Addressing barriers to health: Experiences of breastfeeding mothers after returning to work

Most breastfeeding and working mothers experience barriers to maintaining their own health when they return to work following the birth. The exhaustion associated with caring for a young baby and breastfeeding is compounded with employment responsibilities and creates a situation where a mother may be vulnerable for poor health. Identifying experiences of employed breastfeeding mothers and barriers to their healthy behaviors, is an important prerequisite for developing effective health promotion interventions for this group of women. This study aimed to describe the experiences of twelve Iranian breastfeeding mothers who returned to work and to discover, through in-depth, semi-structured interviews, the barriers to their personal health. All interviews were recorded, transcribed, and analyzed using thematic analysis. Two main themes and 5 subthemes emerged: 1) working and mothering alone, with three subthemes: a) feeling guilty, b) my husband does not help me, and c) I am not supported at work; 2) health of working mothers which included the subthemes: a) Neglecting one’s own health needs, and b) In the future: what working women in Iran need. The findings of this study emphasize the necessity of promoting supportive resources and providing a safe work environment for breastfeeding employed mothers. Plans are needed to canvass the opinion of the public, mothers and employers to set family-friendly policies in the workplace and build women’s confidence in their capacity as mothers.

Keywords:

Barriers , Breastfeeding mothers , Employment , Women s health , Iran