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Postpartum Depression - Page 2© John McManamy
In addition , the social isolation new mothers face in modern society has been fingered as a culprit.
Then there are the "baby blues," affecting some 50 to 70 percent of new moms, with onset occuring within three days to a month after delivery, and a duration of less than ten days. At the other extreme is postpartum psychosis, affecting one in 500 births, accompanied by hallucinations, delusional thoughts, and agitated behavior. The mother cannot care for her baby, and there is serious risk of both suicide and infanticide. Women with bipolar disorder are at particular risk (with odds of one in five). In August 2000, Suzanne Killinger-Johnson, 37, a Toronto medical doctor practicing as a psychologist and described by a fellow former medical student as a woman "every guy at med school had a crush on," jumped in front of a subway train with her six-month-old baby in her arms. Ironically, her mother, also a psychotherapist, had written a book that contained this quote: "A lot of folks don't know what's cooking until the pot boils over." Nearly a year later, Texas mom Andrea Yates, 36, got the attention of the entire US when she drowned her five children in the bath tub. Husband Russell said, "She loved those kids." But not everyone was as sympathetic. NY Post columnist Andrea Peyser, for example, accused her of "methodically and diabolically" drowning her kids, going on to say many mothers kill their kids because they don't love them, and concluding with: "Still, blaming a mother for murder is heresy among the talking heads who fill the airwaves with psycho-babble about postpartum depression." Far more common is postpartum depression, affecting some 10 to 15 percent of deliveries. In the words of Pamela: "One day I was walking alone with my 10-month-old in the stroller, merrily pointing out the pretty leaves and the neighborhood doggies when I began to think about the devastating effect my suicide would have on my boy's life. I stopped in my tracks. This was the first concrete thought I had had of actually taking my own life. I made an appointment to see a psychologist - a new one - the next day." Pamela finally got the help she needed, but much of her suffering simply did not have to happen. Accordingly, if you are a mom-to-be or a new mom (or her SO):
The copyright of the article Postpartum Depression - Page 2 in Depression is owned by John McManamy. Permission to republish Postpartum Depression - Page 2 in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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