the study convey a sense of vulnerability when they describe their experiences of breastfeeding problems. The mothers' prior knowledge and preparedness for breast complications and other breastfeeding problems are not always sufficient. Adding to the vulnerability is the mothers' own expectations that breastfeeding should be obvious and natural. The breastfeeding clinic therefore plays an important role in supporting these mothers by meeting every mother where she is mentally.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UPSALLA1/oai:DiVA.org:uu-212911 |
| Date | January 2013 |
| Creators | Saldanha, Arieth, Gustafsson, Christine |
| Publisher | Uppsala universitet, Institutionen för folkhälso- och vårdvetenskap, Uppsala universitet, Institutionen för folkhälso- och vårdvetenskap |
| Source Sets | DiVA Archive at Upsalla University |
| Language | Swedish |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Student thesis, info:eu-repo/semantics/bachelorThesis, text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
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