Effect of Mindfulness Based Breastfeeding Education on Mothers' Breastfeeding Parameters

Overview

Pregnant women followed at the Tece Family Health Center were contacted via telephone and informed about the study. Pregnant women who expressed interest in participating were assessed according to the inclusion and exclusion criteria using the "Eligibility Assessment Form" prepared by the researcher. Those who met the research criteria were randomly assigned to either the intervention or the control group. Before starting the Mindfulness-Based Breastfeeding Education, all participants in both groups were asked to complete the Informed Consent Form, the Pregnant Women's Descriptive Characteristics Form, and the Antenatal Breastfeeding Self-Efficacy Scale. The Mindfulness-Based Breastfeeding Education was delivered to the pregnant women in the intervention group by the researcher, both face-to-face and online, on predetermined days and times. The training was supported with visual presentations, videos, and models prepared by the researcher to make the content more memorable and easier to understand. After the final session of the six-week training program, the participants completed the Antenatal Breastfeeding Self-Efficacy Scale. Mothers were asked to inform the researcher when they gave birth. In the 1st and 8th weeks postpartum, the following were administered: Postpartum Mother-Infant Descriptive Form, Postnatal Breastfeeding Self-Efficacy Scale, Bristol Breastfeeding Assessment Tool, and Mindful Breastfeeding Scale. No intervention was applied to the pregnant women in the control group. Six weeks after the first administration of the Antenatal Breastfeeding Self-Efficacy Scale, the same scale was administered again. Mothers were asked to notify the researcher when they gave birth. In the 1st and 8th weeks postpartum, the following forms and scales were administered: Postpartum Mother-Infant Descriptive Form, Postnatal Breastfeeding Self-Efficacy Scale, Bristol Breastfeeding Assessment Tool, and Mindful Breastfeeding Scale. In order to eliminate any potential ethical concerns related to the control group, breastfeeding education was provided to the mothers in the control group after the data collection process had been completed.

The content of the Mindfulness-Based Breastfeeding Education was developed by the researchers based on a comprehensive review of the relevant literature. To evaluate the appropriateness of the educational content, feedback was obtained from expert faculty members with academic experience in breastfeeding and/or mindfulness-related studies. A list of pregnant women being followed at the Tece Family Health Center was compiled, and those who were interested in participating were provided with general information about the study. Additionally, the researcher shared her contact information with these pregnant women. Pregnant women who expressed willingness to participate and contacted the researcher were assessed for eligibility using a "Eligibility Assessment Form" prepared by the researcher. Those who met the inclusion criteria were randomly assigned to either the intervention or the control group. The participants were then asked to complete the Informed Consent Form, Pregnant Women's Descriptive Characteristics Form, and the Antenatal Breastfeeding Self-Efficacy Scale. To facilitate communication with the intervention group, a WhatsApp group was created. Taking into account the needs of the participants and previous studies, appropriate days and times were scheduled for the six-week Mindfulness-Based Breastfeeding Education Program, consisting of weekly two-hour sessions. Participants in the intervention group were divided into subgroups of no more than seven individuals each. In total, the intervention group received 12 sessions of mindfulness-based breastfeeding education, delivered according to the scheduled days and times. To minimize participant dropout, the program was delivered over six weeks, with the first three weeks conducted online and the remaining three weeks conducted face-to-face, each session lasting two hours. The educational content covered the following themes: introduction to mindfulness, awareness of the body and the "automatic pilot" mode, mindful communication, coping with difficult emotions and situations, integrating mindfulness into daily life, the postpartum period, and the themes of closure and new beginnings. Mindfulness practices were integrated into the breastfeeding experience under each theme. No intervention was applied to the control group during the six-week period. At the end of the six weeks, both the intervention and control groups completed the Antenatal Breastfeeding Self-Efficacy Scale once again. After childbirth, mothers whose newborns did not meet the inclusion criteria were excluded from the sample, and new participants were recruited accordingly. IIn the 1st and 8th weeks postpartum, the Postpartum Mother-Infant Descriptive Form, Postnatal Breastfeeding Self-Efficacy Scale, Bristol Breastfeeding Assessment Tool (BBAT), and the Mindful Breastfeeding Scale (MIND-BFS) were administered to both the intervention and control groups. To address any potential ethical concerns related to the control group, breastfeeding education was provided to the mothers in the control group following the completion of data collection.