Postpartum Depression And Its Effects On Early Brain Development Essay

Postpartum depression is one of the most common complications of childbearing with an estimated prevalence of 19.2% in the first three months after delivery (1). Depressive episodes (major and mild) may be experienced by approximately half of women during the first postpartum year (1). Characterized by depressed mood, loss of pleasure or interest in daily activities, feelings of worthlessness and guilt, irritability, sleep and eating disturbances (2), its etiology is multi-faceted and complex (3;4).

I believe that mental health is not well discussed, or known, in today’s culture. People could struggle with mental health daily and others could have no idea. There are many different types of mental health issues, and one specific issue that is rarely discussed is postpartum depression. Postpartum depression is a specific type of depression that new mothers can experience after the birth of their child. (Schacter, Gilbert, Wegner, Nock, 2012). The changing hormones a mother can experience directly after birth cause this condition. Postpartum depression can cause a mother to feel sad, guilty, and even experience thoughts of suicide. Postpartum depression may be discussed in the text, but the causes and even the treatments are not.

Often the time after birth is a filled with joy and happiness due to the arrival of a new baby. However, for some mothers the birth of a baby leads to some complicated feelings that are unexpected. Up to 85% of postpartum woman experience a mild depression called “baby blues” (Lowdermilk, Perry, Cashion, & Alden, 2012). Though baby blues is hard on these mothers, another form of depression, postpartum depression, can be even more debilitating to postpartum woman. Postpartum depression affects about 15% (Lowdermilk et al., 2012) of postpartum woman. This disorder is not only distressing to the mother but to the whole family unit. This is why it is important for the nurse to not only recognize the signs and symptoms of a mother with postpartum depression, but also hopefully provide preventative care for the benefit of everyone involved.

Postpartum depression, which is the most prevalent of all maternal depressive disorders, is said to be the hidden epidemic of the 21st century. (1) Despite its high prevalence rate of 10-15% and increased incidence, postpartum depression often goes undetected, and thus untreated. (2) Nearly 50% of postpartum depression cases are untreated. As a result, these cases are put at a high risk of being exposed to the severe and progressive nature of their depressive disorder. (3) In other words, the health conditions of untreated postpartum depression cases worsen and progress to one of their utmost stages, and they are: postpartum obsessive compulsive disorder, postpartum panic disorder, postpartum post traumatic stress, and postpartum psychosis.

The birthing process generally leaves women with overwhelming joy and happiness. However, some women do experience a period of postpartum blues lasting for a few days or at most a couple of weeks but goes away with the adjustment of having a baby (Postpartum Depression, 2013). A condition called Postpartum Depression Disorder (PPD) leaves a dark gray cloud over 10-20% of woman after birth that is recognized in individuals 3 weeks to a year after the delivery of their baby (Bobo & Yawn, 2014). PPD leaves new mothers feeling lonely, anxious, and hopeless (Bobo at el, 2014). Postpartum Depression is a cross cutting disorder that can affect any woman after the delivery of a baby regardless of race, socioeconomic status, age, or education level (Postpartum Depression, 2013). Although this disorder affects more than 10% of women the article Concise Review for Physicians and Other Clinicians: Postpartum Depression reports that less than half of women with PPD are actually diagnosed with this condition (Bobo at el, 2014). It is important that postpartum women and their support systems receive education on what PPD consist of and ways to recognize the signs and symptoms of PPD so that a diagnosis is not overlooked. Early diagnosis is important because early recognition and treatment of the disorder yields for better results when treating individuals with PPD. In this paper I will deliver information about PPD based on recent literature,

As mental health in America is finally being addressed and more research is seen, it is important to look at the potential causes or correlations that lead to common diagnoses for patients. According to Brummelte and Galea (2010), “depression affects approximately 1 in 5 people, with the incidence being 2-3x higher in women than in men.” Postpartum depression (PPD), a subset of this debilitating disease, has an estimated prevalence rate of 13-19% with another estimated 50% that are undiagnosed (O’hara and McCabe, 2013). As a whole, it has the same symptoms as major depressive disorder but diagnosis occurs within 0-4 weeks of giving birth (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). Part of this lack of diagnosis is due to a multitude of healthcare

Postpartum depression, or PPD, is a mental health disorder that occurs in women prior to the birth of a newborn infant. PPD is caused by a dramatic shift in hormones occurring anywhere from a month to a year after childbirth. Because of the hormonal changes, women may feel that pregnancy is a time of happiness, fear, excitement, exhaustion, and even sadness. Expecting mothers may also feel a multitude of emotions after delivery as well. Postpartum depression in new mothers is a debilitating illness that can affect her everyday life, her family’s life and her newborn infants’.

Postpartum Depression is undermined as “post-baby blues”, but it’s much more complex than just sadness. Mothers cannot sleep, eat, or enjoy their lives as they did before. They are constantly paranoid as to if the baby is alright, or may completely separate themselves from their newborn child. There are many risks for Postpartum Depression, which include a history of depression, inadequate support in caring for the newborn, financial or marital stress, complications during pregnancy, a major life even, mothers of multiple children, women with diabetes, etc.

Inner-city women, teenaged mothers, mothers with lower levels of education, and mothers of preterm infants have higher reported rates of postpartum depression, although, postpartum depression is present across the spectrum of socioeconomic class, race, age, and for both first time mothers as well as mothers who have had previous births without depression (Wisner, Logsdon, & Shanahan, 2008). The costs of maternal depression are unknown, but the costs of depression in the United States in the year 2000 totaled $83.1 billion dollars (Santoro & Peabody, 2010). Postpartum depression can result in maladaptation to the mother-infant relationship, which can lead to negative effects on children, including: impaired mental and motor development, difficult temperament, poor self-regulation, low-self esteem, and behavior problems (Wisner, Logsdon, & Shanahan, 2008). All of these undesirable outcomes in children are no doubt adding to health care

Mothers who have brought into this world a blessing have been preparing themselves for a big change in their life. They have been learning and educating themselves about how to be a good mother. Many mothers find it really hard to transition from being an independent woman without children to becoming a mother (Corrigan, Kwasky, & Groh, 2015). Adapting to motherhood can be a drastic change, and usually creates challenges that lead to feeling overwhelmed (Leger & Letourneau, 2015). When a newly mother begins experiencing stress or becomes emotional then there can be a possibility that they can encounter Postpartum Depression (Leger et al., 2015). Postpartum depression can be seen and experienced in many different ways, it all varies on every mother (Corrigan et al., 2015). Many different mental health issues can be seen including baby blues, postpartum depression, postpartum obsessive-compulsive disorder, and the most serious, postpartum psychosis (Tam & Leslie, 2001).

Having a baby should be one of the happiest and most important events in a woman's life. However, although life with a new baby can be both thrilling and rewarding, it can also be a difficult and quite stressful task. Most women make the transition without great difficulty, yet some women experience considerable complexity that may manifest itself as a postpartum psychiatric disorder (O'hara, Hoffman, Philips, & Wright, 1992). Many physical and emotional changes can occur to a woman during the time of her pregnancy as well as following the birth of her child. These particular changes can leave a new mother feeling sad, anxious, afraid and confused. For many women, these feelings; which are

Postnatal depression is a major health-related issue affecting from 10 to 15 % of all parents of newborns. Postnatal depression is more common among the parents with preterm and low weight babies with the rates between 14 to 27% (McDonald et al., 2013). Postnatal depression prevents successful parent-child bonding and affects healthy child development. Numerous risk factors could cause the development of postnatal depression in the parents with preterm babies, including “a history of depression, marital problems, poor social support and infant problems” (Hagan et al., 2004, p. 641).

The problem this article looks at is postpartum depression, specifically with first-time mothers at risk. First time mothers may have a greater risk because of their expectations coupled with lack of experience. First time mothers also may have a “Super Mom” attitude toward motherhood and may not ask for or admit to needing help, they will try to do it all. Many women suffer from postpartum depression after the birth of a child. Postpartum depression is a serious medical condition which can stem from hormonal changes, the psychological adjustment to motherhood, fatigue, as well as a host of other factors.

Maternal depression can have effects on many individuals. It is a disorder that can have ramifications on women, men, children, and families. Maternal depression is not a disorder that just happens postnatal , this diagnosis can occur in the prenatal stages. It 's estimated that 1 in 10 pregnant women and 13 percent of new mothers experience depression. Maternal depression is a mood disorder that begins before or immediately after childbirth. It affects a mother or fathers ability to adequately care for her young child (Wahowiak, 2014). Symptoms include changes in sleeping and/or eating patterns, irritability, mood swings, feelings of hopelessness and worthlessness, crying jags and difficulty concentrating. Unlike the "baby blues," which typically last only a few weeks, postpartum depression lasts longer and can be more severe. In addition, a lack of energy, withdrawal from family and friends, unexplained anxiety, and certain physical ailments such as headaches and heart palpitations could also be symptoms of depression. On average, maternal depression peaks 4 years after the birth of their child .individuals experiencing maternal depression may also find that they are uninterested in the new baby or have irrational fears of harming them (Wahowiak, 2014). Individuals who suffer from maternal depression are less likely to implement safety measures in the home, such as the use of child safety gates, electrical outlet covers and car seats and they are less likely

Pregnancy, labor and childbirth have a great influence on the physical and emotional well-being of a woman. Women suffering from postpartum depression may feel overwhelmed, exhausted, worried, guilty, irritable, have difficulty eating or sleeping and have little or no interest in activities (Shidhaye & Giri, 2014). Depression has an adverse impact on the