An Ounce of Prevention is Better than a Pound of Cure: Postpartum Depression

Congrats! You or someone you know is having a baby! While remembering to take your prenatal vitamins, attending all your doctor visits and setting up the baby’s nursery seem like some of the most important things you can do while you’re pregnant, there is something else you can do to prepare for life after birth. Knowing what symptoms you may experience after delivery can help you be prepared for the postpartum period.

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According to Massachusetts General Hospital Center for Women’s Mental Health, “about 85% of all women experience some type of mood disturbance [after birth]” (Massachusetts General Hospital [MGH], n.d., para. 2). These disturbances are categorized as Baby Blues, postpartum anxiety, postpartum depression and postpartum psychosis (MGH, n.d.). We will explain all four disorders and discuss their warning signs throughout our blog. It is always better to educate yourself about these disorders before you experience them, so you know when to seek help.

If you experience any of these postpartum mood disorders, remember that you are not alone. What you are experiencing is real and valid. Never feel like you're the only one this is affecting or that you have to endure it by yourself.

Baby Blues

Within the first week following birth, every fourth woman is at risk for postpartum blues (Kaźmierczak, Gebuza, Banasxkiewicz, Mieczkowska, & Gierszewska, 2017).

Baby Blue symptoms are:

· Crying for no apparent reason

· Mood swings, irritability, and anxiousness

· Feeling overwhelmed

· Change in eating and sleeping (American Pregnancy Association, 2015)

Note: Your chances of developing the baby blues is higher in single women and those with an unfavorable financial situation (Kaźmierczak et al., 2017).

When my (Omar) wife delivered our baby, it changed her world. She ended up struggling with some postpartum depression. I assured her that it was okay and mentioned to her, It took 40 weeks to cook that baby, so the oven is not just going to cool off in one day. I wanted her to know that I understood her needing time to adjust. I realized that her feeling overwhelmed and emotional was a common response for many of the moms we know who have to brought life into the world. I was glad that I recognized some of the symptoms of postpartum depression so I could be more supportive. This disorder affects about 10%-15% of mothers(Harvard Health Publications, 2011).

Postpartum Depression (PPD) Symptoms:

· Feeling sad, hopeless and/or overwhelmed

· Losing interest in things that you used to enjoy

· Withdrawing from family and friends

· No interest in your baby

· Thoughts of hurting yourself or your baby (American Pregnancy Association, 2015)

· Sleeping problems

· change in appetite

· inability to concentrate

· Fatigue (beyond what typically occurs when caring for a newborn)

· Thoughts of suicide (If thoughts of suicide occur seek help immediately)

· feelings of guilt and worthlessness

· crying spells (Harvard Health Publications, 2011)

Note: Your risk of developing postpartum depression doubles if you have had a history of depression (Banti et al., 2011). Young age, poverty, low education, unemployment, single mom status, poor general health, and lack of social support increase risks of postpartum depression (Wang, Wu, Anderson, & Florence, 2011).

PPD can be mild or severe, and women experiencing it have good and bad days. This is why some women go undiagnosed because they feel their symptoms come and go and wait until their next good day instead of seeking help. Or they think they have more good days than bad and that eventually, the bad days will dwindle away. It's important to recognize these signs, even on good days, and have the courage to seek help. Treatments may include therapy and medication.

We hope you now feel confident in identifying symptoms of postpartum depression. We hope you share this with your support system and work together to communicate needs, feelings and have the courage to seek help when appropriate.

We always encourage those who read this blog to come up with questions you would like to have answered about postpartum illness in future posts. Please comment with your questions or leave a note in the survey below. We love feedback!

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References

American Pregnancy Association. (2015). Do I have a form of postpartum depression? Retrieved from http://americanpregnancy.org/first-year-of-life/forms-of-postpartum-depression/

Banti, S., Mauri, M., Oppo, A., Borri, C., Rambelli, C., Ramacciotti, D., ... Cassano, G. B. (2011). From the third month of pregnancy to 1 year postpartum. Prevalence, incidence, recurrence, and new onset of depression. Results from the perinatal depression- Research & screening unit study. Comprehensive Psychiatry, 52(4), 343-351. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.comppsych.2010.08.003

Harvard Health Publications. (2011, September). Beyond the "baby blues": Postpartum depression is common and treatable. Harvard Mental Health Letter, 28(3). Retrieved from http://library.byui.edu/

Kaźmierczak, M., Gebuza, G., Banasxkiewicz, M., Mieczkowska, E., & Gierszewska, M. (2017, August). Original research article: Mood disorders after childbirth. Polish Annals of Medicine, 24(2), 111-116. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.poamed.2016.02.003

Massachusetts General Hospital. (n.d.). Postpartum psychiatric disorders. Retrieved from https://womensmentalhealth.org/specialty-clinics/postpartum-psychiatric-disorders/

Wang, L., Wu, T., Anderson, J. L., & Florence, J. E. (2011, May). Prevalence and risk factors of maternal depression during the first three years of child rearing. Journal of Women's Health, 20(5), 711-718. http://dx.doi.org/10.1089/jwh.2010.2232