The dynamic nature of parenting practices: a qualitative enquiry of parenting adolescents during COVID-19.

Introduction: Parenting practices are known to be dynamic, evolving in response to various factors such as societal changes, cultural norms, and individual circumstances. Understanding the dynamic nature of parenting is essential for comprehending its influence on children's development. This study aimed to explore the adaptive nature of parenting practices amidst the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic, a global event that provided a unique context for examining these dynamics. Methods: In-depth semi-structured qualitative interviews were conducted with six heterogeneous couples who were parenting at least one adolescent during the pandemic. Attride-Sterling's thematic network analysis was employed to analyze the interview data. Results: Five global themes emerged from the data, namely, change in parenting style due to stressors, paternal versus maternal style of parenting, intergenerational transmission of parenting practices, child-centric parenting practices, positive parenting practices and evolving parent-child relationship during COVID-19. Discussion: The findings highlight the tendency of parents to adapt their parenting styles to meet the evolving needs of their children. Understanding these dynamics is crucial for supporting families during times of crisis. Future research should explore the long-term effects of these changes and effective strategies for promoting positive parent-child relationships.

Self-reported perceived stress, depression, and generalized anxiety disorder among Kathak dancers and physically active non-dancers of North India.

The aim of the present paper was to study the various common mental disorders in a sample of Kathak dancers and non-dancers of North India. 206 female Kathak dancers and 235 healthy controls, aged 18-45 years completed questionnaires assessing perceived stress (PSS-10), depressive symptoms (PHQ-9), and generalized anxiety (GAD-7). Pearson correlations assessed the association between perceived stress, depression, generalized anxiety, age, and years of dancing, and binary logistic regression identified the risk of developing depression and generalized anxiety disorder in Kathak dancers and non-dancers. The prevalence of perceived stress was similar among Kathak dancers and non-dancers. Kathak dancers reported significantly lower depressive symptoms compared to controls. Non-dancers with elevated perceived stress levels were 4 times more likely to report depressive symptoms and 7 times more likely to report anxiety symptoms, relative to dancers. The adjusted odds of reporting depressive symptoms along with generalized anxiety were higher among non-dancers compared to dancers. Kathak can be developed into a very effective psychotherapeutic tool for mitigating the risk of developing depression and generalized anxiety disorder.

Women infertility and common mental disorders: A cross-sectional study from North India.

BACKGROUND: Infertility is a very distressing condition. It is often associated with long-term stress, which can emerge as anxiety and depression. AIM: To understand the effect of socio-demographic variables, reproductive trajectories, and lifestyle variables on stress, depression, and anxiety independently and to understand the relationship of psychological variables with each other among infertile and fertile women. METHODS: This cross-sectional study recruited 500 women which included 250 primary infertile cases and 250 age-matched fertile controls of the age group 22-35 years. A pretested modified interview schedule was administered which included demographic variables, lifestyle variables, and reproductive trajectories. In addition, psychological tools like PSS, GAD-7, and PHQ-9 were used to collect the data pertaining to Stress, anxiety, and depression, respectively. Data analysis was performed with the statistical software version SPSS, IBM version 24. RESULTS: Infertile women are more prone to various psychological disorder (stress, anxiety and depression). None of the demographic and lifestyle variables were associated with stress, anxiety, and depression among infertile women. Only reproductive trajectories were found to be causing stress, anxiety, and depression respectively among infertile women. In addition, stress is leading to both anxiety and depression among infertile women but only to depression in fertile women. CONCLUSION: Infertile women should be counselled by medical experts regarding reproductive trajectories. Infertile couples should be guided and counselled to incorporate mental health screening and treatment in their routine check-up.

Knowledge, attitude, and practice of infertility: a comparative study in infertile and fertile Indian women.

For women who are trying to conceive, it is critical to assess their general knowledge regarding fertility and fertility-awareness practices to identify the fertile window and their agency to achieve pregnancy. The couple's ability to deal with the infertility issue may be influenced by their beliefs and attitudes concerning infertility, which are based on social and cultural influences as well as their inner aspirations. As a result, it's critical to examine infertile and fertile woman's general knowledge of reproduction and infertility risk factors. It's also crucial to learn about women's attitudes toward infertility (social beliefs), as well as the repercussions of infertility and the practises they employ to avoid it. The present study includes 250 fertile and 250 infertile women. Data collection for infertile women was done from the Gynecology Outpatient Department (OPD). Participants from both groups i.e., infertile and fertile women have little knowledge about infertility but, infertile women have significantly higher knowledge than fertile women. Knowledge of the fertile period, as well as several potential causes of infertility, were found to be significantly higher in women with infertility problem rather than fertile women, indicating that the knowledge they have acquired is not attributable to education system, but rather to their experience gained during visits to medical practitioners. In addition to differences with respect to knowledge, infertile and fertile women differed in terms of both attitude (societal beliefs and social consequences of infertility) and practices. Better knowledge regarding infertility is likely to bring positive notes among women with infertility problems. Which will further improve the attitude and practices of society towards infertile women. Therefore, its crucial to introduce reproductive health education at high school or undergraduate level, to assist women in avoiding infertility and to help infertile women develop healthier attitudes regarding infertility treatment and coping techniques.

Disordered eating attitudes and body shape concerns among North Indian Kathak dancers.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the prevalence and association between disordered eating attitudes and body shape concerns in a sample of North Indian Kathak dancers. METHOD: Participants were 206 Kathak female dancers and 235 healthy controls, ages 18-45 years. Participants completed questionnaires assessing demographics, disordered eating attitudes, and body dissatisfaction. Pearson correlations assessed the association between the disordered eating attitudes and body dissatisfaction, and binary logistic regression identified the risk of having a possible eating disorder. RESULTS: Kathak dancers reported significantly greater disordered eating attitudes compared to controls (12.1% vs. 5.9%, p = .023). Dancers endorsed greater dieting behaviors (M = 5.6 vs. 4.5, p = .031), and binge eating episodes (p < .001) relative to their counterparts. Body dissatisfaction was significantly positively correlated with disordered eating attitudes among the dancers (p < .001). Dancers with elevated body shape concerns were five times more likely to report disordered eating attitudes, relative to their peers (p < .001). DISCUSSION: Disordered eating attitudes and body shape concerns are prevalent among North Indian Kathak dancers. Future research should aim to develop targeted prevention and intervention programs that focus on reducing these behaviors and promoting a positive body image to mitigate the risk of disordered eating among this group.

Neurodevelopmental disorders in children aged 2-9 years: Population-based burden estimates across five regions in India.

BACKGROUND: Neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs) compromise the development and attainment of full social and economic potential at individual, family, community, and country levels. Paucity of data on NDDs slows down policy and programmatic action in most developing countries despite perceived high burden. METHODS AND FINDINGS: We assessed 3,964 children (with almost equal number of boys and girls distributed in 2-<6 and 6-9 year age categories) identified from five geographically diverse populations in India using cluster sampling technique (probability proportionate to population size). These were from the North-Central, i.e., Palwal (N = 998; all rural, 16.4% non-Hindu, 25.3% from scheduled caste/tribe [SC-ST] [these are considered underserved communities who are eligible for affirmative action]); North, i.e., Kangra (N = 997; 91.6% rural, 3.7% non-Hindu, 25.3% SC-ST); East, i.e., Dhenkanal (N = 981; 89.8% rural, 1.2% non-Hindu, 38.0% SC-ST); South, i.e., Hyderabad (N = 495; all urban, 25.7% non-Hindu, 27.3% SC-ST) and West, i.e., North Goa (N = 493; 68.0% rural, 11.4% non-Hindu, 18.5% SC-ST). All children were assessed for vision impairment (VI), epilepsy (Epi), neuromotor impairments including cerebral palsy (NMI-CP), hearing impairment (HI), speech and language disorders, autism spectrum disorders (ASDs), and intellectual disability (ID). Furthermore, 6-9-year-old children were also assessed for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and learning disorders (LDs). We standardized sample characteristics as per Census of India 2011 to arrive at district level and all-sites-pooled estimates. Site-specific prevalence of any of seven NDDs in 2-<6 year olds ranged from 2.9% (95% CI 1.6-5.5) to 18.7% (95% CI 14.7-23.6), and for any of nine NDDs in the 6-9-year-old children, from 6.5% (95% CI 4.6-9.1) to 18.5% (95% CI 15.3-22.3). Two or more NDDs were present in 0.4% (95% CI 0.1-1.7) to 4.3% (95% CI 2.2-8.2) in the younger age category and 0.7% (95% CI 0.2-2.0) to 5.3% (95% CI 3.3-8.2) in the older age category. All-site-pooled estimates for NDDs were 9.2% (95% CI 7.5-11.2) and 13.6% (95% CI 11.3-16.2) in children of 2-<6 and 6-9 year age categories, respectively, without significant difference according to gender, rural/urban residence, or religion; almost one-fifth of these children had more than one NDD. The pooled estimates for prevalence increased by up to three percentage points when these were adjusted for national rates of stunting or low birth weight (LBW). HI, ID, speech and language disorders, Epi, and LDs were the common NDDs across sites. Upon risk modelling, noninstitutional delivery, history of perinatal asphyxia, neonatal illness, postnatal neurological/brain infections, stunting, LBW/prematurity, and older age category (6-9 year) were significantly associated with NDDs. The study sample was underrepresentative of stunting and LBW and had a 15.6% refusal. These factors could be contributing to underestimation of the true NDD burden in our population. CONCLUSIONS: The study identifies NDDs in children aged 2-9 years as a significant public health burden for India. HI was higher than and ASD prevalence comparable to the published global literature. Most risk factors of NDDs were modifiable and amenable to public health interventions.

Physical and psychosocial impact of acne in adult females.

BACKGROUND: Acne, the most common problem that presents to dermatologists, can persist beyond teen years. Although its physical and psychosocial impact is studied in teen years, it is poorly understood in the Indian adult population. AIM: To study the physical and psychosocial impact of acne in adult females. SETTINGS AND DESIGN: This exploratory study was done in the university setting. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Eleven adult, unmarried females, between the age group of 18 and 25 years, having (mild-to-moderate), acne, for two consecutive years, were interviewed using a semi-structured clinical interview of the Skindex, a quality-of-life measure for patients with skin disease, developed by Chren et al., along with some open-ended questions. Both qualitative and quantitative analysis was done to analyze the data. RESULTS: The results indicated a higher level of emotional and social impairment, in terms of the feelings of physical discomfort, anger, and the intermingling impact of these, among the participants. CONCLUSIONS: Acne is a common problem among adults and appears to have a considerable impact on the mental health, therefore, for the treatment to be successful, a sympathetic approach by doctors and significant others, with the basic psychosomatic treatment, are necessary.

Fighting cancer is half the battle... living life is the other half.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to explore the psychological and social problems the terminally ill are facing in India. Another objective of this study was to explore the Locus of Control and Depression. AIMS: The study was conducted on an incidentally available sample of fifteen terminally ill patients at the Pain Clinic, I.R.C.H., AIIMS, ranging from young adults (30-35 years), to middle aged (40-50 years), to the elderly (55-65 years). MATERIALS AND METHODS: A thematic and narrative analysis was done using semi-structured interview. After the semi-structured interview, two standardized inventories were administered. The two inventories used were Multidimensional Health Locus of Control, and Beck's Depression Inventory. The statements from the two inventories were translated into Hindi and then asked. The inventories were not given as a questionnaire to be filled; rather they were asked orally and marked by the investigator. RESULTS: The co-relation between Internal Health Locus of Control and Depression was found to be significant below the 0.05 level. Statistics also revealed that a large number of participants were either severely depressed (33.33%) or extremely depressed (20%). The seven common themes running through all the narratives were identified; Concern for physical pain; Anxiety and Depression; Body-image problems; Social withdrawal; Disease viewed as bad 'karma'; Desire for hastened death; and lastly Hope. CONCLUSION: This article would create greater awareness among all the concerned people working with cancer patients on what intervention strategies should be utilized to help the patients, as well as, how the belief in karma can help gain a more positivistic outlook towards death and the core role spirituality and the belief in karma can play in the counseling of the patients and their families.