Many people feel that postpartum depression is not real, that it's made up to promote attention to oneself after having a baby. Research has proved that it is real, and that there are many women that go undiagnosed. Early screening and treatment, opposed to waiting until after delivery, have shown positive effects on both mother and child. Feelings of sadness, withdrawal, depression, anxiety, and sometimes even wanting to harm yourself or your baby, can be symptoms of postpartum depression. This topic is important to me because I was impacted significantly by it during my pregnancy and birth of my first son. This paper will help bring more awareness, and make sure people understand what postpartum depression is. So What is postpartum depression? …show more content…
But to a healthcare professional it is clearly noticeable. Frequent crying, lack of appetite, lack of desire to do things you normally love to do, excessive sleeping, feeling like you’re a failure, these are just a few of the examples that may be happening to someone with postpartum depression. Many times it takes family members or friends to help notice that something isn’t quite right. Even with encouragement from them, new mother’s still may struggle with seeking help. Furthermore, postpartum depression can impact the children as well as the mother. Studies have shown that women who had postpartum depression within the first three months after giving birth, had an increase of their children having mental and motor developmental delays, along with poor self control both with self esteem and behavioral problems. According to Murray & Cooper (1998) “Compared with women who had been well in the postnatal period, those who had experienced postnatal depression were more likely to report behavioural difficulties in the child. These principally concerned sleeping and eating problems, temper tantrums, and separation …show more content…
My son is one of the children that had lasting effects from this disease. He suffers from a sensory disorder that was caused by my postpartum depression after he was born. It caused him to not recognize certain emotions that are needed to function normally in society. Since he never really saw a happy smiling face that most mothers had towards their children after birth; all that he saw was me crying all of the time. I recall leaving him in his crib or just holding him and crying while he nursed. His father was gone working all of the time, and rarely home. He didn't learn to recognize those social cues of happiness. I can't even describe to you the grief that this has caused me to know that I was one of the reasons that he has some of the problems that he does today. We’ve learned that this was why he acted the way that he did as a small child. Extreme temper tantrums, night terrors, and emotional distress were just a few of the behaviors that he exhibited. We've been able to move forward as a family to try to help deal with those things which even now at age eleven, he is still working
Knowing the symptoms of postpartum depression is critical for a young mother's discovering that she may have the depress...
A Woman's Struggle Captured in The Yellow Wallpaper Pregnancy and childbirth are very emotional times in a woman's life and many women suffer from the "baby blues." The innocent nickname for postpartum depression is deceptive because it down plays the severity of this condition. Although she was not formally diagnosed with postpartum depression, Charlotte Perkins Gilman (1860-1935) developed a severe depression after the birth of her only child (Kennedy et. al. 424).
Pregnancies are often correlated with the assumption that it will bring happiness to the household and ignite feelings of love between the couple. What remains invisible is how the new responsibilities of caring and communicating with the baby affects the mother; and thus, many women experience a temporary clinical depression after giving birth which is called postpartum depression (commonly known as postnatal depression) (Aktaş & Terzioğlu, 2013).
Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s story, The Yellow Wallpaper, portrays the life and mind of a woman suffering from post-partum depression in the late eighteenth century. Gilman uses setting to strengthen the impact of her story by allowing the distant country mansion symbolize the loneliness of her narrator, Jane. Gilman also uses flat characters to enhance the depth of Jane’s thoughts; however, Gilman’s use of narrative technique impacts her story the most. In The Yellow Wallpaper, Charlotte Perkins Gilman uses interior monologue to add impact to Jane’s progression into insanity, to add insight into the relationships in the story, and to increase the depth of Jane’s connection with the yellow wallpaper it self.
Postpartum depression is indeed a major psychological disorder that can affect the relationship between mother and baby. At this time, the cause of postpartum depression is unidentified, although several factors experienced during pregnancy can contribute to this disorder. Fluctuating hormone levels have been traditionally blamed for the onset of postpartum depression. Jennifer Marie Camp (2013), a registered nurse with a personal history of postpartum depression, states in the Intentional Journal of Childbirth Education that “current research demonstrates that PPD may be a compilation of numerous stressors encountered by the family, including biochemical, genetic, psychosocial factors and everyday life stress” (Camp, 2013, p. 1). A previous history of depression, depression during pregnancy, financial difficulties, a dif...
From mild to severe knowing of conditions and their specific symptoms is the most straightforward way to diagnose the problem areas. The types of depression cover major, melancholia, psychotic, antenatal and postnatal, bipolar disorder, cyclothymic disorder, dysthymic disorder, and seasonal affective disorder (SAD). Major depression involves low mood and/or loss of interest and pleasure in usual activities (“Types of depression”). Melancholia, a severe form of depression where many of the physical symptoms of depression are present. One of the major changes is that the person starts to move more slowly. They are also more likely to have a depressed mood that is characterised by complete loss of pleasure in everything, or almost everything (“Types of depression”). Psychotic depression, can lose touch with reality and experience psychosis. This can involve hallucinations or delusions such as believing they are bad or evil, or that they 're being watched or followed. They can also be paranoid, feeling as though everyone is against them or that they are the cause of illness or bad events occurring around them (“Types of depression”). Antenatal and postnatal depression affects women during pregnancy and in the year following childbirth. The causes of depression at this time can be complex and are often the result of a combination of factors (“Types of depression”). Bipolar disorder used to be
Postpartum Depression (PPD) is a period of depression that follows childbirth and lasts more than two weeks. It is experienced by up to 15% of women in the first three postpartum months (Camp, 2013). PPD is well represented in all ages, races, and cultures. The causes of PPD are currently unknown. There are many factors that place patients at a higher risk of developing PPD. These factors include history of PPD, depression during pregnancy, family strains, anxiety, and lack of support.
After giving birth, women will have hormonal oscillations (Rosequist). In the meanwhile, their bodies are getting back to their normal state, however if that “blues” does not go away, it can evolve in a deep depression. As she recalls, saying: “And yet I cannot be with him, it make me so nervous”(Gilman), it is obvious that Post-Partum depression is the cause of her poor attachment with the child; the mother can be hazardous to the baby; mood swing occur, and in extremes circumstances, about 1 in 1,000, it can bring psychotic indications (Hilts). If this condition if left untreated, it can cause serious psychological and physical damages. Treatment would include anti-depressants and therapy. This can also trigger other types of mental
tells us how he was used to being miss treated by adults. He is often
Roca, Catherine. "Depression During and After Pregnancy." April 2005. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Online. http://www.4woman.gov/faq/postpartum.htm. (17 Nov. 2005)
My mother was diagnosed with postpartum depression (PPD), also referred to as postnatal depression. This is a type of clinical depression which can affect women after childbirth. The cause of PPD is not well understood but hormonal changes, genetics, and major life event have been hypothesized as potential causes. Maternal depression has been shown to influence mothers’ interaction with her child, therefore the doctor thought it was necessary for further treatment. Many women recover with treatment such as a support group, counseling, or
People who experience child abuse appear more vulnerable to depression than others. So, too, do people living under chronically stressful conditions, such as single mothers with many children and little or no support from friends or relatives.
Although there is no evidence saying he displayed signs in his childhood, he did have a rough upbringing. His sister often tortured him and teased him. He received the same treatment at school with his classmates. His parents never seemed to acknowledge the bullying he was facing, however the consistently emphasized the importance of finishing school, going to college and getting a good career like his
... affects the diagnosed child, but it affects his or her parents, and siblings in many different ways. Different families go through it differently, but they are all affected emotionally, physically, socially, educationally, and financially.
Depression is one of the most common psychological problems. Each year over 17 million Americans experience a period of clinical depression. Thus, depression affects nearly everyone through personal experiences or through depression in a family member or friend.