14 DAY TRIAL // As newborn babies undergo the transition to toddlers, their mothers may not necessarily be as happy about having kids as women tend to declare. The investigation found that these declarations are oftentimes false, and inspired by other things than the respondent's own feelings of happiness.
That is not to say this time frame is all bad. What the researchers behind the new work are saying is that it's not blissful experience, as new mothers would like others to believe. The study was conducted by experts with the Norwegian Institute of Public Health.
It would appear that, for most new mothers, that time frame is associated with a drop in the levels of satisfaction with life, as well as with the relationship these women have with their spouses or partners.
But the scientists also discovered that women who get a lot of satisfaction from their relationships during the pregnancy itself are very likely to have higher degrees of satisfaction later on, some three years after giving birth.
“In this study we have investigated two types of satisfaction – satisfaction with the partner and general satisfaction with life – both during pregnancy and later in infancy and toddlerhood,” explains research team member Ragnhild Bang Nes.
The expert adds that the survey was conducted on no less than 60,000 Norwegian women, all of which had recently become mothers, PsychCentral reports. “Long term, satisfaction with the relationship affects satisfaction with life to a greater degree than vice versa,” Bang Nes adds.
According to the new conclusions, women were most satisfied with life shortly after their kids were born, and this happiness peaked some six months after their children came along. Satisfaction levels then decreased to reach a record low when the young ones turned 3.
The scientists also determined that satisfaction with life during pregnancy and after birth is intimately connected to the satisfaction women get from their relationship. After the baby turns three, the two types of satisfaction reportedly begin to influence each other more evenly.
“It is possible that the good welfare system in Norway contributes to ease the challenges during this phase. However, this has not been specifically studied here,” Bang Nes explains.
“Most adults want to have children. Children are seen as a blessing, an enrichment and a central source of meaning, love and belonging. One would therefore expect that having a child meets both the desire and satisfies a fundamental need, which in turn creates happiness and satisfaction,” the expert says.
“However, studies show that this is not always the case. This is often called the ‘paradox of parental life’,” Bang Nes concludes.