Where Does Postpartum Depression Come From

Postpartum Depression Statistics In The Philippines

• A multicenter study published in 2019 reported that 16.4% of new mothers in the Philippines experienced postpartum depression at the 6-week mark following delivery.
• In 2007, the Thirteenth Congress of the Republic of the Philippines brought forth the Postpartum Depression Research Act of 2007, designed to conduct and support research surrounding postpartum conditions.

How To Manage Postpartum Depression From Home

To manage PPD effectively, mothers should also avoid consuming fruit juices or foods and beverages that contain artificial sweeteners. Its also best to avoid caffeinated drinks as they can impair sleep quality and trigger anxiety. Similarly, steer clear of carbohydrate-rich foods as they can trigger energy spikes but cause you to feel lousy after that.

Postpartum depression can affect the physical and mental well-being of mothers. While the symptoms may be different from one mother to the other, opening up is the first step to healing. You have the power to overcome this condition. Just like these three women, you are not alone. If you find yourself experiencing something similar with these stories, reach out to your loved ones and seek medical help.

How Long Does Postpartum Depression Last

Postpartum depression can last until one year after your child is born. However, this doesn’t mean you should feel “cured” in one year. Talk to your healthcare provider about your symptoms and treatment. Be honest about how you feel. Think carefully about if you feel better than you did at the beginning of your diagnosis. Then, they can recommend ongoing treatment for your symptoms.

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Frequently Asked Questions Expand All

• What are the baby blues?

  About 23 days after childbirth, some women begin to feel depressed, anxious, and upset. They may feel angry with the new baby, their partners, or their other children. They also may:

• Cry for no clear reason

• Have trouble sleeping, eating, and making choices

• Question whether they can handle caring for a baby

These feelings, often called the baby blues, may come and go in the first few days after childbirth.

What Is Samhsa’s National Helpline

SAMHSAs National Helpline, , or TTY: is a confidential, free, 24-hour-a-day, 365-day-a-year, information service, in English and Spanish, for individuals and family members facing mental and/or substance use disorders. This service provides referrals to local treatment facilities, support groups, and community-based organizations.

Also visit the online treatment locator, or send your zip code via text message: 435748 to find help near you. Read more about the HELP4U text messaging service.

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How Can I Help Someone With Postpartum Depression

People with postpartum depression need lots of support. Here are some ways you can help:

• Know the signs of depression and anxiety and urge your friend or partner to seek medical care.
• Be a good listener. Let them know you’re there to listen and help.
• Offer to help them with daily tasks like cleaning and running errands.
• Offer to help watch their baby while they sleep or rest.
• Encourage them to seek help from a therapist or other mental health provider. Offer to set up an appointment or go with them as a support person.

A note from Cleveland Clinic

Postpartum depression is a common mood disorder that affects 1 in 7 people after giving birth. It’s not your fault, and you did nothing to cause it. It doesn’t make you a bad parent or a bad person. The biological, physical and chemical factors that cause PPD are beyond your control. Signs of postpartum depression include feeling sad or worthless, losing interest in things you once enjoyed, excessive crying and mood swings. Talk to your healthcare provider if you think you have postpartum depression. They can figure out how to best manage your symptoms. Counseling, medication or joining a support group can help.

Last reviewed by a Cleveland Clinic medical professional on 04/12/2022.

References

What Are The Signs Of Postpartum Depression

Someone with postpartum depression may experience:

• Sadness, anxiety, or anger that doesnt go away
• Feeling worthless, helpless, guilty, hopeless, or irritable
• Feeling distant from your baby
• Crying more than usual
• Withdrawing from friends and family
• Trouble concentrating or making decisions
• Appetite changes
• Trouble sleeping or sleeping too much
• Constant doubts about your ability to raise your baby
• Thoughts about hurting yourself or your baby

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Help And Support For Postnatal Depression

Many kinds of support are available for women experiencing postnatal depression.

Support and patience from family and friends are perhaps the most important factor in a womans recovery from PND. Talking about her feelings, particularly with other women in support groups or with a professional counsellor for example, through the Perinatal Anxiety and Depression Australia national helpline can be helpful. In more severe cases, seeing a GP or perinatal psychiatrist to consider anti-depressants and other medications might be used to help bring about a change in mood.

Its important to remember that PND is a temporary condition that will improve with time.

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Postpartum Depression Statistics In The Uk

• Similar to the U.S., the number of new mothers in the UK who experience postpartum depression, also called perinatal depression, is around 1 in 10.
• Approximately 1 in 8 British women also experience depression during pregnancy .
• The Royal College of Psychiatrists reports that around 25% of women with postpartum depression still experience symptoms after their new baby turns one.

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Tips For Postpartum Depression

Its common to develop feelings of sadness and depression after giving birth to a baby. Have these symptoms of depression lasted for longer than two weeks and do you have the sense that theyre not improving? Then this is a sign of postpartum depression. Try to be gentle with yourself youre certainly not to blame for feeling this way. Heres how to deal with feelings of depression when you become a mother:

• Take your thoughts and feelings seriouslyThat means acknowledging and accepting that youre not doing so well.

• Dont feel guilty for feeling and thinking the way you doIts not because youre a bad mother, its because of the depression. And that depression is treatable.

• Talk to peopleChoose people you trust and share your feelings and concerns. This will act as a huge relief.

• Get helpAsk if, in addition to your partner, other people around you would like to help care for the baby. This will give you more time to rest.

• Speak to your doctorHaving a conversation with a nurse practitioner or psychologist can help to alleviate symptoms of postpartum depression.

What Are The Signs & Symptoms Of Postpartum Depression

Symptoms of postpartum depression can vary from woman to woman. But common signs include:

• feeling sad, hopeless, or overwhelmed
• feeling worried, scared, or panicked
• blaming yourself unnecessarily
• sleeping too much or too little
• eating too much or too little
• trouble concentrating
• not feeling attached to the baby
• not wanting to do things that usually are enjoyable

Although it is very rare, some women have very serious symptoms such as:

• thoughts of hurting the baby or themselves
• hearing voices, seeing things that are not there, or feeling paranoid

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Why Postpartum Treatment Is So Important

If you think you have postpartum depression, its critical that you talk about it with your practitioner and your partner and/or other loved ones.

Left untreated, PPD can last for several months or sometimes even longer, and affect your relationship with your baby and others.

Experts believe that untreated postpartum depression may increase the chance of a baby having language delays, increased crying and behavior problems. And the possible long-term complications of untreated PPD are the same as in major depression which includes being at risk of harming yourself or your baby.

For all these reasons, its extremely important to seek help rather than try to wait it out or deal with it on your own. If youre having serious symptoms for more than a few weeks, chances are they wont go away without professional attention, so dont wait to see if they do.

The good news is that once postpartum depression is diagnosed, there are many safe and effective treatment options.

How Is Postpartum Depression Treated

The common types of treatment for postpartum depression are:

• Therapy. During therapy, you talk to a therapist, psychologist, or social worker to learn strategies to change how depression makes you think, feel, and act.

• Medicine. There are different types of medicines for postpartum depression. All of them must be prescribed by your doctor or nurse. The most common type is antidepressants. Antidepressants can help relieve symptoms of depression and some can be taken while you’re breastfeeding. Antidepressants may take several weeks to start working.

  The Food and Drug Administration has also approved a medicine called brexanolone to treat postpartum depression in adult women.6 Brexanolone is given by a doctor or nurse through an IV for 2½ days . Because of the risk of side effects, this medicine can only be given in a clinic or office while you are under the care of a doctor or nurse. Brexanolone may not be safe to take while pregnant or breastfeeding.

  Another type of medicine called esketamine can treat depression and is given as a nasal spray in a doctor’s office or clinic. Esketamine can hurt an unborn baby. You should not take esketamine if you are pregnant or breastfeeding.

• Electroconvulsive therapy . This can be used in extreme cases to treat postpartum depression.

These treatments can be used alone or together. Talk with your doctor or nurse about the benefits and risks of taking medicine to treat depression when you are pregnant or breastfeeding.

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Is There Any Research About How Long Ppd Usually Lasts

Because PPD can appear anywhere from a couple of weeks to 12 months after birth, theres no average length of time it lasts. A 2014 review of studies suggests that PPD symptoms improve over time, with many cases of depression resolving 3 to 6 months after they begin.

That said, in that same review, it was clear that plenty of participants were still dealing with PPD symptoms well beyond the 6-month mark.

Anywhere from 30 to 50 percent met criteria for PPD 1 year after giving birth, while a little less than half of the people studied were still reporting depressive symptoms 3 years postpartum.

Symptoms Of Peripartum Depression

Symptoms of Peripartum Depression include:5

• Feeling sad or having a depressed mood
• Loss of interest or pleasure in activities once enjoyed
• Changes in appetite
• Difficulty thinking, concentrating, or making decisions
• Thoughts of death or suicide
• Crying for no reason
• Lack of interest in the baby, not feeling bonded to the baby, or feeling very anxious about/around the baby
• Feelings of being a bad mother
• Fear of harming the baby or oneself

A woman experiencing peripartum depression usually has several of these symptoms, and the symptoms and their severity may change. These symptoms may cause new mothers to feel isolated, guilty, or ashamed. To be diagnosed with peripartum depression, symptoms must begin during pregnancy or within four weeks following delivery.

Many women with peripartum depression also experience symptoms of anxiety. One study found that nearly two-thirds of women with peripartum depression also had an anxiety disorder.6

While there is no specific diagnostic test for peripartum depression, it is a real illness that should be taken seriously. Any pregnant woman or new mother who experiences the symptoms of peripartum depression should seek evaluation by a medical professional an internal medicine doctor or an OB-GYN, who can make referrals to a psychiatrist or other mental health professional. Assessment should include a psychiatric evaluation and a medical evaluation to rule out physical problems that may have symptoms similar to depression .

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Prognosis Of Postpartum Psychosis

With timely diagnosis and treatment, women with postpartum psychosis usually recover completely and are able to live a normal life.

Recovery may take a few weeks to several months and the journey can be difficult. The condition may be shocking, as well as frightening, for both the woman and her family.

Fortunately, the occurrence of postpartum psychosis in the mother has not been shown to affect the long-term growth and development of the child.

Postpartum Psychosis Vs Postpartum Depression

The diagnosis of postpartum psychosis is often confused with that of postpartum depression due to the similarities in their symptoms and their tendencies to affect women during the postpartum period.

However, both these conditions have differences in terms of their clinical presentations, the intensity of symptoms, and the development of complications.

Postpartum depression usually lasts more than two to three weeks and impairs routine functioning.

The common symptoms associated with this condition include:

• Feelings of guilt, worthlessness, and inadequacy
• Consistently sad mood
• Difficulty concentrating
• Suicidal thoughts

These symptoms are common in women during the postpartum phase, though they are usually quite mild. Also, it is not uncommon for first-time mothers to experience episodes of anxiety, sadness, and fear. These episodes require medical intervention only when symptoms persist or lead to potentially dangerous consequences, such as having suicidal tendencies.

Postpartum psychosis, on the other hand, is considered a medical emergency, as it develops suddenly and involves the risk of life-threatening complications. A diagnosis of postpartum psychosis is considered when symptoms similar to that of postpartum depression develops, though abruptly and at a very high intensity.

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How Many Women Experience Depression And Postpartum Depression

Depression is a common and serious illness. A CDC study shows that about 1 in 10 women in the United States reported symptoms that suggest they experienced an episode of major depression in the last year. Using the Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System , CDC research shows about 1 in 8 women with a recent live birth experience symptoms of postpartum depression. Estimates of the number of women affected by postpartum depression differ by age, race/ethnicity, and state. View your states prevalence of postpartum depressive symptoms using PRAMS.

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected mental health. Many people are experiencing grief and facing challenges that can be stressful and overwhelming. To find information about taking care of your mental health and coping with stress and grief, visit Stress and Coping.

Symptoms Of Postpartum Depression

How often postpartum depression symptoms occur, how long they last, and how intense they feel can be different for each person. The symptoms of postpartum depression are similar to symptoms for depression, but may also include:

• Crying more often than usual.
• Feelings of anger.
• Feeling numb or disconnected from your baby.
• Worrying that you will hurt the baby.
• Feeling guilty about not being a good mom or doubting your ability to care for the baby.

Postpartum depression can also occur among women with a healthy pregnancy and birth.

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How Do Doctors Screen For Postpartum Depression

It can be hard to detect mild cases of postpartum depression. Healthcare providers rely heavily on your responses to their questions.

Many healthcare providers use the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale to screen for postpartum depression. It consists of 10 questions related to symptoms of depression such as feeling unhappy, anxious or guilty. You’re asked to check the response that comes closest to how you’ve felt the last seven days. A higher score indicates possible postpartum depression.

If your provider feels you have signs of postpartum depression, they will recommend an appropriate treatment.

How Long Can Postpartum Depression Take To Appear

Although many people might think that postpartum depression only appears right after birth, thats not always the case. Many cases of PPD do appear shortly after birth, due to the abrupt hormonal changes that take place once you deliver your baby usually 4 to 6 weeks after birth. But for other women, symptoms of PPD can appear anytime within the first 18 months of their babys life.

In these cases, it can be even more difficult to diagnose PPD. New mothers usually have follow-up appointments a few weeks after birth, but after that, many dont go to the doctor regularly. This lack of medical attention can delay the diagnosis of late-onset PPD.

Physicians believe that delayed postpartum depression is also associated with the decreased support that new mothers experience after the first few weeks of their babys life. After their partners have gone back to work, and the support that they received during those first few weeks has diminished, it can be easy to feel overwhelmed and alone.

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Delayed Ppd Can Also Affect Men

Delayed postpartum depression can also affect new dads. Even though moms are the ones who go through pregnancy and childbirth, both parents can have difficulty dealing with their new responsibility and changing roles. In fact, it has been estimated that anywhere between 4 to 25% of new fathers can experience symptoms of paternal postpartum depression , or male postpartum depression.

The symptoms of paternal postpartum depression can be very similar to those of maternal PPD, but some men externalize their depression in different ways. Doctors agree that men are more likely to engage in behaviors like aggression, hypersexuality, and substance abuse. Parents who have difficulty bonding with their babies have a higher risk of developing PPPD, and they tend to shut down rather than express their emotions.