Background: The COVID-19 pandemic initiated a period of new and difficult challenges for nursing students. Purpose: The aim of this study was to assess the change in levels of anxiety and ways of coping when the lockdown was being lifted compared with the period of the most severe lockdown restrictions. Methods: First- to fourth-year nursing students in Israel (N = 244) completed 2 surveys conducted during the initial lockdown and 5 weeks later. Results: When the restrictions were lightened, the mean anxiety score decreased from 9.3 to 7.5 (P < .0001). Among Muslims students, the trend was the opposite, and anxiety levels increased. Stronger resilience was associated with lower odds for anxiety. Mental disengagement and information seeking were associated with higher anxiety levels. Conclusions: The pandemic created unparalleled stressful situations for nursing students. Faculty should have heightened awareness of these stressors and act to implement innovative resolutions for the problems that arise.

The psychological phenomenon of Parental Burnout (PB) results from an imbalance between continuous exposure to chronic parenting stress and available coping resources. The study’s aim was to examine relationships between mothers’ perceived burden of treatment and PB, and their ability to utilize emotion work (EW) as a psychological coping resource. Ninety-eight Israeli mothers (46 had children with special needs with disabilities—W-SND, and 52 had children without special needs—WO-SN) completed questionnaires assessing their perception of burden of treatment, EW and PB. According to the findings, mothers of children W-SND reported significantly higher PB, a higher perceived burden of treatment and deeper EW than mothers of children WO-SN. Additionally, among all the mothers, a positive significant correlation was found between perceived burden of treatment and PB, while among mothers of children W-SND, positive correlations were found between their perceived burden of treatment and deep EW, and between deep EW and PB. These findings suggest that among mothers of children W-SND, PB is related to their perception of the burden of treatment and to performing deep EW. Additional psychological, cultural and environmental factors should be investigated, in order to gain new perspectives regarding PB as a psychological phenomenon that affects parenting and the ability to utilize coping mechanisms for mothers generally and for mothers of children W-SND especially.

Parents of children With Special Needs and Disabilities (W-SND) who require long-term healthcare are at high risk of Parental Burnout (PB). However, most studies have focused on PB among parents of children Without Special Needs (WO-SN). This study aimed to develop a new model explaining PB of mothers of children W-SND/WO-SN. The main hypothesis was that the nexus of correlations between risk factors of PB (severity of child’s disability/challenge, perceived caregiver burden) and protective resources (social support, learned resourcefulness, deep emotion work) will explain the variance of PB of mothers of children W-SND and WO-SN. A questionnaire assessing PB, its risk factors, and protective resources was completed by 352 Israeli mothers of children W-SND (mean age 36.9) or WO-SN (mean age 32.3). The child’s disabilities were communicative, physical, intellectual and developmental. The main results are that mothers of children W-SND reported higher PB, higher caregiver burden, and a higher severity of disability. About 50% of PB variance was significantly explained by the nexus of correlations between selected risk and protective factors. Among all mothers, the more social support they received, the higher their learned-resourcefulness. However, learned resourcefulness mediates the correlation between caregiver burden and PB among mothers of children W-SND. Accordingly, it is important to increase awareness among healthcare professionals regarding the risk factors and symptoms of PB, and to develop workshops on protective resources in order to prevent PB and promote mothers’ well-being. Further research should be conducted among fathers and parents from diverse cultures.

Armed conflict creates profound challenges for first-time mothers navigating the early postpartum period without the presence of their partners. The abrupt loss of expected support, combined with heightened fear and prolonged uncertainty, intensifies emotional vulnerability and disrupts maternal adjustment to early parenthood. Despite extensive research on trauma and crisis, little is known about how large-scale armed conflict shapes first-time mothers' lived postpartum experiences and their engagement with care systems. This study aimed to explore these experiences among women who gave birth during an armed conflict while coping alone with infant care due to their partners' military deployment. Twenty first-time mothers participated in this qualitative study, which included in-depth, semi-structured interviews. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis and interpreted through Lazarus and Folkman's Transactional Model of Stress and Coping, following COREQ guidelines. Four themes emerged: (1) Forced single parenthood, (2) The complex role of first-time motherhood in war, (3) Fears and anxieties, and (4) Coping strategies and resources. Participants described emotional exhaustion, fear, loneliness, disrupted bonding, and heightened alertness. A recurrent finding was the clear gap between mothers' expectations for compassionate, continuous postpartum support and the task-oriented, limited emotional care they received from professionals. Mothers relied on internal resilience, family support, community assistance, and breastfeeding as coping mechanisms. These findings demonstrate how armed conflict intensifies maternal vulnerability and reshapes postpartum experiences, underscoring the need for trauma-informed, relational postpartum care and stronger continuity between community and hospital services for mothers navigating early parenthood in conflict settings.

The transition to first-time motherhood may be especially challenging during armed conflict and prolonged partner absence. This study explored first-time mothers’ experiences of mother–infant bonding and their perceived capacity to remain emotionally available, responsive, and soothing during their partners’ wartime military or security service. A secondary qualitative analysis was conducted using semi-structured interviews with 20 first-time mothers in conflict-affected areas whose partners were absent for extended periods. Their infants were 6–18 months old at the interview. Transcripts were analyzed thematically through an attachment-informed lens. Four interrelated themes were identified: (1) bonding in an unsafe world, marked by gradual connection and tensions between maternal ideals and lived experience; (2) being a safe haven while maternal security was threatened; (3) caregiving and perceived mutual regulation under emotional overload; and (4) family, professional, and community support as conditions for maternal availability. Ongoing threat, partner absence, and limited rest constrained perceived emotional availability, whereas mothers described relational and practical support as sustaining security, rest, and functioning. Bonding developed within an interconnected context of threat, caregiving demands, and support. Strengthening family, health-service, and community support may help sustain maternal availability and early relational health during wartime.