15% Of Moms Suffer From Postpartum Depression

[rus_esmeralda]

1 in 7 women suffers from a mild to severe form of depression after giving a birth, the study shows.
Those women feel detached from the new-born kid, their family and the partner. They feel like they are supposed to be super happy when the baby is born, but in reality it's quite the opposite. A lot of new moms feel guilty about not being happy.

Comments

[muizenstaartje]

When I started taking beta-blockers to fight hellish migraines I became depressed and suicidal. Nothing could make me happy or laugh anymore and I had a hard time not crying the entire day. Once I stopped taking the pills, within a week I was back to the way I was before.

Whether it's hormones or neurotransmitters, chemichal imbalance or disturbance in the brain can have a great effect on how you feel. There can be external causes (like grief over a lost one, abuse, or feeling like you have no control in your life, but also medicines and toxins) and internal causes (brain damage, illness, pregnancy). Sometimes it's a combination of several factors. Depression isn't always simple and clear cut.

[silverwing84]

I wish we would open our eyes and do something about this instead of insisting on the good 'ol "female hormones, tee hee" deal, which in my opinion simply reveals how often "science" prefers to escape to sexism instead of being real science.

This this THIS. Ever notice how all those PMS studies are virtually NEVER done by any female doctors or scientists? They just want to blow thousands of dollars in grant money to look for a "scientific" reason an ex-girlfriend was mean to them.

[kat144]

Not to mention, you've just gone through a traumatizing physical experience yet you can't even get enough rest to let your body heal properly! That to me sounds like a nightmare in itself.

[degizzie]

Who knows why. It tells us that having a baby isn't all sunshine and daisies! (or is it roses?)

[nightchild01]

My dad and I talked about this recently. He's semi-accepting of my CF status but still thinks I'll change my mind. He was shocked at how high the number is. I've researched PPD and PPP (Postpartum Psychosis) a lot because I find medical things interesting; according to what I've read, I'd be at high-risk since I suffer from mental illness (the chance goes up if you have a history of mental health issues).

[kat144]

I know, right? I can sometimes be suicidally-depressed just from PMS.... I cannot even imagine how bad it would be if I had the hormone upheaval from having a kid. *shudder* And, I don't know if it's possible for that sort of thing to be inherited, but I know my mom told me she had PPD after I was born (before they knew there was such a thing), so that might be another strike against my odds. OH HELL NO DO NOT WANT.

[nightchild01]

I hear ya. I get suicidal and unbelievably irritable from my period too (thank the gods for continuous birth control). I don't think they've proven a genetic element to it but it wouldn't surprise me if there was since mental illness runs in many families (like mine). And, yes, DNW too!

[kat144]

I figure since regular depression can be genetic, it wouldn't be surprising if PPD is.

I've always wondered, too, if PPD might be more pronounced in people who are prone to depression anyway... maybe even if they're not, the hormones could bring it out? I'm not sure how they might do a study on that, though.

[silverwing84]

I occasionally suffer from these crippling bouts of depression that make me completely unable to function or deal with people. I'd say 90% of the time I'm good, but when that 10% strikes it's just horrific. It's nothing chemical-- it's all resultant of the life I live.

I just can't imagine how godawful PPD would be if I were to have a kid...and I imagine there's chemical and environmental factors in it, to boot. Going by what I've seen with friends who were pregnant, it seems that world just stops caring about you once the kid is out. ;_;

[thrashbear]

They had been judged on the basis of a brief telephonic interview conducted about four to six weeks after the delivery of their babies.

My first thought upon reading this line was "You call THIS a study? Am I missing something in this equation?"

When I went in for mental health screening three years ago, I underwent a battery of tests, quizzes and interviews to determine my malfunction. NOT a telephone survey! Would it have killed them to look just a little deeper, maybe ask a few more in-depth questions?

If this is what passes for "research" these days, no wonder the Indians and Chinese are mopping the floor with us Yanks.

[muizenstaartje]

They did home visits after the telephonic interviews. It's not uncommon to ask a few simple, screening questions to a large group and then go more in depth with a smaller group who could be at risk depending on the answers of the questions. Doing research costs money, so separating your target group from a general population, before doing the more expensive in depth study is cost efficient.
One home visit isn't the same as several test batteries and while one home visit isn't enough for a professional diagnosis, it can show who are at risk and who may have PPD.