Designing a Mindfulness Resource for Expectant and New Mothers to Promote Maternal Mental Wellness: Parents’ Knowledge, Attitudes and Learning Preferences

Mindfulness interventions have been found to positively impact mental health, decrease stress and increase resilience. Nevertheless, mindfulness is not commonly included in routine prenatal resources. The purpose of this study was to conduct the first step in the scaling up approach to intervention dissemination by examining parents’ knowledge and attitudes about mindfulness and learning preferences. The objective is to inform subsequent wide spread dissemination of mindfulness education for expectant women and their families through a local health department in Ontario to promote mental wellness during the transition to parenthood.

This study employed an exploratory cross-sectional design. New and expectant parents in Ontario were surveyed to determine their knowledge, interest, and preferences in learning about mindfulness.

One hundred participants were recruited. Over half of the participants had heard about mindfulness, yet few were currently practicing mindfulness. The most commonly known practice was mindful breathing. The majority of participants were interested in learning more about the practices of: mindful breathing (87.5%), everyday mindfulness (89.1%), body scan (89.5%) and loving kindness (86.1%). Participants indicated they liked to receive information in a variety of formats, however; digital means (76%) was preferred over print format (50%). The highest rated methods of information delivery were from a professional (61%) or through websites (60%), using visual methods (75%).

The findings of this study will inform the implementation of mindfulness education on a population level, which will be evaluated to determine its effectiveness on decreasing perinatal mood disorders within the population.