Examining the relationship between self-compassion, depression, anxiety levels, and mother-infant attachment in mothers with babies hospitalized in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit

Aim: This study was conducted as a descriptive study in order to examine the relationship between self-compassion, depression, and anxiety levels of mothers whose babies are hospitalized in the Neonatal İntensive Care Unit (NICU) and mother-infant attachment. Material and Method: The universe of the study consisted of mothers whose babies were hospitalized in Bitlis Ahlat State Hospital NICU between April and December 2024, and the sample consisted of 192 volunteer mothers who met the research selection criteria. Data were collected using the Introductory Information Form, Self-Compassion Scale, Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Inventory (EPDS), State Anxiety Inventory (STAI) and Mother-Infant Attachment Inventory (MAI). In the analysis of data, arithmetic mean, standard deviation, skewness and kurtosis coefficients, t-test for independent groups, one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), Welch ANOVA in cases where group variances were not homogeneous, Bonferroni tests and correlation analysis were used for Post Hoc analyzes. Results: In the study, the mean score of the mothers on the self-compassion scale was found to be 77.00±11.21, the mean score of the EPNDS was 10.61±3.11, the mean score of the STAI was 42.37±5.87 and the mean score of the ABBÖ was found to be 5.25±2.07. While a positive significant relationship was found between depression and anxiety levels and mother-infant attachment, a negative significant relationship was found between self-compassion and attachment (p<0.05). It was determined that characteristics such as the mother's education level, the spouse's education level, perceived income status, family type, presence of chronic disease and medication use created significant differences on self-compassion, depression and attachment scores (p<0.05). Conclusion: It reveals that the mothers' self-compassion, depression and anxiety levels play a determining role on mother-infant attachment. It was concluded that intensive care nurses should take an active role not only in baby care but also in recognizing, evaluating and directing the emotional needs of mothers with appropriate support approaches. In this context, it is recommended that psychosocial interventions that increase self-compassion be structured, depression and anxiety risks be screened early, and necessary support be provided. In addition, nurses increasing opportunities for contact that support mother-infant bonding, providing education and counseling to mothers, and taking initiatives to strengthen self-compassion can strengthen the bonding process by improving the quality of care. Keywords: Anxiety, compassion, depression, mother-infant bonding, neonatal intensive care unit.