Inclusion criteria:
Women aged 18–49 years
Willingness to breastfeed their infants
Residence in Tabriz
Singleton delivery
Mothers with term neonates weighing 2,500–4,000 grams
Mothers with a stress score higher than 14–26 and a moderate anxiety score of 32–50 (above the mean score according to the Angoff method)
Exclusion criteria:
Mothers with hospitalized neonates
Presence of systemic or chronic diseases or conditions exacerbated during pregnancy or postpartum, including gestational or overt diabetes, hypertensive disorders, cardiac diseases, or inability to care for the newborn
Experience of major adverse life events during the past three months, such as death of first-degree relatives or divorce
History of psychiatric disorders or use of antidepressant or antipsychotic medications, based on the mother’s self-report
Unplanned pregnancies, fetal abnormalities, hypothyroidism, or neonatal death
Mothers with breast anomalies, history of breast surgery, or contraindications to breastfeeding, including: • Women under chemotherapy. • Women with HIV infection or untreated active tuberculosis. • Women using radioactive drugs, antimetabolites, or contraindicated medications during lactation, such as methotrexate, mercaptopurine, hydroxyurea, tamoxifen, bromocriptine, lithium, phenindione, phencyclidine, cyclophosphamide, and doxorubicin, as well as illicit drug use
The Edinburgs Depression Score of 13 or higher