Giving birth is supposed to be a happy time, as the arrival of one's bundle of joy is that special moment many moms have been praying for. However, some women suffer from the baby blues, or worse, develop postpartum depression due to hormones and other stuff. What many people don't know is that there's a difference between these two post-pregnancy emotions.
Yahoo Parenting shared that several women go through the motions of baby blues during the first few weeks after giving birth. This characteristically pushes women to feel low and unmotivated. They also have a hard time sleeping even if the baby's already peacefully asleep in her crib because of worry and anxiety.
New moms may even question their ability to handle the baby, but these feelings are quite normal and it usually comes and goes, American College of Obstetrics and Gynecologists informed. But when the emotions last after two weeks and the feelings grow more intense, then it could lead to postpartum depression.
Help Guide Org revealed that it's not always easy to distinguish between baby blues and postpartum as the latter quite often starts out as such. However, families of new moms can watch out for these signs to determine depression:
1) There's a general feeling of low energy and lack of motivation.
2) There are changes in the mom's appetite and sleeping patterns are erratic.
3) The new mom lacks interest in caring for her baby or has negative feelings towards her offspring.
4) The mom has no interest in taking care of herself at all.
5) She harbors mom-guilt and may compound of feelings of worthlessness.
6) She may have suicidal thoughts.
The American College of Obstetrics and Gynecologists said that this depression can sometimes occur within a year of having the baby and factors like hormone levels, previous history of depression, lifestyle and fatigue with taking care of the baby are just some of why this happens.
"The psychological component of postpartum depression varies for everybody," said Dr. Laura Riley in the Yahoo Parenting report and it only gets worse because this isn't usually talked about in public. "There's societal pressure to feel happy and blissful, so women don't talk about [the baby blues]. There's enormous guilt and shame," said Dr. Samantha Meltzer-Brody via Fit Pregnancy.
However, this shouldn't be the case as women suffering from postpartum depression will need to be treated with a combination of antidepressant medication and talk therapy.
