Feeding problems and self-compassion (Mahurin-Smith & Beck, 2021)

<div><b>Introduction:</b> Infant feeding problems are strongly associated with caregiver stress, which in turn is linked to poorer outcomes for children. Self-compassion is a modifiable trait strongly associated with improved mental health and greater resilience. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationships among self-compassion, stress management practices, and caregiver stress in a sample of parents who identified feeding problems in their infants.</div><div><b>Method: </b>Parents who identified feeding problems in their infants completed an online survey. They described the feeding problems, completed the Self-Compassion Scale and the Perceived Stress Scale, and detailed their stress management practices.</div><div><b>Results: </b>Higher self-compassion was strongly associated with lower overall stress and more modestly associated with lower feeding-related distress. More severe feeding problems were significantly more stressful for caregivers. Participants reported a wide variety of stress management approaches.</div><div><b>Discussion: </b>These findings indicate that higher self-compassion is associated with lower caregiver stress for parents whose infants experience feeding problems. Implications for service providers are reviewed.</div><div><br></div><div><b>Supplemental Material S1. </b>Survey items.</div><div><br></div><div>Mahurin-Smith, J., & Beck, A. (2021). Caregivers’ experiences of infant feeding problems: The role of self-compassion and stress management.<i> American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology</i>. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1044/2021_AJSLP-20-00298</div>