ABSTRACT
In this chapter I will illustrate the impact, the “so what?”, that qualitative research can have on clinical practice through my research program on postpartum depression. In the late 1980s when I began my research trajectory there were no qualitative studies published on postpartum depression. In nursing and medical obstetric textbooks only a few sentences about postpartum depression were devoted to this disorder. From my clinical practice I knew how devastating postpartum depression was to new mothers but their voices describing the crippling impact of this mood disorder were missing from the literature. It was at this juncture in time that I began my research program with a qualitative study.
