Postnatal depression
How to tell if you have postnatal depression
Postnatal depression (PND) affects many new mums and yet no one seems to want to talk about it. This is a form of depression that can happen gradually or all of a sudden and can range from being relatively mild to very hard-hitting.
It is estimated that at least one in 10 women suffer from PND, and it can start within one or two months of giving birth, although it can also be several months after having a baby before symptoms start to appear.
Some new mums can experience a short period of feeling emotional and tearful, which has become known as the ‘baby blues’. The ‘baby blues’ can start a couple of days after birth and last a few hours or days, with weepiness and sad feelings being the most common postnatal depression symptoms.
What causes postnatal depression?
PND can affect a new mum regardless of her family or personal circumstances. You may have managed happily with your first baby and yet become depressed after your second, or the other way around. There is no single answer as to why some new mums are affected by PND and not others but there are a number of different possibilities.
Some examples might be; strain of becoming a parent, anxiety, additional strain caused by hormones, antenatal depression.
Postnatal depression at a glance
Women experiencing PND may go through one or more of the following experiences, although it’s extremely unlikely that they will go through all of them. Symptoms can include:
- Feeling very low, or despondent, and that there is no hope. Feeling tired and very lethargic, or even quite numb. Not wanting to do anything or take an interest in the outside world.
- Feeling a sense of inadequacy or unable to cope.
- Feeling guilty about not coping, or about not loving their baby enough.
- Being unusually irritable.
- Wanting to cry/cry a lot or even constantly.
- Having obsessive and irrational thoughts which can be very scary.
- Loss of appetite, which may go with feeling hungry all the time but being unable to eat.
- Comfort eating.
- Having difficulty sleeping: either not getting to sleep, waking early, or having nightmares.
- Being hostile or indifferent to their partner and/or baby.
- Having panic attacks, which strike at any time, causing rapid heartbeat, sweaty palms and feelings of sickness or feeling faint
- Having overpowering anxiety, often about things that wouldn’t normally bother them, such as being alone in the house.
- Having difficulty in concentrating or making decisions.
- Experiencing physical symptoms, such as headaches.
- Having obsessive fears about baby’s health or wellbeing, or about themselves and other members of the family.
- Having disturbing thoughts about harming themselves or their baby.
- Having thoughts about death and/or suicide.
Every mum experiences PND differently and some specific symptoms may not be listed here but if you’re aware that you don’t feel quite ‘right’ within yourself, seek professional help.
Source: NCT
So what can be done to alleviate postnatal depression?
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A recent study by Dr Terrie Hope shows the ‘Effects of Access Bars® on anxiety and depression released in the Journal of Energy Psychology.
This study shows participants the severity of anxiety symptoms decreased by an average of 84.7%
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