Postpartum depression: what is the cause? Video

According to statistics, about half of new mothers suffer from postpartum depression. The risk of its occurrence is greatest in primiparous women. There are several typical reasons why depression can appear:

• changes in hormonal levels in a woman’s body;
• stress experienced during childbirth, general fatigue;
• lack of proper sleep;
• responsibility and pressure from others;
• lack of support from the child’s father and relatives;
• problem or sick baby;
• unjustified expectations.

This condition of a woman is a disease. Its medical name is postnatal depression.

Its symptoms and signs are as follows:

• depressed state, aggravated in the morning and / or in the evening;
• a tormenting feeling of guilt, a seeming lack of meaning in life;
• severe irritability – breakdowns, tantrums;
• tears for the slightest reason and without it;
• insomnia;
• constant fatigue, poor health, even with a normal daily routine;
• disgust for intimacy with her husband, for their own appearance;
• a feeling of anger towards a child, in some cases a manifestation of aggression;
• unreasonable fear for the life and health of the baby;
• increased or decreased appetite.

Such a condition of the mother cannot but affect the condition and development of the baby. Babies very keenly feel the slightest changes in their mother’s mood and become even more restless, capricious, thereby causing more and more trouble and irritation.

Treating postpartum depression is essential to both the mom’s well-being and the baby’s well-being. After all, the consequences of breakdowns can be very deplorable and can turn life into a nightmare for both: from an undermined psyche, which in the future can become a serious problem for the baby, to the complete destruction of the family and even a threat to the baby’s life.

If any of the above symptoms persist for a long time, you should seriously think about the possible postpartum depression, treating its symptoms and eliminating the causes.

There are several universal tips on how to improve your psychological state and get rid of the signs of depression on your own, without resorting to the help of doctors.

Get the support of family and friends. Do not hesitate to ask for help from relatives and friends, because most likely not a single family member or close friend will refuse to have a short communication with the baby. At this time, you can distract yourself: go to the store and treat yourself to shopping, spend time with your spouse in a restaurant or theater.

Try to involve your husband in caring for the child. Let him feel like a real father: you can entrust the man with the most interesting things, for example, daily bathing or a walk with the baby. This will not take away a lot of his strength and will allow the young mother to relax, making time for her beloved every day.

Get yourself in order. You can grieve all day about the figure spoiled after childbirth and seize your grief with chocolate, but the only and surest way out is to go in for sports and your appearance in general, for example, visit a hairdresser or beautician.

During sports, the general tone rises, and the body also produces hormones of joy. Intense training is physically exhausting, but gives a person spiritual strength.

You can meet women in similar conditions. On the Internet, on forums, on the playground in the yard, there are always women who are on maternity leave and face similar difficulties. Communication will help you to look at your problems from the outside, gain sympathy, share experiences, make new friends and additional support.

The decree is not a reason to give up on oneself and turn into a “kludge”. Nothing interferes with picking up a good book while feeding or sleeping a baby, earn extra money at a remote job, create, create and develop – in a word, do what you have always dreamed of, but to which in a past life “did not reach”.

It may be very difficult to “come back to life” at first, but it is worth trying to do it, even if through force. A positive result will definitely be

If you still cannot cope with postpartum depression on your own, a doctor should prescribe treatment. Otherwise, the woman’s condition may worsen and result in an extreme stage of the disorder – postpartum psychosis. Do not neglect professional medical help when it comes to the most important thing – the health of your own child. Modern medicine allows you to quickly, without addiction and harm to physical health, overcome this condition with the help of specialized medications.

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