Abstract
Emerging studies about paternal mental health among new fathers have been seen as a wide interest in terms of experienced post-natal depression. This is because when an unprepared new father feels the need and pressure to adapt with changes in lifestyle and in his new role as the father in the family, he starts to experience depression equally with the mother but the difference is that new father is less vocal and by not showing it receives less social support. This study made use of administering Becks Depression Inventory among 50 new fathers one week prior to the childbirth of their partner to rule out existing depression not caused by childbirth. Qualified participants who did not have depression prior to childbirth were included in the study. The researcher followed up with them 48-72 hours after the childbirth to measure their depression level by administering Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) and the Gotland Male Depression Scale (GMDS) because some fathers with Postnatal Depression remain undetected by only using one scale. Qualified participants were invited to participate in an in-depth interview so that findings from their interviews were integrated together with the results of EPDS and GMDS. As a result of conducting this study, it was revealed that other than depression, sleep problems and anxiety, they also turn to maladaptive coping.
Author Information
Jay Errol Baral, University of Santo Tomas, Philippines
Rosalito de Guzman, University of Santo Tomas, Philippines
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