Background: Postpartum depression is a psychiatric disorder that starts from the second to the sixth week after birth. Breastfeeding is considered a protective factor for postpartum mood swings. This paper aims to examine the effect of breastfeeding on postpartum depression and anxiety, and how it affects child development. Methods: The study included 209 pregnant women, 197 puerperea, and 160 women at the end of the third month after delivery, followed through three time-points. The instruments used in the study were the Edinburgh Postpartum Depression Scale (EPDS), Beck’s Depression Inventory (BDI), and Beck’s Anxiety Inventory (BAI). Results: Postpartum mothers with low risk of PPD breastfed their children more often than mothers with a mild or severe risk of perinatal depression. Mean values on the BDI scale three months after giving birth were higher in mothers who did not breastfeed their child (M = 3.53) than those who did breastfeed their child (M = 2.28). Postpartum anxiety measured by BAI was statistically negatively correlated (rs-, 430) with the duration of breastfeeding. Conclusion: Nonbreastfeeding mothers are more depressed and anxious compared to breastfeeding mothers.

Background: Sleep disturbances and mental health disorders represent a significant public health concern. Medical students, in particular, experience intense academic pressure, long study hours, irregular schedules, and the emotional burden of clinical training, all of which may contribute to the development of sleep disturbances and mental health issues. This study aims to assess sleep quality and the prevalence of symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress among medical students, as well as their interrelationships. Methods: This multicentric cross-sectional study was conducted in January and February 2025 among medical students from two medical faculties in Croatia. Sleep quality was assessed using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), while symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress were evaluated using Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale-21 (DASS-21). Results: The study included 386 participants, of whom 96 were male and 290 were female students. It was found that 67.9% of students had poor sleep quality, while symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress were reported by 38.8%, 45.3%, and 40.4% of participants, respectively. Female students exhibited higher PSQI scores (U = 10,205, p < 0.001), as well as higher levels of depression (U = 10,372, p < 0.001), anxiety (U = 10,328, p < 0.001), and stress scores (U = 10,560, p < 0.001). Additionally, significant moderate positive correlations were observed between the total PSQI score and depression (ρ = 0.566, p < 0.001), anxiety (ρ = 0.489, p < 0.001), and stress scores (ρ = 0.503, p < 0.001). Moreover, an increase in depression (β = 0.178, p < 0.001) and anxiety scores (β = 0.141, p < 0.001) contributed to a higher total PSQI score, indicating poorer sleep quality. Conclusions: A high prevalence of poor sleep quality and symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress was observed among medical students, with female students exhibiting higher levels of these variables. Furthermore, poorer sleep quality was associated with higher levels of depression, anxiety, and stress.

Addiction is a complex psychosocial problem that has significant psychosocial effects on family members. The aim of this study is to gain insight into the burden and psychological distress suffered by caregivers of drug abusers. Ninety-nine caregivers of hard drug addicts participated in this study. The test group consisted of 50 participants and the control group had 49 participants. The participants filled out the General Demographic Questionnaire; Caregiving and the Experience of Subjective and Objective Burden; SCL-90-R; and WHOQOL-BREF. Caregivers of addicts who were preparing to join the community exhibited a significantly higher objective burden, subjective burden, subjective stress burden and greater psychological distress in comparison to caregivers of addicts in the community, and their quality of life was poorer (p < 0.001). The following showed to be risk factors for psychological distress: families with a greater number of children, marital, employment and economic status and duration of addiction. The protective factors were better quality of life, long-term marriage and higher education level of caregivers. Caring for addicts who are living with their families is a significant responsibility and burden for caregivers.

The process of population ageing with socioeconomic and political implications necessitates the creation of sustainable social strategies aimed at societal inclusion, support of subjective well-being and successful ageing of older adults. Therefore, the aim of this cross-sectional study was to explore individual and contextual factors and predictors which impede the possibility of successful ageing. The study was conducted from January to June 2024 through a questionnaire involving 403 elderly participants who live in the Eastern region of Croatia—Slavonia. The Diener Scale of Subjective Well-being and Self-assessment of Successful Ageing Scale were used in this research. A separate and model contribution of predictors (gender, age, subjective age, residence, level of education, marital status, comorbidities, Satisfaction with Life Scale and Prosperity Scale) were examined using bivariate and multivariate regression. Multivariate regression differentiated a statistically significant model, which as a whole explains between 41% and 55% of the variance of the present negative assessment of successful ageing, correctly classifying 80% of cases. The significant predictors included subjective age, place of residence, level of education, comorbidities, Satisfaction with Life Scale, and Prosperity Scale. These findings underscore the importance of both individual and contextual factors in successful ageing within this specific regional context.

Alexithymia, or the inability to distinguish between bodily feelings and emotions, has been linked to poor sleep quality in some studies. Rare studies examined the associations between electrolyte phosphorus in patients on hemodialysis and their sleep quality, daytime sleepiness, and alexithymia with inflammatory factors. Hemodialysis is a treatment method for terminal renal patients that involves the diffusion of unwanted metabolic products through the dialyzer membrane. Our study aimed to examine whether there was a difference in phosphorus levels, inflammatory factors, and daytime sleepiness according to the hemodialysis patients’ levels of alexithymia. The study involved 170 HD patients that had been treated with chronic dialysis for more than three months. Prior to the hemodialysis procedure, laboratory findings were sampled. Respondents completed the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, the Toronto Alexithymia Scale 26, and the Epworth Sleepiness Scale, and were questioned about depression. The results showed that alexithymic HD patients exhibited significantly higher leukocyte counts, lower predialysis phosphorus values, and more pronounced daily sleepiness than the alexithymia-free group (Mann–Whitney U test, p = 0.02, p = 0.005, and p < 0.001, respectively). We concluded that alexithymia was an independent predictor of high daytime sleepiness in HD patients (OR = 1.05, 95% CI 1.02 to 1.09).

Alexithymia is a construct defined as the inability to differentiate between emotional experiences and bodily sensations. According to existing knowledge, alexithymia may have a major effect on the process of treatment and the outcome of the hemodialysis disease. The objective of this literature review was to determine the significance that alexithymia has for compliance and variables of clinical and mental health in the population of hemodialysis patients. For the above purpose, bibliographic databases “MEDLINE” and “Web of Science” were searched. The matrix method was used in analysis of articles. Searching both databases resulted in 248 articles. After applying exclusion and inclusion criteria, we included results of 13 articles in the literature review. The results of the search are findings regarding the prevalence and correlation of alexithymia with variables of clinical and mental health in hemodialysis patients. Alexithymia is significantly more common in the population of hemodialysis patients, and it has a negative effect on their mental and somatic health. Alexithymia levels in hemodialysis patients are more pronounced in cases where there is a greater number of comorbidities. Alexithymia is the predictor of high mortality rate in the population of hemodialysis patients, independent of other comorbidities.