The Effects of Maternal Distress and Social Support on Sleep Health in Rural Mothers

Abstract

Sleep health is a modifiable, bio-behavioral process that is associated with downstream negative health outcomes for women, and their families, during the postpartum and early years of motherhood. Little is known about the overall sleep health of rural mothers and how predictors of sleep health affect sleep health in rural populations. Therefore, the aims of this study include describing sleep health and identifying potential protective and risk factors for this population. Multiple linear regressions will be run to test the main and interactive effects of social support, maternal distress, sleep health, and cognitive pre-sleep arousal. Results indicated that maternal distress and social support are associated with sleep health and cognitive pre-sleep arousal. Results could have implications for the inclusion of social-ecological considerations in future research, and for the development of culturally tailored sleep health interventions for rural women and families.