Do you currently going through troubling and disturbed state of mind? Have you ever felt powerless and disinterested for normal things in your life during your pregnancy stages? Some women even complaint about not wanting to hold their baby due to severe depression and stress levels. Can depression affect to-be mothers and new mothers to this extent? If so, what are the symptoms and possible remedies to overcome such depression in pregnant women as well as in new mothers? Find out your answer in the following article.
A Little About Pregnancy Depression:
Several women face different types of stress levels during and after their pregnancy. Some of them undergo extreme physical stress while some may go through severe mental stress or some can go through both types of depression levels. There are several terminologies that are being used for such type of depression. Some say it “Postpartum Depression”, some call it “Baby Blues”, or it can also be known by other terms such as Perinatal Depression, Postnatal Depression, Prenatal Depression, and Maternal Depression, etc.
Such type of prenatal depression can range from mild, moderate to severe stages. Pregnant women and new mothers may experience this depression and stress for few weeks, months to even some years after pregnancy. If not treated in time, this depression can also affect the health of the mother and potentially the health of your baby too!
Primary Causes of Prenatal Depression:
I don’t know about you! But from my experience, I can say one thing that women undergo several physical and mental stages during and after pregnancy. Pregnancy and childbirth are the two phases in our life where we can be extremely sad, lonely, fearful, short tempered and anxious about little things happening in our life. Thanks to the pregnancy hormones which we have discussed earlier on.
If you are currently pregnant then you may also be experiencing mood swings. If you have just given birth to a baby then you may be experiencing highly irregular sleeping schedule and imbalanced lifestyle due to breastfeeding and managing the new life at your home. Being a perfect mother can also be one of the greatest factors that can increase the depression levels in new mothers.
Now there are other causes along with the above obvious causes. Sometimes such prenatal depression can be attributed to the family quarrels, breaking up with the partner, divorce, job loss, financial crisis, death of the loved ones, etc. There are several external and internal things in our life that can lead us towards either postnatal or postpartum depression gradually.
Are You The Victim of Pregnancy Depression?
Prenatal depression is such a thing that can affect any new mother or to-be mother along with her spouse too. Such kind of stress can drastically change the lifestyle of any woman belonging from any type of race, caste, creed, color, culture, age, income group or education level. Whether you are breastfeeding your baby or not, it can affect your mental state too. Do not think that if you are healthy and fit then you will not be affected by this depression. Whether your baby is sick or not, there are several other stimulants that can develop tension and stress in your mind during and after pregnancy.
Whether you are a single mother or a married woman, it does not differentiate between the two when it comes to prenatal depression. Any kind of physical weakness or mental weakness during and after pregnancy can add to this type of stress. There are other possible causes to such depression such as bipolar disorder, family history, family stress, job stress, relationship and economic crisis, drug abuse, previous cases of abortions and miscarriages, etc. Thus perinatal depression can be a very serious health issue for pregnant women as well as for new mothers if not treated properly in time.
