{
  "abstract": "Background: The postpartum period is a critical phase for maternal psychological adjustment, yet cross-country evidence remains limited. This study examines the prevalence, predictors and lived experiences of maternal mental health in Cyprus and Slovenia within the Mind the Mum project.\n\nMethods: A cross-country explanatory sequential mixed-methods design was used. Quantitative data were collected from 1,019 postpartum women (Cyprus: n = 474; Slovenia: n = 545) using validated instruments (EPDS, GAD-7, WHO-5, BSS-R, BSES-SF, Brief COPE). Analyses included descriptive statistics, correlations and regression models. Qualitative data from focus groups (Cyprus: n = 42; Slovenia: n = 19) were analysed thematically.\n\nResults: Maternal mental health challenges were highly prevalent across both countries. Approximately one-third of women met criteria for probable postpartum depression (CY: 36.8%; Sl: 33.4%), while over half reported elevated depressive symptoms. Anxiety was also widespread, with moderate-to-severe levels observed in 31.2% of Cypriot and 18.3% of Slovenian participants. Furthermore, low well-being was significantly higher in Cyprus (42.3%) compared to Slovenia (20.2%).Across both contexts, anxiety was the strongest predictor of depressive symptoms (β≈.51–.54, p<.001). Well-being and breastfeeding self-efficacy were protective, while birth-related stress and maladaptive coping were associated with poorer outcomes. Adaptive coping and partner/family support were consistently protective. Qualitative findings highlighted shared experiences of emotional vulnerability, identity transition, breastfeeding challenges, gaps in communication and decision-making during childbirth.\n\nConclusions: Postpartum mental health is shaped by interconnected psychological, behavioural and systemic factors. The high prevalence of distress underscores the need for integrated, woman-centred perinatal care that strengthens psychosocial support, improves communication and promotes maternal autonomy.\n\nKey messages: • Postpartum mental health challenges affect over one-third of mothers, highlighting a substantial and under-recognised public health burden across European settings.\n\n• Strengthening psychosocial support, communication and maternal autonomy is essential to improve perinatal care and promote maternal well-being.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [],
  "article_type": "abstract",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 7,
  "authors": [
    {
      "name": "E Hadjigeorgiou"
    },
    {
      "name": "I Papaioannou"
    },
    {
      "name": "I Koliandri"
    },
    {
      "name": "A Mavrommati"
    },
    {
      "name": "M Karanikola"
    },
    {
      "name": "N Middleton"
    },
    {
      "name": "M Chrzan-Dętkoś"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/bthc0bm7vfjkv.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.1093/eurpub/ckag169.223",
  "fulltext_url": "https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC13697777/",
  "id": "bthc0bm7vfjkv",
  "issns": [
    "1101-1262",
    "1464-360X"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://doi.org/10.1093/eurpub/ckag169.223",
  "language": "en",
  "licence": "CC-BY-NC-4.0",
  "licence_label": "CC BY-NC 4.0",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "heading",
      "3. PARALLEL PROGRAMME"
    ],
    [
      "heading",
      "AcademicSubjects/MED00860"
    ],
    [
      "heading",
      "AcademicSubjects/SOC01210"
    ],
    [
      "heading",
      "AcademicSubjects/SOC02610"
    ],
    [
      "heading",
      "M.4. Oral presentations: Pregnancy, perinatal health and maternity care"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "2739|Maternal Mental Health During Pregnancy and Postpartum"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7223708171",
  "pdf_url": "https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13697777/pdf/?tool=EBI",
  "pmcid": "PMC13697777",
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-10-01",
  "publisher": "Oxford University Press",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/bthc0bm7vfjkv.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:18:46Z",
      "native_id": "PMC13697777",
      "source": "pmc",
      "url": "https://doi.org/10.1093/eurpub/ckag169.223"
    },
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:21:31Z",
      "native_id": "PMC:PMC13697777",
      "source": "europepmc",
      "url": "https://europepmc.org/article/PMC/PMC13697777"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "medicine",
      "origin": "openalex:2739|Maternal Mental Health During Pregnancy and Postpartum",
      "subfield": "epidemiology-public-health"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Postpartum maternal mental health: cross-country findings from Cyprus and Slovenia",
  "title_text": "Postpartum maternal mental health: cross-country findings from Cyprus and Slovenia",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:34:45Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/bthc0bm7vfjkv",
  "venue": "The European Journal of Public Health",
  "versions": []
}