Discussion
depression
HIGH RISK PREGNANCIES, HIGH-RISK PREGNANCIES, CORONAVIRUS
The present study’s findings confirmed the efficacy of CBT in improving self-esteem and body image among breastfeeding women, resulting in an increase in the frequency of exclusive breastfeeding among women in the intervention group. Since there were no studies comparing the effectiveness of CBT on self-esteem and body image in other population groups, studies comparing the effectiveness of CBT on self-esteem and body image in other population groups were compared.In the present study, cognitive-behavioral counseling improved self-esteem in women in the intervention group. In a study conducted by Vakilian et al. (2018) [In the present study, cognitive-behavioral counseling improved body image and its domains in women in the intervention group. Similarly, in a study conducted by Navidian et al. (2016) [The frequency of exclusive breastfeeding was significantly higher in the intervention group than in the control group in the present study. In Navidian’s study [In Sikander’s (2015) study [One of the study’s strengths was the one-month follow-up with participants after delivery. One of the study’s other strengths was the use of standard questionnaires. One of the study’s limitations was the low number of participants in counseling groups due to the pandemic Coronavirus. Furthermore, women with high-risk pregnancies or a history of depression were excluded from the study; thus, it is suggested to investigate the effects of CBT on women with high risk pregnancies in future studies. Furthermore, the follow-up time was only one month. However other variables such as the time of maternity leave and etc. may influence on the breastfeeding process that were not assessed in our study. Therefore, it is suggested that the future studies are conducted with longer follow-up as well as all possible confounders are considered.