Zheng Xujuan, Watts Kim, Morrell Jane
Health Science Center, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, China.
Florence Nightingale School of Nursing and Midwifery, King's College London, London, UK.
Jpn J Nurs Sci. 2019 Jul;16(3):253-262. doi: 10.1111/jjns.12232. Epub 2018 Sep 26.
"Doing the month" has been a traditionally postnatal practice that women follow for one full month after giving birth. The aim of this study was to explore Chinese primiparous women's experience of "Doing the month" and why Chinese women felt satisfied or dissatisfied with the experience.
This was a descriptive survey using open and closed questions. In total, 420 Chinese primiparous women were recruited in obstetric wards at three hospitals in Xiamen City, China. Baseline questionnaires were distributed to the participants face-to-face by the researcher on the postnatal ward at 3 days' postnatally. Follow-up questionnaires of "Doing the month" were sent via email by the researcher to the participants at 6 weeks' postnatally and were returned by the participants via email. The quantitative data were analyzed with SPSS and the qualitative data were analyzed by using a thematic text analysis.
Most of the women thought that "Doing the month" after childbirth was necessary. Some women felt satisfied with "Doing the month" because their family helped them to have a good rest, they felt a sense of achievement when taking care of their baby, and that having an appreciative attitude helped them to get along with the older generations. In contrast, some women felt dissatisfied with "Doing the month" because of being tired of following taboos, having conflicts with their mother-in-law, the lack of family help and care, and undue expectations of "Doing the month."
In order to improve postnatal care for Chinese primiparous women, health professionals could be more aware of how health care needs to be customized to fit the special tradition of "Doing the month."
“坐月子”是女性产后遵循的一项传统习俗，需持续一整个月。本研究旨在探讨中国初产妇的“坐月子”经历，以及中国女性对该经历感到满意或不满意的原因。
这是一项采用开放式和封闭式问题的描述性调查。在中国厦门市的三家医院产科病房共招募了420名中国初产妇。研究人员在产后3天于产后病房面对面地向参与者发放基线问卷。研究人员在产后6周通过电子邮件向参与者发送“坐月子”的随访问卷，参与者通过电子邮件回复。定量数据用SPSS进行分析，定性数据采用主题文本分析。
大多数女性认为产后“坐月子”是必要的。一些女性对“坐月子”感到满意，因为家人帮助她们好好休息，照顾宝宝时她们有成就感，并且感恩的态度有助于她们与长辈相处。相比之下，一些女性对“坐月子”感到不满意，原因包括厌烦遵守禁忌、与婆婆发生冲突、缺乏家人的帮助和照顾以及对“坐月子”期望过高。
为了改善对中国初产妇的产后护理，卫生专业人员可以更多地了解如何根据“坐月子”这一特殊传统来定制医疗保健服务。
