The Missing Piece in Postpartum Care: The Mental Health Gap in Sexual and Reproductive Health Self-Care Among Parents of Children Under Five — A Mixed-Methods Study

Komal Mittal; Lovely Soam

doi:10.36948/ijfmr.2026.v08i04.84709

The Missing Piece in Postpartum Care: The Mental Health Gap in Sexual and Reproductive Health Self-Care Among Parents of Children Under Five — A Mixed-Methods Study

Author(s)	Ms. Komal Mittal, Prof. Dr. Lovely Soam
Country	India
Abstract	Background: Self-care is central to global guidance on sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), yet little is known about whether existing self-care and SRH service models adequately address the emotional and mental health needs of parents of young children. Objective: To examine the prevalence and lived experience of emotional strain among parents of children under five, and to assess how adequately current SRH services are perceived to address mental wellbeing. Methods: A convergent mixed-methods analysis of a 57-item self-administered questionnaire completed by 114 parents (84 female, 29 male; 91% married; 92% educated to undergraduate level or above), combining descriptive statistics and cross-tabulation of closed-ended items with inductive thematic coding of open-ended responses. Results: More than half of respondents (56%, 64/114) reported changes in mood, sleep, or energy since becoming a parent, and 60% reported feeling stressed, anxious, or overwhelmed by parenting responsibilities at least sometimes. Only 30% (34/114) felt their mental wellbeing was adequately addressed within current SRH services, while 46% (53/114) were unsure and 24% (27/114) said it was not. Formal or informal help-seeking for emotional or mental stress was reported by only 29% (33/114) of respondents, and partners/spouses — not health services — were the dominant source of emotional support (56%, 64/114). Despite this gap in provision, 61% (69/114) believed self-care practices helped reduce SRH-related stress and anxiety. Qualitative accounts described chronic sleep deprivation, an unacknowledged perinatal mental load, and a clear desire for postpartum psychological support integrated into routine care. Conclusion: Parental emotional wellbeing represents the clearest unmet need identified in this dataset — a gap in service provision rather than in demand or self-perceived awareness. Embedding brief mental health screening and support within existing SRH and paediatric touchpoints, rather than treating mental health as a separate referral pathway, is likely to close a need that parents identify consistently and independently of one another.
Keywords	Sexual and reproductive health; self-care; postpartum mental health; parenting; maternal mental health; service integration; mixed-methods
Field	Sociology > Health
Published In	Volume 8, Issue 4, July-August 2026
Published On	2026-07-29
DOI	https://doi.org/10.36948/ijfmr.2026.v08i04.84709

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The Missing Piece in Postpartum Care: The Mental Health Gap in Sexual and Reproductive Health Self-Care Among Parents of Children Under Five — A Mixed-Methods Study

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