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Prenatal Stress, Postpartum Depression and A4achment Dr Wendy Duncan Senior Specialist – Child Psychiatry Charlo4e Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital Lecturer, Division of Psychiatry Department of Neurosciences University of Witwatersrand
• The infant-‐parent a4achment can be considered the infant’s most important emoKon regulaKon system (Bowlby, 1969/1982)
• Early experiences are thought to shape the a4achment relaKonship,
• Hence, influencing regulaKon of behavioural and physiological responses
• First year of life, regulaKon and coping are primarily externally organised
FACTORS IMPACTING on ATTACHMENT RELATIONSHIP • Family and cultural support • Demands of other children and family members • Socioeconomic status • Mother’s state of physical health • A mother’s state of anxiety or emoKon • The mother’s own internalized a4achment representaKons (van Ijzendoorn MH, Psychol Bull, 1995)
• “MentalizaKon” (Fonagy, Infant Mental Health Journal, 1991) • RepresentaKons of her own caregivers (Slade, A4ach Hum Dev, 2005)
“GHOSTS in the NURSERY”
• Disturbed internal a4achment in the parent give rise to disturbed care giving (Fraiberg et al, 1980) • Maternal DysregulaKon becomes dysregulaKng (Main & Hesse, 1990) (Lyons-‐Ruth, 1999)
IMPORTANTLY…..
• Maternal psychopatholgy potenKally has an untoward effect on a4achment
• This in turn results in a mechanism by which children become developmentally vulnerable
• At every stage of prenatal development, genes guide the “Kming” of certain events BUT environment modifies the phenotype (Thomson, J Trauma & Dissoc, 2007)
Remember….
• Hofer first described what he called ‘‘hidden regulators” (Hofer, Psychosom Med, 1984) – Bi-‐direcKonal process of regulaKon – mechanism for relaKonal feedback – help the infant maintain basic physiologic homeostasis with • body temperature, arterial blood pressure, as well as sleep, feeding, and eliminaKon pa4erns
• Stern has referred to ‘‘affecKve a4unement” (Stern, The Interpersonal World of the Infant, 1985)
• Tronick and Gianino to ‘‘mutual emoKon regulaKon’’ (Tronick & Gianino, New Dir Child Dev, 1986)
• This regulatory input is not only EMOTIONAL, it is also PHYSIOLOGICAL
PRENATAL MENTAL HEALTH
• Maternal psychiatric problems and psychological stress impact on child health before birth
• Stress, anxiety and depression – associated with altered foetal and neurobehavioural development.
• Prenatal development is characterised by sensiKve periods, “developmental windows”
• “Fetal programming” – fetus’ physiological adaptaKon to the characterisKcs of intrauterine milieu (Talge et al, J Child Psychol Psych, 2007)
• Fetal programming -‐ while adapKve in the uterus, might make the child vulnerable once in the world
• This does not necessarily occur in a determinisKc manner
• Number of factors modify these outcomes • Depends in part on nature of stressful events
PRENATAL STRESS can result in….
• Lower birth weight • Pre-‐term labour • Greater right frontal brain acKvaKon (assoc. with –ve affect throughout life)
• Sleep disturbances • Poorer performance on neuro-‐developmental assessments
PRENATAL STRESS and PRIMITIVE DEFENSES • Prenate reflex acKvaKon is criKcal to support experience dependent CNS maturaKon
• Extremes bring about regulatory instability • Reflexive behaviours emerge and are ‘pracKced’ – stereotypical “fixed acKon pa4erns”
• PrimiKve defensive reflexes underpin threat response behaviour
PRENATAL STRESS and PRIMITIVE DEFENSES
• Stressed prenates spend nine months “training” and “preparing” to enter a hosKle world
• Physiological and motor reflexive bias towards threat
• Engage in defensive reflexive behaviours
(Thomson, J Trauma & Dissoc, 2007)
Why this ma4ers…. • Stress may become
embedded in infant-‐caregiver interacKons
• Impact on the challenges that the mother faces with her infant
• Accompanied by other variables, this will ulKmately impact on the ATTACHMENT RELATIONSHIP
PRENATAL STRESS
• Robust associaKons with lasKng effects on metabolic and cardiovascular funcKon
• Robust evidence to show that it predicts for – CogniKve, behavioural and later psychiatric problems
• Associated with infant fearfulness • Exposure to corKsol is believed to be a contributory mechanism (Bergman et al, J Am Acad Child Adol Psych, 2007) (Bergman et al, Biol Psych, 2010)
THE HPA-‐AXIS
11 Beta-‐hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase
It has been shown that….
• The effects of intrauterine corKsol exposure can be ELIMINATED by sensiKve early rearing environment
(Bergman et al, Biol Psych, 2010) • The a4achment relaKonship can inform the outcome
PERINATAL DEPRESSION • Depression common in perinatal period • 8-‐11% -‐ major/minor depression during pregnancy
• Nearly 20% in first 3 months post-‐partum • This impacts on a4achment • Subsequent associaKons with – EmoKonal regulaKon problems – Behavioural dysregulaKon – Risk for future psychopathology
(Monk et al, Arch Womens Ment Health, 2008)
RISK PREDICTION – PERINATAL DEPRESSION • Premenstrual mood
changes • History of affecKve illness • Marital (relaKonship)
dissaKsfacKon • Poor social support • Recent stressful events • Lower educaKon • Younger maternal age • Unwanted pregnancy
(O’Hara, Arch Gen Psych, 1986)
RISK PREDICTION – POSTNATAL DEPRESSION • Previous depression • Depression and anxiety during pregnancy • Stressful life events • Lack of social supports • Low self-‐esteem • Unwell infant
(Da Costa, J Affect Dis, 2000)
MATERNAL “ATTACHMENT STYLE” and PERINATAL DEPRESSION • Insecure a4achment style and accompanying cogniKve schemas – Worry about emoKonal availability and support of others
– Distrust or fear of closeness – SelecKvely negaKve a4enKon to aspects of interpersonal interacKons
• PredisposiKon to postpartum depression (McMahon et al, J Affect Disord, 2005)
• AnKcipaKon of pregnancy as acKvaKng ‘self-‐other’ a4achment representaKons
• There is a link between the prospecKve mother’s own a4achment style and her appraisal of her pregnancy – More fearful and less secure, associated with greater pregnancy distress
• Insecure a4achment style in the mother is associated with greater depression during pregnancy and greater postpartum depression – éhassles, êupliqs
(Monk et al, Arch Womens Ment Health, 2008)
Why is this important?...
• Significant influence on caregiver sensiKvity • Impacts maternal responsiveness • More likely to be associated with negaKve cogniKons towards the foetus
CONSIDERING PRENATAL DEPRESSION • NegaKve effect on foetus’s physiological regulaKon
• Related to higher corKsol levels in infants
EFFECT of DEPRESSION on the ATTACHMENT RELATIONSHIP • Impacts on parental sensiKvity • Reduces parenKng responsiveness • Reduces affecKon and reciprocity • Increases intrusion • Increases puniKveness (Wan & Green, Arch Womens Ment Health, 2009)
• Inconsistent support for infant’s budding engagement • Less competent at construcKng growth-‐promoKng environment
• Reduced touch (Feldman et al, J Am Acad Child Adol Psych, 2009)
MATERNAL DEPRESSION and ATTACHMENT REVISITED • Impaired a4achment is commonly assumed • Some research has shown the relaKonship to be equivocal; many inconsistencies
• Clinical samples associated with insecure a4achment pa4erns
• There are many factors presumed to moderate the link
• SES is not one of them! (Wan & Green, Arch Womens Ment Health, 2009)
MODERATING FACTORS
• Chronicity of depression, length of Kme of exposure of infant (McMahon et al, J Child Psychol Psych, 2006)
• ‘Unresolved’ a4achment state (from loss or trauma) – associated with persistent depression (Fonagy & Target, A4ach Hum Dev, 2005)
• Behavioural intrusion and disengagement (Goodman & Gotlieb, Psychol Rev, 1999)
• Comorbid mental health problems e.g. anxiety and SUDs (Carter, J Am Acad Child Adol Psych, 2001)
IN THE INFANT….
• Insecure and disorganised a4achment pa4erns have been described
• Insecure resistant pa4erns has been found in some research
• Infant’s uncertainty about the mothers’ availability is associated with – Heightened a4achment behaviours – Increased monitoring of the caregiver by the infant – Reduced exploratory competence
(Luijk et al, Dev Psychobiol, 2010)
DEPRESSION, CORTISOL and ATTACHMENT • The infant-‐parent a4achment relaKonship is the infant’s most important emoKon regulaKon system
• Temperament seems to play a role in stress physiology
• Resistant a4achment pa4ern associated with more aberrant corKsol levels in the SSP
• Avoidant a4achment style somewhat buffered against corKsol reacKvity (Luijk et al, Dev Psychobiol, 2010)
Integrated Model for Transmission of Risk
Heritability
Innate dysfuncKonal neuroregulatory mechanisms
Exposure to -‐ve affects, maladapKve
cogniKons and behaviours
Stressful environment
• Psychobiological dysfuncKon • Skills deficits • MaladapKve strategies
• CogniKve • AffecKve • Behavioural • Interpersonal
Childhood or Adolescent psycho
pathology
Adapted from Goodman & Gotlieb, Psychol Review, 1999
INTERVENTION STRATEGIES
• Prevent unwanted pregnancy • Management begins in the womb! • Screening • Risk idenKficaKon • Treatment in pregnancy • Post-‐partum intervenKons • CreaKng greater maternal sensiKvity* (Cooper et al, BMJ, 2009)