Stress Coping Strategies and Predictors of Breastfeeding Practices among Working-class Nursing Mothers visiting University Teaching Hospital, Ibadan, Nigeria
Stress Coping Strategies and Predictors of Breastfeeding Practices among Working-class Nursing Mothers
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.60787/tnhj.v24i3.842Keywords:
Stress, Coping Strategies, Breastfeeding practices, Working-class Nursing Mothers, Nigeria.Abstract
Background: Stress limits maternal breastfeeding ability and the efficacy of its coping strategies is reflected in optimal child nutrition. This study evaluated stress, its coping strategies and its relationship with breastfeeding practices.
Method: A cross-sectional study among 200 randomly selected working-class nursing mothers visiting University College Hospital in Ibadan. An international stress management questionnaire with a Zimet 12-item perceived social support scale was employed to measure stress and its coping strategies (categorized into problem-focused, emotion-focused and social support strategies). Mothers’ socio-demographic factors and breastfeeding practices were determined by a structured questionnaire. Breastfeeding practices were categorized into optimal and suboptimal practices based on a mean score of 3.1.1±1.1. Data analysis was performed using SPSS 23.0 at α0.05.
Result: Respondents’ age was 30.5±1.2 years, 93.5% earned twice $47.43 monthly, 46.5% nursed a second child, 60.5% had babies below six months of age, 26.5% had maternity leave for 3-4 months, 53.0% children started daycare 6-7 months of age, 21.0% infants were exclusively breastfed and 97.5% mothers experienced stress. Two-thirds of mothers had suboptimal breastfeeding practices. Predictors of breastfeeding practices were young age (p=<0.001), being married (p=0.001), having multiple occupations (p=0.002) and stress (p=0.036). The odds of using emotion-focused strategies (OR=0.6, CI [0.1, 3.7]) to cope with stress were higher than problem-focused (OR=0.4, CI [0.1, 2.3]) and social support strategies (OR=0.3, CI [0.1, 1.8]) employed among working-class nursing mothers.
Conclusion: Stress and limited social support contributed to suboptimal breastfeeding practice. Emotion- and problem-focused strategies were more employed to mitigate stress and optimize breastfeeding practices by working-class nursing mothers.
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