| There has been little research conducted around the phenomenon of postpartum depression in Chinese American women. The current study focuses on the experiences of five 2nd generation Chinese American women who live in the San Francisco Bay Area. It aimed to examine the lived experiences of these women, exploring their symptom presentation, experience of motherhood, stressors, and the influences of Chinese culture and beliefs.;The results of the study suggest that the way in which these mothers experienced and managed their depression was influenced by the challenges they faced in being part of two cultures; Chinese and American. On one hand, the mothers indicated mild to strong adherence to common Asian values and to feeling supported by their husbands and mothers and/or in-laws. On the other hand. they were able to identify and verbalize experienced psychological symptoms, in addition to somatic symptoms; however, they still demonstrated a resistance towards seeking psychological help. The participants also commonly related their depression to medical complications during pregnancy or childbirth with either herself or the infant, and experiencing one or more stressful life events unrelated to the pregnancy, birth, or motherhood. It was also of note that three of the participants reported that their pregnancies were unplanned and none of them participated in any pregnancy-planning or prenatal classes. These findings all have possible implications upon behavioral medicine and the way in which support is offered to this population.;The 28-Item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-28), Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS), and Asian American Values Scale-Multidimensional (AAVS-M) were administered to each of the five participants followed by semi-structured interviews which were subsequently transcribed by the researcher. The data from the GHQ-28, EPDS, and interviews were analyzed using qualitative methodology, yielding nine discrete content categories grouped into five major themes: (1) experience of pregnancy, childbirth, and motherhood. (2) symptom presentation, (3) experience of support, (4) personal stressors, and (5) adherence to Chinese cultural values and practices. A general description, derived from an analysis of the themes, was developed to describe the phenomenon of postpartum depression for the five research participants. |
