Maternal Experience of Neonatal Intensive Care Unit Hospitalization: Trauma Exposure and Psychosocial Responses

For mothers in the postpartum period, admission of their newborn to a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) is often an unanticipated experience that can be shocking and traumatic, and can elevate maternal risk for psychiatric symptoms, including posttraumatic stress. In this chapter, the NICU experience, psychosocial implications, mental health consequences, and screening tools that have been used to identify maternal psychiatric symptoms in this setting will be reviewed. Psychosocial interventions and programs addressing the stress and psychological reactions of mothers with an infant in a NICU will be introduced, as will recently developed interdisciplinary recommendations for the support of NICU families and a nurse training program to promote optimal communication between NICU nurses and parents. The chapter concludes with future clinical and research directions to continue improving maternal adjustment and mental health during a child’s NICU hospitalization.