Childbirth overseas: The experience of Japanese women in Hawaii

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to investigate which kinds of stress women experience during childbirth in a foreign country and to explore whether childbirth in a foreign country influences women's mental health. The study was a quantitative and qualitative mixed study. Forty-five Japanese women, born and raised in Japan and who gave birth in Hawaii, USA, were telephone-interviewed within 1 year after childbirth. The stress factors that emerged were: language barrier, distance from family and friends, different culture, and health-care attitude about childbirth. Half of the participants experienced emotional dysfunction during their pregnancy. All primiparas experienced postpartum depression. The participants who had the maternity blues tended to have postpartum depression. Help from the participants' mothers after childbirth decreased postpartum depression. The importance of mental health for foreign-born primiparas emerges during the perinatal period.

A systematic review, evidence synthesis and meta-analysis of quantitative and qualitative studies evaluating the clinical effectiveness, the cost-effectiveness, safety and acceptability of interventions to prevent postnatal depression

“…Ten studies were conducted in the UK, 304,[306][307][308][309][310][311][312][313][314][315]319,321,322,324 seven studies were conducted in the USA, 286,292,[296][297][298]302,303,318,320 one in Switzerland, 316 one in Canada, 317 one in Norway, 323 one in India, 325 one in China 305 and one in multiple centres. 7 …”

“…7 Fifteen studies provided data from participants who were part of the general population in the country of study, whereas the remaining studies examined evidence from minority groups within the country of study. The minority groups either were a culturally different group based within the country of study (n = 5) 304,[306][307][308][309][310][311]314,318 or were a selective group (n = 3). 292,[296][297][298]315 For details of participant characteristics, see Appendix 9.…”

“…Fifteen studies provided data from participants from a general population in the country of study, 7,286,302,303,305,312,313,[316][317][318][319][320][321][322][323][324][325] while the remaining studies examined evidence from minority groups within the country of study. The minority groups were either a culturally different group based within the country of study (n = 6) 292,306-311,314,315,318 or a selective group (n = 2).…”

Antenatal Depression in a Multi-Ethnic, Community Sample of Canadian Immigrants: Psychosocial Correlates and Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal Axis Function

“…Women not fluent in English were included as the presence of a language barrier may be an important contributor to an increased risk of prenatal depression 20 and (or) the experience of chronic stress. 21,22 Current posttraumatic stress disorder, assessed with the Harvard Trauma Questionnaire, 23 was an exclusion criterion as it has been associated with markedly altered HPA axis activity that affects subsequent generations. 24 …”

Korean Immigrant Women'sTaekyoPractices in the United States as a Traditional Prenatal Self-care

“…Going through pregnancy in foreign country brings out various stress factors for immigrant women due to the complex nature of childbirth in different sociocultural context. Therefore, immigrant women tend to adhere to their traditional perinatal health practices which they believe to have good impacts on psychophysical health [12]. Taekyo could be meaningful and powerful cultural practices for Korean immigrant women (KIW) which could motivate them to adhere to its rituals and taboos when they are pregnant in the US context.…”