Why new mothers shouldn't rush back to work

Many new mothers suffer from extreme tiredness even four months after giving birth, prompting experts to warn they should not hurry back to work. An Australian study found half of new mothers were still 'excessively sleepy' 18 weeks into motherhood, Daily Mail reports.

Dr Ashleigh Filtness, of Queensland University of Technology, studied the sleep patterns and tiredness in women after giving birth. She found that despite new mothers recording stable night sleep times at 18 weeks, they continued to report being excessively tired.

The study, published in the journal PLOS ONE, followed 33 healthy new Australian mums who recorded their sleep patterns after giving birth in 15 minute increments during weeks six, 12 and 18.

Dr Filtness said: 'Sleep disruption strongly influences daytime function, with sleepiness recognised as a risk-factor for people performing critical and dangerous tasks.'

And while new mothers were still waking on average twice a night to attend to their babies at six, 12 and 18 weeks - their total sleep time was about seven hours and 20 minutes. Australian new mothers actually slept more than the average American one, who got six hours and 53 minutes.

The findings have 'significant implications' for decisions-makers about the length of maternity leave, the researchers said.

'Our findings bring into question whether four months parental leave is sufficient to ensure daytime sleepiness has diminished to a manageable level before returning to work.'

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