Depression And Its Effects On The Quality Of Interpersonal Relationships

In the article “The Effects of Postnatal Depression on Infants Development”, a study suggested that there’s no association between attachment status and maternal depression. However, the article suggested we take note that high rates of insecurities were present in both the test and controlled group. In the article “Postpartum Depression and Mother-Infant relationship at Three Months”, the study suggested that the mother-infant relationship presented less vocal and visual communications, less corporal interactions, and less smiling. This article also suggests that depressed mothers are often not seen by psychiatrist because they usually present mild symptoms that are frequently minimized by themselves or their environment. This article focuses both on the mother and the infant, as well as their relationship, where the other article focuses predominately on the

Twenty-four mother-infant dyads completed all aspects of the study. Of those 24, 18 were Caucasian, 22 were married, eight of them had an annual family income of $50,000 to $74,999, and seven had an annual family income of over $100,000. Also 16 of the participating mothers had a graduate degree. Not only is the sample size very small, but the demographics of the mothers is greatly disproportionate. With the majority of mothers being caucasian, educated, middle class, married women, the sample size does not accurately represent the majority of the population who lives in relative poverty and cannot afford to seek help. About half of the mothers had a history of depression and were taking or had just started taking antidepressant medication when they first enrolled. Considering the size of the sample, all the mothers should have been either prescription drug users, or not, but not both. Prescription drug treatment for any depression significantly changes perceptions of mood, skewing the results, and there is not enough women in the study to make a concise prognosis.

When parents are stressed, depressed, this can affect the child’s well-being (Cohen & Semple, 2009). There was a program called Sequenced Treatment Alternatives to Relieve Depression (STAR*D), that can help to treat mothers with depression (Cohen & Semple, 2009). Mindful interventions can

In a study made by Gao et al. (2007), they found out that children of depressed mothers are three more times likely to develop behavioural problems.

Depression is a major public health problem that is twice as common in women as men during the childbearing years. Postpartum depression is defined as an episode of non-psychotic depression according to standardized diagnostic criteria with onset within 1 year of childbirth (Stewart D., et. al, 2003, p. 4). For women aged 15 to 44 years around the world, Postpartum Depression is second to HIV/AIDS, in terms of total disability (World Health Organization, 2001). Depression has a profound impact on parameters of interpersonal behavior. Post-Partum depression

Depression, in general, affects more than 340 million people around the world and is reported to be the highest cause of disability in high-income countries (Demissie). 15% to 85% of mothers can experience postpartum “blues” with postpartum depression rates between 11.7% and 20.4% in the United States alone (Ersek). This depression can occur at anytime from post-delivery up to one year (Ersek).

Women who have previously suffered with depression prior to childbirth have a higher chance of experiencing the debilitating depression. Teenage mothers have an increased risk of postpartum depression “with prevalence estimates ranging from 26% to over 50%” (Springer). Adolescent mothers can experience the consequences of postpartum more so than non-adolescent mothers because of “their increased risk of adverse birth outcomes, low self-esteem, little social support and parenting difficulties” (Springer) at such a young age.

Anemia, Low birth weight, Preeclampsia, and Premature delivery are effects of postpartum depression during pregnancy (Mena 2016). Mothers’ who were going through postpartum depression during the first three months of the child’s life were seen to be irritable and less engaged (Field 2011). Inadequate caregiving is also a major effect of postpartum depression (Field 2011). Mothers who have postpartum depression are less likely to continue breastfeeding if it becomes difficult (Field 2011). Infant’s with sleep problems are often put into unsafe sleep practices because of a mother’s postpartum depression (Field 2011). Infants of mothers with postpartum depression are less likely to attend well doctor’s appointments (Field 2011). Safety practices are often violated when a mother has postpartum depression (Field 2011). Some mothers have thoughts of harming their infants during postpartum depression (Field 2011). They also can have a fear of being alone with their child (Field 2011). Mothers with postpartum depression are also known to use harsher punishments (Field 2011).

Postpartum Depression is depression that occurs after performing childbirth. This condition is often mistaken for the “baby blues” which has similar symptoms such as tearfulness, extreme sadness, anxiety, self-doubt, and fatigue. However, the “baby blues” goes away within a few weeks after and unlike the “baby blues”, postpartum depression can cause suicidal thoughts, difficulty making decisions, and feeling too exhausted to get out of bed for hours. If postpartum depression is not treated properly or soon enough it can drastically effect the lives of those who have developed it as well as their families. This is because a mother is a very important figure in one’s life because she is the first person that an individual ever makes an emotional connection with; she’s also the first one to play the role of supplying nourishment to her child. Consequently, “PPD can affect familial relationships and a woman’s capacity to care for and bond with her newborn. Some research indicates that young children of depressed mothers are at increased risk of delay in cognitive and language development” (McGarry, Kim, Sheng, Egger, & Baksh, 2009). Postpartum depression can take hold of a woman and her family’s life and is one of the most common complications of childbirth. However, “postpartum depression (PPD) is less frequently detected, treated, or the focus of obstetric research” (McGarry et al., 2009). This is because mothers suffering with postpartum depression are unable to seek proper

mother’s apathy toward caring for and bonding with the infant. Scientific studies have concluded that children of mothers suffering from postpartum depression were independently linked to lower cognitive test scores (Cogill, Caplan, Alexandra, Robson & Kumar, 1986).

Depression, a disorder of the brain, is known to be a common but serious illness that interferes with one’s life. Although MRI scans have shown a difference in the brain activity of individuals suffering depression, it cannot solely be used to diagnose depression. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorder, Text Revision (DSM-IV-TR) states that “with postpartum onset” to episode of depression with the onset being within 4 weeks of delivery of a neonate. (O’Hara and McCabe, 2013). Depression can be caused by a combination of genetic, biological, environmental and psychological factors but can also occur in people without any family history (NIMH, 2016). Many people with depression do not seek help either because they are depressed or they do not want to be categorized as having depression.

The primary goal of this study was to analyze the relation between maternal expressed emotion- criticism (EE-Crit) and prospective changes in children’s levels of hopelessness in children, and to determine whether mothers’ histories of major depressive disorder (MDD) moderated this relation. The study included 255 children (8-14 years old at the initial assessment) and their mothers assessed five times over the course of two years. Mothers’ histories of MDD were assessed at the initial time point and then mothers’ levels of EE-Crit and children’s levels of hopelessness were assessed at the baseline assessment and the 6, 12, 18, and 24 month follow up assessments. Hierarchical Linear Modeling revealed that mothers’ MDD history moderated the impact of EE-Crit on baseline levels of hopelessness but not change over time. Specifically, among children of depressed mothers, high EE-Crit was associated with higher levels of hopelessness at the baseline assessment and these differences were maintained across the follow-up. However, EE-Crit did not predict changes in hopelessness between adjacent time points during the follow-up.

Approximately 10 percent of all mothers are affected by depression (Dickstein ,1998). Mothers who suffer depression tend to be withdrawn from their children, lacking emotion, as well as having negative responses towards their children.(Frankel & Harmon, 1996). Riley is unresponsive in the presence of her mother. She is

Recently, researchers has examined the reasons why depression is a major risk for children. According to Love et al (2000), maternal depression is generally known in mothers with young minors. According to National Child & Maternal Health Program, mothers especially new mothers would feel sad, nervous, anxious and overwhelmed during and after pregnancy that can interrupt their everyday activities taking care of their infants. In Love et al (2000) article, they investigated the association of parenting behaviors with maternal depression. Therefore, this paper will further discuss the potential contributing factors of maternal depression and effective treatment.

A mother who struggles with depression post-partum is likely to expose her baby to more harmful effects. Gerhardt (2015) states that the baby of a depressed mother can find it difficult to cope with or get over stress, or they may be more fearful (p. 21). These babies also may respond to others with depression themselves, as their mother may be neglectful in their care (Gerhardt, 2015, p. 36). One of the reasons for this is because of their cortisol levels, which can fluctuate situationally. However, in infants this can affect their development (Gerhardt, 2015, p. 83) as well as their immune system (Gerhardt, 2015, p. 118), and is evidence that a mother with depression can have a significant impact on her child well beyond when the depression occurs. Additionally, Gerhardt (2015) notes that, “When they grow up, these babies of depressed mothers are highly at risk of succumbing to depression themselves.” (p.