During pregnancy, depressive symptoms are common, especially in women of low socioeconomic status, and are strongly related to socioenvironmental factors.

Health practitioners should recognize that high depressive symptomatology frequently occurs among low socioeconomic status first-time mothers at six months postpartum. Chronic stressors and inadequate social support are the most important factors associated with this problem.

This study analyses the relationships between stressful life conditions and postnatal depressive symptomatology in a group of women of low socioeconomic status (SES) and a group of women of high SES from the third to the ninth week postpartum. Nulliparous pregnant women were recruited from the prenatal care clinics of four hospitals. Multiple linear regression analyses demonstrated that after accounting for SES group membership and depressive symptomatology during pregnancy, early postnatal chronic stressors (frequent conflictual episodes with network members, maternal health problems) and social support were linked to later postnatal depressive symptomatology.