The impact of military sexual trauma on parent-infant bonding in a sample of perinatal women veterans

Creech, S. K., Kroll, D. A., Benzer, J. K., Pulverman, C. S., Mattocks, K., & Kroll-Desrosiers, A. (2022). The impact of military sexual trauma on parent-infant bonding in a sample of perinatal women veterans. Depression & Anxiety, 39(3), 201-210. https://doi.org/10.1002/da.23218

Using a sample of 697 Veteran mothers, this longitudinal study examined the associations between military sexual trauma (MST; i.e., trauma as a result of experiences of sexual harassment or assault during military service), mental health factors (e.g., posttraumatic stress disorder [PTSD], perinatal depressive symptoms, stress during pregnancy), and mother-infant bonding impairment. Additional analyses examined whether depressive symptoms mediated the associations between MST and PTSD and mother-infant bonding impairment. Data were collected via prenatal (i.e., 12 weeks into pregnancy) and postpartum (i.e., 12 weeks after giving birth) telephone questionnaires. Overall, women Veterans who had experienced MST or PTSD reported greater depressive symptoms after the birth of their child and, in turn, reported more challenges with mother-infant bonding than those who had experienced neither MST nor PTSD.

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