Key Changes Across the Transition to Parenthood

Individual Changes

 While caring for a new baby may encourage individuals' positive development, it

may also represent a stress associated with difficult challenges. Researchers studying the

transition to parenthood have traditionally focused more on changes women experience

(Condon et al., 2004). This focus of study has established that in addition to the happiness

many women feel about becoming mothers, a wide continuum of strain is also present.

Exhaustion is commonly experienced by new mothers, with 87% reporting fatigue in the

first few weeks after the birth of their babies severe enough to interfere with their

relationships and responsibilities (Ruchala & Halstead, 1994). Anxiety and depression are

common, especially during the first month postpartum (Gjerdingen & Chaloner, 1994).

Approximately 70% of mothers experience "baby blues" shortly after childbirth

(American Psychiatric Association, 2000), and 10 to 15% experience postpartum

depression (Areias et al., 1996; Campbell & Cohn, 1991). Longitudinal studies indicate

postpartum depression rates may be significantly higher when assessed over the course of

a year (Areias et al., 1996; Mattheny, Barnett, Ungerer, & Waters, 2000).

 Men's transition to parenthood has been researched on a relatively cursory level

compared to women's experience (Condon et al., 2004). For men, symptoms seem to

appear earlier than they do for women; a longitudinal study of 204 men found higher

levels of depression for men early in their partners' pregnancies and improvement in

symptoms within the first three months after the birth of the baby (Condon et al., 2004).

Another study (Pedersen et al., 1987), in which 25 fathers were surveyed, interviewed,

and observed, found fathers' reports of dysphoria or "blues" had few lasting impacts. In

this study, fathers experiencing dysphoria interacted less with their three-month-old