Postpartum Depression Research Paper

Thesis: Postpartum depression is a mood disorder that can greatly effect new mothers. Knowing how to recognize their symptoms and treating it can greatly increase chances of a healthy, happy living.

“Postpartum depression (PPD) is a major form of depression and is less common than postpartum blues. PPD includes all the symptoms of depression but occurs only following childbirth.” stated by William Beardslee, MD is the Academic Chairman of the Department of Psychiatry at Children’s Hospital in Boston and Gardner Monks Professor of Child Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School.

This article talked about dealing with women’s postpartum depression (PPD) in a spiritual way. Similar to Borra, C., Iacovou, M., & Sevilla, A’s article, the author also mentioned that the fluctuation of hormonal or chemical levels in women can be triggered by circumstances which include socioeconomic status, prior mental health history and their childbirth experiences such as if the mother had the experience of a traumatic delivery, preterm labor or difficulty in feeding. These factors not only influence on the well-being of the mother but also impact on the families, marriage and the lifelong health development of the child and their siblings.

The postpartum period is about going through change and transition from a woman to a new mother. This is a time where mothers restore muscle tone and connective tissue in the body after the birth of the baby. Although there is a dramatic change during the postpartum period, women’s body is nonetheless not fully stored to pre-pregnant physiology until about 6 months post-delivery (Osailan, 6). At this time, women need to receive special health and social support to prevent problems such as postpartum depression. During this period, culture plays a major role in the way a woman perceives and prepares for her birthing experience. In fact, the notions of birth and postnatal care vary considerably with cultural beliefs and traditional practices. Each culture has its own values, beliefs and practices related to pregnancy and birth (Osailan,1). In the United States, after a short hospital stay, moms and babies are sent home because it is expected for mothers to heal within 42 days after giving birth. Whereas in other societies like Mexico, the postpartum recovery is active long enough until the new mother is fully healed (Brenhouse). In the article, “Why Are America’s Postpartum Practices So Rough on New Mothers?” by Hilary Brenhouse, the author states, “With these rituals comes an acknowledgment, familial and federal, that the woman needs relief more at this time than at any other—especially if she has a career to return to—and that it takes weeks, sometimes months, to properly

Postpartum depression has been around for centuries, it was recognized as early as 1500 B.C. However, instead of seeing it as a medical issues it was viewed as witch craft or victims of witch craft. Later on in the 1920s one theory suggested these mood disorders were caused from suppressed homosexuality or incestuous urges. Postpartum depression was not even taught in schools because people believed that it was impossible for a pregnant woman to be depressed because pregnancy/birth of a child was a joyous occasion. Now fast forward to present day and postpartum depression is well known and is taken very seriously. Recent studies show that within the first year of giving birth one in five woman have experienced postpartum depression.

Postpartum depression is the epitome of grief, strife, and angst which slithers and knots its cruel intentions through every inch of your body and soul.  It 's a predominant force in the daily life of mother 's suffering with PPD, relentlessly taunting its innocent victims to an extremely lonely, dark breaking point. Feeding psychologically, this tenacious monster 's very existence depending entirely on its host; much like a parasite.

Postpartum depression (PPD) is one type of mood disorders seen in the postpartum period. Other types include postpartum blues and postpartum psychosis. While postpartum blues is common (15-85%) and usually does not require treatment, postpartum psychosis is much rarer (1%). Often postpartum blues is a risk factor for later development of PPD. Incidence of PPD falls between the other two affecting about 15% of new mothers.

The Results and Discussion section answered all the questions listed in the Objective. Through various research methods, information about postpartum depression, its symptoms, various treatments, and misconceptions. Postpartum depression is a serious mental illness that without immediate treatment can lead to deadly consequences. I was able to view the case of Andrea Yates, a woman in Houston, Texas who was diagnosed with postpartum depression after giving birth to her third child, but was taken off her medication and this led to her drowning all five of her children in the bathtub. She was later diagnosed with postpartum psychosis after claiming that the devil told her to do it. This is a clear example of what could happen if postpartum depression

DSM is diagnosed by a mental health care professional and physicians that careful evaluation the client for depression. The client will have to have more than sadness and a presence of depression. There will be a lot of information gather before the patient will be diagnosed with DSM. The patient will undergo a medical exam, a clinical interview and assessments and the diagnosed generally lies with a physician or a senior staff person, usually with a PhD.

As can be seen being knowledge and aware about postpartum depression is extremely essential in a women’s life. If Jane husband and Dr. S weir Mitchell were further more educated about the different type of postpartum depressions, Jane would have had helped before reaching the illusion point she did at the end of the story. In accordance with Mayo Clinic postpartum depression if left untreated can interfere with mother-child bonding which can lead to family problems. When no treatment is given to mothers with postpartum depression the depression can last for months or longer, and can sometimes become a chronic depressive disorder. The father/ husband that is dealing with a spouse with postpartum can cause an emotional strain for the father/husband

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).

During the fall 2007, my marriage entered its final stages of a breakdown. It was just a matter of time, as the beginning of the marriage had been extremely rocky. I had been suffering from undiagnosed Bipolar Disoder, PTSD, and GAD, while He, on the other hand, had undiagnosed ADHD.

The story starts with a winter evening and ends with the first sign of spring. It all happened at the character’s house and in a family environment. This happened at a time where nobody knew what depression was, or even more, what postpartum depression was. It was a time where there was not a real diagnosis or even a treatment. We see a society focus on the values of the family and keep them at the cost of somebody else’s life. We see a woman, one more time, being a victim of her own society.

I received a call from my cousin in Canada and I was shocked to hear her crying on phone. She had a baby six months back and every one at home thought she was having a great time who were 20,000 miles away from her. Hesitant at first, she finally got the courage to tell me her situation. She was diagnosed with post partum depression but was not able to tell her parents or anyone else. She went onto say that her depression took away happiness from her life and her family. During pregnancy she was eagerly awaiting the arrival of her baby and was looking forward to great happiness but after delivery she was experiencing the other end of the spectrum. She left her job to stay with the baby but what shook me most was her intense guilt about not being able to take care of her baby and to

This article is an expert opinion based on review of previous literature and research, which seeks to provide a practical framework for approaching post-partum depression. But utilizing the Five E’s, encouragement, empathy, education, engagement, and evaluation, the author seeks to provide the practitioner with a thoughtful, low-cost, and effective approach to addressing and managing patients experiencing post-partum depression. The author purports that when reviewing previous studies, these five components have proven to be essential in improving care and outcomes of patients with post-partum depression, and provides an example case study to demonstrate how this method can be used in practice.