Attitudes towards motherhood in women with bipolar disorder

This descriptive study was conducted between March 2023 and June 2024 to examine attitudes towards motherhood in women with bipolar disorder. The study population consisted of reproductive-age, nulliparous women with bipolar disorder and those without mental disorders, reached through social media. Data were collected from a sample of 112 women using a 37-item questionnaire developed by researchers based on literature, assessing individual characteristics, reproductive health, and knowledge of bipolar disorder diagnosis and treatment. In statistical analysis, in addition to descriptive statistics, Independent Groups T-Test, Anova Test, Mann Whitney U Test and Kruskal Wallis H test were used for comparisons. Pearson or Spearman correlation analysis was used to determine the relationship. The study found that women with bipolar disorder had lower scores on the fertility and childbearing expectations and planning subscale compared to women without mental disorders. It was determined that the most frequently mentioned emotion in expressions of feelings and thoughts about motherhood was "desire" and the most frequently expressed thought theme was " not planning to become a mother". It was found that women diagnosed with bipolar disorder had lower expectations and plans about having children than participants without mental disorders. While individual characteristics like marital status and age, as well as illness-related factors like the number of hospitalizations and type of first episode, affected attitudes towards fertility and childbearing in women with bipolar disorder, reproductive health factors had no effect. In conclusion, factors specific to women with bipolar disorder affect attitudes towards motherhood. Identifying these factors is important for mental health professionals, especially psychiatric nurses, to gain new perspectives for maintenance treatments and enhance collaboration with patients in managing bipolar disorder.