Promoting Postpartum Resilience 1 Running head: POSTPARTUM RESILIENCE TO CHILDHOOD TRAUMA Promoting Postpartum Resilience in the Face of Childhood Trauma: The Roles of Individual and Social Traits

Various internal and external characteristics appear to influence how adults ―bounce back‖ from trauma in childhood. The present study investigated the impact of internal and external factors of resilience on the relationship between aversive childhood experiences and adult psychopathology (depression and PTSD) in a unique sample of postpartum mothers. Results supported our hypotheses regarding the independent and collaborative impact of factors of resilience on depression and PTSD during the postpartum period. Level of trauma exposure was positively related to pathological symptoms and negatively related to internal and external resiliency factors. Participants who utilized problem-solving coping and social support had fewer symptoms of psychopathology, yet these characteristics were also less represented with more severe abuse. Hierarchical linear regression analyses confirmed that social support and income moderated the relationship between childhood trauma and adult psychopathology. This study is the first to demonstrate the interactive effect of income and social support on resilience to postpartum psychopathology in childhood trauma-surviving women. For clinicians this implies that supportive relationships during potentially vulnerable periods are protective against psychopathology, and that the level of risk ameliorated is dependent on economic level as well. Promoting Postpartum Resilience 3 Promoting Postpartum Resilience in the Face of Childhood Trauma: The Roles of Individual and Social Traits An extensive body of literature exists on childhood trauma and its developmental impact on mental health, and findings generally confirm that aversive experiences early in life are likely to affect psychological wellbeing in the future (Widom, DuMont, & Czaja, 2007). Various internal and external characteristics appear to influence how individuals ―bounce back‖ from trauma in childhood. Several research studies have explored factors that can be helpful in coping with childhood trauma, such as interpersonal relationships and positive coping styles (Hyman & Williams, 2001; Runtz & Schallow, 1997). However, past research has not focused on the comparison between individual and social characteristics that shape coping after traumatic events. Assessing an individual’s resiliency after trauma is of particular interest in the present research, since past studies have emphasized maladaptive rather than healthy outcomes. When the general phenomenon of ―resiliency‖ is deconstructed into individual, family, and social domains, more features of resiliency may be identified. The purpose of this study is to investigate lifestyle factors that promote resilience to childhood trauma for mothers in the postpartum period. As the birth of a child may cause memories of trauma to resurface, the perinatal time can be especially vulnerable to new mothers and can cause psychopathology to be triggered or heightened. Therefore, maternal resiliency in the face of past childhood trauma may be predicted by distinct internal or external qualities that differ from qualities shaping resiliency for adult trauma. In this paper we explore the roles of cognitive coping styles, spirituality, and supportive relationships on postpartum coping in new mothers with histories of childhood