Postpartum depression. The causes of postpartum depression
It is known that during pregnancy a woman's body occur greatest hormonal and physical changes, as well as, last but not least, moral change. Of course, most people have heard of this kind of phenomenon aspostpartum depressionMany do not even hearsay, but the reasons for its occurrence and, especially, ways of dealing with it are known not for everyone.
The morale of women is directly related to hormonal changes during pregnancy. Deterioration of morale begins on the fifth day after birth. This fact is explained by the fact that just at this period is significant hormonal jump quite natural after childbirth.
And if the general emotional background superimposed yet and social factors, such as:
• no or little support of loved ones,
• lack of prospects for future employment or strong dissatisfaction, its instability,
• lack of skill and experience in child care
• financial problems
• The child was unwanted or unplanned
• bad relations between the spouses or, even worse, the lack of a father in a child
• alcohol and drug use in early pregnancy
• exhaustion from poor nutrition or physical disability - all this can lead to serious illness.
These items may not be as pronounced or completely absent, but, nevertheless, according to the observations of physicians, postpartum emotional state disorders observed in 60-70% of pregnant women.
Symptoms of postpartum depression
Often the mood begins to deteriorate as early as the fourth day after birth and becomes really very bad for the seventh. In this case, there is a manifestation of depression of varying degrees, ranging from irritability and anxiety, to sleep disorders, crying spells, and even hysteria. Such conditions may alternate with quite normal mood, and quite adequate behavior.
In most casespostpartum depression and does not require additional treatment and often passes by itself after a certain period of time. If such depressive wave will continue for more than two weeks, you should consult your doctor for advice. Approximately 20% of womenpostpartum depression becomes pronounced depression.
The first symptomspostpartum depression are the following factors:
1. Insomnia
2. Violation of appetite
3. Bad mood
4. Irritability
5. Complaints, confusion
6. Sudden mood swings
Used in medical practice and special testing, which takes place once a week postpartum women, choosing the answers to the questions of the options that helps to identify the onset of depression in the early stages.
Often, people close to take a bad mood mothers of normal moods and do not attach importance to them, but if in the event ofpostpartum depression it fails to resolve, it has a very unpleasant property to grow like a snowball. Therefore, the post-partum period is especially important for the support and love of friends, good attitude and understanding of the health workers.
Treatment of postpartum depression
Sometimes symptomspostpartum depression appear after a certain time after giving birth - after 1-6 months and can drag on for several years. So the moral and physical condition of women before childbirth, and the postpartum period should be treated with special care and attention. Postpartum depression is, in fact, is very dangerous for the body and the health of the woman. Such a state is always accompanied by low self-esteem and depressing thoughts.
In complextreatment of postpartum depression includes such actions as psychological interviews with the mother and her relatives, the use of specific pharmaceutical and vitamin preparations with a tonic effect.
Treatment of postpartum depression selected taking into account the individual characteristics of women, as well as the level of depressive state: if the degree of depression is not very high, it is best to choose the least toxic and psychotropic drugs with the most rapid period of elimination from the body. If depression has reached a dire stage, then there is not enough without antidepressants. However, in any case, the drugs should be selected very carefully, consult with several doctors, because in the period of breast-feeding is important to avoid the harmful effects of drugs on the body of the child.
One of the main reasons that the emergency control ofpostpartum depression very important is the fact that in the early stages of development, the child is very strongly associated with the mother and the bad mother's emotional state may seriously affect both the physical and moral state of the child, as well as its further development.
In extremely severe, advanced formspostpartum depression can lead to suicidal thoughts and thoughts cause harm to the child. In this state, need urgent hospitalization in a psychiatric facility.
Galina Schroeder
Women's magazine JustLady