Efeitos do programa de intervenção baseado em mindfulness na parentalidade

Abstract

Parenthood represents a milestone of intense biopsychosocial transformation, requiring the development of new skills and the reconciliation of maternal responsibilities while simultaneously increasing daily demands and vulnerability to mental health alterations. In this context, non-pharmacological therapies, such as mindfulness, have gained prominence due to their low cost, safety, and efficacy. Mindfulness-based interventions have shown promise in reducing stress, depression, and anxiety, as well as improving perceived quality of life across various populations. Given the benefits of this approach and the theoretical gap regarding clinical trials investigating its use in Brazilian parenthood, we initially conducted two studies to examine the role of mindfulness as a mediating variable in mental health conditions within this population before implementing an intervention experiment. First, we analyzed mindfulness as a mediating variable in the relationship between anxiety and parental stress in participants with children aged 0 to 18 years. The objective of this study was to assess whether higher levels of dispositional mindfulness exert a protective effect on the association between anxiety and stress in parents of children and adolescents. The results indicated a significant indirect effect of mindfulness, explaining approximately 37.4% of the relationship between anxiety and parental stress. Next, we conducted a second mediation study, focusing exclusively on mothers of infants, investigating mindfulness and maternal social support as potential mediators of the relationship between depression and maternal stress. This study aimed to determine whether higher levels of mindfulness and the presence of an active support network exert a protective effect on this association. Initial findings indicated that depression predicts maternal stress and is associated with lower mindfulness levels. Additionally, mothers with higher mindfulness traits showed a lower likelihood of experiencing stress, with mindfulness explaining 12% of the relationship between depression and stress among mothers of infants from northeastern Brazil. Finally, we conducted a randomized clinical trial with 34 lactating mothers using the Brazilian Unified Health System (SUS), investigating the effects of a four-week mindfulness protocol on stress, anxiety, depression, and mindfulness levels. Following the intervention, only the experimental group showed a significant reduction in anxiety levels, with a large effect size. The remaining outcomes did not present statistically significant differences in either intergroup or intragroup analyses, possibly due to the small sample size. These findings provide initial evidence of an on-line mindfulness program designed for lactating mothers in socioeconomically vulnerable situations in Brazil.