Marie-Hélène Pennestri

McGill University | McGill · Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology (ECP)

Study Objectives To synthesize findings of original articles examining the association between sleep-wake patterns of typically developing infants aged 0-to-18 months and cognitive and psychomotor development. Methods A systematic search strategy was used to identify articles assessing the association between infant sleep (0-to-18 months) and cogn...

Introduction The World Health Organization recommends that infants be exclusively breastfed for at least the first 6 months of life, and then partially breastfed until 2 years of age and onward, if preferred. However, the choice to breastfeed an infant is influenced by cultural, biological, and social factors. For instance, factors which may promot...

Introduction Healthy sleep is essential to a child's development, particularly during preschool. However, interventions that address sleep difficulties among children in this age group are scarce. This preliminary study explored parental perspectives on the effectiveness and barriers of a short sleep intervention for preschool children. Methods Tw...

Aim This study aimed to understand the association between feeding method, specifically breastfeeding versus non‐breastfeeding, at 6 and 12 months and infant sleep over the first 3 years of life. Methods A sample of 444 mother‐infant dyads from the Maternal Adversity, Vulnerability and Neurodevelopment cohort were analysed. Based on retrospective...

Empirical studies reveal that interpersonal violence victimization is a highly prevalent phenomena in youth and is associated with a host of difficulties, including mental, physical, and behavioral issues. Sleep, a developmentally fundamental process, is implicated in these unfavorable effects. Despite this, little is known about the interplay betw...

Pennestri, M.-H., Denault, V., Béliveau, M.-J., Tong, D., & Talwar, V. (2023). Aspects psychologiques et légaux liés à la garde d’enfants en bas âge [Psychological and legal aspects of early childhood care]. Revue du Barreau, 80, 145-190.

Study Objective To investigate whether childhood sleep trajectories are associated with mental health symptoms such as social phobia, generalized anxiety, depression, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), conduct problems, and opposition at age 15. Methods A total of 2120 children took part in the Quebec Longitudinal Study of Child Deve...

Objectifs La somnolence diurne des adolescents a des impacts négatifs sur la santé physique, cognitive et émotionnelle, engendrant des conséquences directes ou indirectes sur leur santé mentale. Cette recension vise à décrire les outils spécialisés pour évaluer la somnolence diurne chez les adolescents afin que les intervenants en santé mentale pui...

Study objectives: Child sexual abuse (CSA) is associated with negative consequences on both physical and mental health. It has been found to influence child and adolescent sleep, which is an important developmental factor, which also influences mental and physical health. However, the literature examining this topic is plagued by methodological li...

Parental relationship dissolution is considered one of the most common adverse childhood experiences. Although sleep is crucial for healthy development of children and very sensitive to environmental changes, it is poorly studied in the context of parental relationship dissolution. The aim of the current study was to systematically review and criti...

Objectives Daytime sleepiness in adolescents has negative impacts on physical, cognitive, and emotional health, with direct or indirect consequences on their mental health. This review aims to describe specialized tools assessing daytime sleepiness in adolescents so that mental health professionals can screen for a variety of sleep disorders, from...

Sleep plays a fundamental role in brain development and resultant functions. The aim was to verify whether nocturnal sleep duration during early childhood has long-term associations with academic achievement at age 10 years. The present study is part of the Quebec Longitudinal Study of Child Development, a representative cohort of infants born in 1...

Studies describing the link between infant sleeping arrangements and postpartum maternal depressive symptoms have led to inconsistent findings. However, expectations regarding these sleeping arrangements were rarely taken into consideration. Furthermore, very few studies on pediatric sleep have included fathers. Therefore, the aims of this study we...

Background While walking in nature has been shown to improve affect in adults from the community to a greater extent than walking in urban settings, it is unknown whether such benefits apply to individuals suffering from depression. Using a parallel group design, this randomized controlled trial examined the effects of a single walk in nature versu...

Objectives Given that postpartum sleep is an important family process, further investigations including both mothers and fathers are necessary. The present study aimed to describe and compare sleep patterns and intraindividual night-to-night variability in mothers and fathers at 6 months postpartum using subjective and objective sleep measures. De...

Study objectives: While sleep terrors are associated with emotional-behavioral problems in school-aged children and adults, little is known about these associations in early childhood, when sleep terror prevalence is at its highest. Moreover, studies using a longitudinal design and controlling for confounding variables are scarce. This study's obj...

This study aimed to investigate the emotional experience of breastfeeding mothers; to compare their emotions during the day and night; and to identify predictors of maternal emotional states. 107 breastfeeding women completed daytime and nighttime online surveys. Mothers reported a more positive emotional experience during the daytime breastfeeding...

Negative emotionality (NE) was evaluated as a candidate mechanism linking prenatal maternal affective symptoms and offspring internalizing problems during the preschool/early school age period. The participants were 335 mother-infant dyads from the Maternal Adversity, Vulnerability and Neurodevelopment project. A Confirmatory Bifactor Analysis (CFA...

Childhood sexual abuse has pervasive effects on well-being and psychosocial functioning in children and adolescents, including negative impacts on sleep. This study aimed to systematically review and assess the literature documenting associations between childhood sexual abuse and sleep in minors (0-18 years old) and provide recommendations for fut...

Background: While walking in nature has been shown to improve affect in adults from the community to a greater extent than walking in urban settings, it is unknown whether such findings can be generalized to individuals suffering from depression. Using a parallel group design, this randomized controlled trial examined the effects of a single walk i...

Background An upsurge in dream and nightmare frequency has been noted since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic and research shows increases in levels of stress, depression and anxiety during this time. Growing evidence suggests that dream content has a bi-directional relationship with psychopathology, and that dreams react to new, personally si...

Introduction: The role of birth order has been examined in various health-related areas, but few studies have examined its influence on sleep during infancy. Studies that have investigated the topic yield inconsistent findings. Moreover, nocturnal maternal practices may differ depending on the number of children in the home, but these characteristi...

Introduction: Throughout the postpartum period, parents are exposed to a lot of information about infant sleep. Unfortunately, this information is sometimes contradictory, which can leave parents feeling confused and with a heightened sense of pressure to follow certain practices. In studies investigating parenting, this perceived pressure is often...

Background Concerns have been raised that the COVID-19 pandemic could increase risk for adverse mental health outcomes, especially in young adults, a vulnerable age group. We investigated changes in depression and anxiety symptoms (overall and severe) from before to during the pandemic, as well as whether these changes are linked to COVID-19-relate...

Introduction: The influence of birth order has been investigated in many areas of child development, but few studies have examined its relationship with infant sleep; those that have yield contradictory findings. Moreover, nocturnal parental practices may differ depending on the number of children, but these characteristics are rarely studied. This...

Introduction: Studies suggest that feeling pressure about parenting practices is related to higher levels of stress. However, little is known about the pressure mothers feel about infant sleep-related parenting practices. This is surprising, considering that mothers are often exposed to contradictory information about infant sleep. This exploratory...

Introduction: Research on the link between sleep quality and depression in the postpartum period has focused primarily on mothers. Although fathers also experience poorer postpartum sleep and are at risk of developing depressive symptoms, they remain understudied. To date, the limited research focusing on paternal sleep and depression has relied on...

Introduction: Several psychosocial factors contribute to the etiology of sleep bruxism in childhood, including emotional-behavioral problems, as well as environmental and familial factors. It is known that sleep bruxism is prevalent in preschoolers, but most etiology studies were conducted with school-aged children or adolescents. Studies focusing...

Introduction: Poor sleep quality is common during pregnancy and can increase the risk of adverse obstetric and fetal outcomes. Existing research on the association between prenatal sleep and infant sleep is scarce and has focused on other aspects of prenatal sleep such as sleep duration, chronotype, and insomnia symptoms. To our knowledge, no studi...

Introduction: Several studies have investigated the first-night effect in normal subjects of different age groups. The aim of the study was to measure the first-night effect in a clinical population of patients with severe insomnia and to assess the contribution of various factors including depression and anxiety scores. Methods: 31 patients with p...

Background: An upsurge in dream and nightmare frequency has been noted since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic and research shows increases in levels of stress, depression and anxiety during this time. Growing evidence suggests that dream content has a bi-directional relationship with psychopathology, and that dreams react to new, personally s...

Le sommeil occupe environ 40% de la journée d’un enfant et il devrait faire l’objet d‘autant d’attention que l’alimentation et l’exercice physique, d’autant plus qu’il entretient des liens étroits avec la santé mentale. Toutefois, au sein de plusieurs familles, le sommeil est associé à de nombreux défis. À travers cette présentation, nous apprendro...

Introduction Research on the link between sleep quality and depression in the postpartum period has focused primarily on mothers. Although fathers also experience poorer postpartum sleep and are at risk of developing depressive symptoms, they remain understudied. To date, the limited research focusing on paternal sleep and depression has relied on...

Introduction Poor sleep quality is common during pregnancy and can increase the risk of adverse obstetric and fetal outcomes. Existing research on the association between prenatal sleep and infant sleep is scarce and has focused on other aspects of prenatal sleep such as sleep duration, chronotype, and insomnia symptoms. To our knowledge, no studie...

Introduction Studies suggest that feeling pressure about parenting practices is related to higher levels of stress. However, little is known about the pressure mothers feel about infant sleep-related parenting practices. This is surprising, considering that mothers are often exposed to contradictory information about infant sleep. This exploratory...

Introduction The influence of birth order has been investigated in many areas of child development, but few studies have examined its relationship with infant sleep; those that have yield contradictory findings. Moreover, nocturnal parental practices may differ depending on the number of children, but these characteristics are rarely studied. This...

Introduction Several psychosocial factors contribute to the etiology of sleep bruxism in childhood, including emotional-behavioral problems, as well as environmental and familial factors. It is known that sleep bruxism is prevalent in preschoolers, but most etiology studies were conducted with school-aged children or adolescents. Studies focusing o...

Background While fathers are at risk of developing poorer sleep and depressive symptoms in the postpartum period, they represent an understudied population in the literature. The present study aimed to explore the association between sleep and postpartum depressive symptoms in fathers using subjective and objective sleep measures. Methods Fifty-fo...

Background Concerns have been raised that the Covid-19 pandemic could increase risk for poor mental health, especially in young adults, a vulnerable age group. We investigated changes in depression and anxiety symptoms (overall and severe) from before to during the pandemic, as well as whether these changes are linked to Covid-19 related stressors...

This session will focus on the challenges associated with sleep deprivation in new parents. Parents often expect their baby to start sleeping through the night around the time they reach six months of age. But according to several studies, parents should view sleep consolidation as a process, instead of a milestone. Indeed, research shows that slee...

Sleep is a necessary function of life and plays a key role in development. This chapter will discuss the association between prenatal stress and children’s sleeping behaviors. First, a description of the development of sleep-wake patterns in infancy will be provided. Second, an overview of the literature on the link between prenatal stress and slee...

Study objectives: To investigate whether the interaction between infant negative affectivity and maternal depressive symptoms is associated with the degree to which mothers perceive infant sleep to be problematic at six months postpartum, independent of infant sleep and sociodemographic factors. Methods: Infant negative affectivity and maternal...

Restless legs syndrome (RLS), also known as Willis-Ekbom disease (WED), is a common neurological sensorimotor disorder characterized by an urge to move the legs and by dysesthesia. These symptoms worsen during periods of inactivity and in the evening or night, and are relieved or partially relieved by limb movement. Even though they are considered...

Background The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has caused global disruptions with serious psychological impacts. This study investigated the emergence of new psychiatric symptoms and the worsening of pre-existing mental disorders during the COVID-19 pandemic, identified factors associated with psychological worsening, and assessed chan...

Sleep disruption and deprivation are highly prevalent among parents of an infant. However, most postpartum sleep studies focus solely on mothers, and few studies have investigated whether sleep differs between first‐time and experienced parents. The present study aimed to determine whether self‐reported sleep duration and quality differ between fir...

Objective There are substantial inter-individual differences in infants’ longest consecutive sleep duration. However, intra-individual differences are rarely considered. The present study aimed to describe night-to-night variability in achieving 6 or 8 h of consolidated sleep over a 13-night period in 6-month-old infants. Methods Forty-four typica...

Summary This study aimed to evaluate changes in sleep during the COVID‐19 outbreak, and used data‐driven approaches to identify distinct profiles of changes in sleep‐related behaviours. Demographic, behavioural and psychological factors associated with sleep changes were also investigated. An online population survey assessing sleep and mental heal...

Introduction The negative impacts of COVID-19 have rippled through every facet of society. Understanding the multidimensional impacts of this pandemic is crucial to identify the most critical needs and to inform targeted interventions. This population survey study aimed to investigate the acute phase of the COVID-19 outbreak in terms of perceived t...

Objectives/Introduction: Infant temperament and maternal depression have been associated with maternal perceptions of infant sleep problems. However, infant sleep parameters are rarely taken into consideration. Moreover, the relation between anxiety and perceptions of infant sleep problems among mothers remains largely unknown. This study aimed to...

Objectives/Introduction: Reduced sleep duration and poor sleep quality are common among parents during the postpartum period. Some studies suggest that becoming a parent for the first time represents a more significant transition than the experience of having a second or third child. However, few studies have examined this subject, especially in th...

Objectives/Introduction: Infant temperament and maternal depression have been associated with maternal perceptions of infant sleep problems. However, infant sleep parameters are rarely taken into consideration. Moreover, the relation between anxiety and perceptions of infant sleep problems among mothers remains largely unknown. This study aimed to...

Introduction: Certain temperament characteristics in infants have been shown to be associated with infant sleep patterns. However, other sleep-related practices, such as co-sleeping and breastfeeding, are also known to be associated with sleep in infancy and are not always taken into account in studies assessing the association between temperament...

Restless legs syndrome is a relatively common neurological disorder in adults. In childhood, however, its prevalence and genetic contribution are still largely unknown. The objectives of this study were to assess the prevalence of restless legs syndrome (RLS) during childhood and adolescence in a large population‐based cohort and evaluate the degre...

Background Understanding the multifaceted impacts of the Coronavirus-19 (COVID-19) outbreak as it unfolds is crucial to identify the most critical needs and to inform targeted interventions. Methods This population survey study presents cohort characteristics and baseline observations linked to the acute-mid phase of the COVID-19 outbreak in terms...

Introduction Certain temperament characteristics in infants have been shown to be associated with infant sleep patterns. However, other sleep-related practices, such as co-sleeping and breastfeeding, are also known to be associated with sleep in infancy and are not always taken into account in studies assessing the association between temperament a...

Study objectives Rhythmic movements during sleep are frequent and often considered as benign in children. Disabling forms are diagnosed as rhythmic movement disorder and may persist in adulthood. Whether rhythmic movements severely impact sleep architecture in patients with rhythmic movement disorder remain unclear. We performed a case-control stud...

Problématique de recherche : Une durée de sommeil réduite et une mauvaise qualité de sommeil sont communes chez les parents après la naissance de leur bébé. Quelques études suggèrent que devenir parent pour la première fois représente une transition plus marquante que l’expérience d’avoir un deuxième ou troisième enfant, mais peu d’études ont exami...

Introduction: Bien que le lien entre le tempérament et le sommeil des nourrissons ait fait l'objet d'études antérieures, l'allaitement et le partage du lit, deux pratiques pourtant étroitement associées au sommeil des nourrissons, sont rarement considérées dans cette association. L'objectif de cette étude est donc d'examiner le lien entre différent...

Introduction: Les nouveaux parents se demandent souvent à quel âge leur nourrisson présentera un sommeil consolidé, un processus communément appelé “faire ses nuits”. Bien que la proportion de nourrissons ayant un sommeil consolidé augmente avec l’âge, plusieurs études ont montré une grande variabilité entre les nourrissons dans ce processus. La ma...

Objectif Décrire les caractéristiques cliniques et polysomnographiques (PSG) d’enfants et d’adultes présentant un trouble des mouvements rythmiques du sommeil (TMR) en comparaison à des sujets sains. Méthodes Cinquante patients avec TMR (23 enfants) ont bénéficié d’une évaluation clinique détaillée et d’une PSG. Les caractéristiques PSG étaient co...

Background: Understanding the multifaceted impacts of the Coronavirus-19 (COVID-19) outbreak as it unfolds is crucial to identify the most critical needs and to inform targeted interventions. Methods: This population survey study presents cohort characteristics and baseline observations linked to the acute-mid phase of the COVID-19 outbreak in te...

Infant sleep patterns evolve rapidly over the first year of life and are characterized by substantial changes in sleep duration and fragmentation (1). As such, pediatric health professionals frequently address parents' concerns about infant sleep (2). Parents are particularly concerned about the age at which their infant will consolidate their slee...

Background: Sleep problems among preschoolers are highly prevalent. Given the impact of poor sleep quality on development, this relationship is particularly relevant in vulnerable populations but is less documented. This study aims to document parental perception of sleep problems in preschoolers assessed in a psychiatric clinic, as a function of d...

Introduction: Sleep terrors are nocturnal episodes characterized by screams, cries, and confusion lasting a few seconds to a few minutes. This parasomnia is especially prevalent in toddlers and has been associated with separation anxiety. While sleepiness and reduced sleep quality have been reported in adults with sleep terrors, it is unclear wheth...

Introduction: New parents are often concerned about when their infant will consolidate their sleep, a process referred to as « sleeping through the night ». While the proportion of infants who sleep through the night increases with age, studies have shown considerable variability among infants in this process. The majority of studies rely on questi...

Introduction: Perinatal studies have shown a robust association between increased maternal sleep deprivation and increased maternal depressive symptoms. However, studies examining the link between maternal anxiety and sleep in new mothers are scarce and have yielded mixed results. One recent study found that anxious mothers were more likely to misi...

Introduction: Infant sleep arrangements have been shown to be associated with maternal depressive symptoms. However, parental expectations about infant sleep location are rarely taken into consideration. Moreover, there is little research that includes fathers in pediatric sleep studies. The aims of this study were 1) to compare parental attitudes...

Introduction: There is major inter- and intra-variability related to infant sleep patterns, possibly leading to a vast range of parental expectations. While expectations have been identified as a key factor in the emotional adjustment of new parents, they have not been studied in relation to infant sleep. This study aimed to 1) document the age par...

Introduction: Conduct problems (CP) refer to a variety of antisocial behaviors, including aggression, rule breaking, deceitfulness, destruction of others’ property, as well as comorbid defiance, and are considered early if present before age 10. Early CP, in comparison to adolescent-onset CP, is associated with worse physical and mental health outc...

Background: Infants spend a high proportion of their first years of life in a sleeping state. While sleep has been linked to several developmental outcomes such as cognitive and psychomotor development, results are not always consistent across different studies, especially in infancy. Contrasting types of sleep measures and sleep variables may pote...

Introduction Sleep terrors are nocturnal episodes characterized by screams, cries, and confusion lasting a few seconds to a few minutes. This parasomnia is especially prevalent in toddlers and has been associated with separation anxiety. While sleepiness and reduced sleep quality have been reported in adults with sleep terrors, it is unclear whethe...

Introduction There is major inter- and intra-variability related to infant sleep patterns, possibly leading to a vast range of parental expectations. While expectations have been identified as a key factor in the emotional adjustment of new parents, they have not been studied in relation to infant sleep. This study aimed to 1) document the age pare...

Introduction New parents are often concerned about when their infant will consolidate their sleep, a process referred to as « sleeping through the night ». While the proportion of infants who sleep through the night increases with age, studies have shown considerable variability among infants in this process. The majority of studies rely on questio...

Introduction Perinatal studies have shown a robust association between increased maternal sleep deprivation