Majority of women will experience some form of low mood or irritability that comes and goes. And this is particularly common after the delivery what’s well described and well known as baby blues. And this usually resolves by itself within two weeks are having the baby without any specific treatment.
But on the other hand if the symptoms are persistent if the low mood or irritability are present most of the time and you find that you can't quite enjoy things the way that you used to, then maybe it's a sign of a more pervasive mood disorder or depression. Poor appetite, poor sleep, excessive tiredness and difficulty concentrating or other important symptoms to look out for.
Now I appreciate that a lot of these symptoms are pretty common in pregnancy and after delivery but what we mean here is not the lack of sleep from being up most of the night feeding the baby or the natural feeling of tiredness that follows, but instead women with depression tend to describe this inability to go to sleep even when the baby is sleeping or even if their partner has taken over with the night feeds.
For example they may find themselves lying in bed worrying about different things. Some woman may also experience a lot of negative feelings including guilt and even hopelessness.
Now I can imagine that it would be extremely terrifying having to admit to these symptoms and there is a lot of stigma still out there about mental illness, and there's a lot of pressure to be the perfect mother, and you know it is often easier to either put up a front or to play down your symptoms.
But I'd like mothers and the partners to know that there is help out there and that the sooner that they can speak to someone about it, the sooner health can arise for both themselves and their babies.
Answered: Dr. Mas Mohammed, Perinatal, Psychiatrist
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Did you know?
The heart actually grows during pregnancy, to accommodate the pumping of more blood to mama and baby. So you can say that your heart grew when you found out that you were pregnant, and be completely literal.
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