Postpartum Depression Treatment & Perinatal Mental Health
Postpartum depression can affect up to 10-20% of women, and 1 in 9 postpartum women experience symptoms of postpartum depression. It is more debilitating and longer lasting than the ‘blues’, and can lasts for weeks or months, and tends to be more intense. It typically starts about 1-3 weeks after giving birth and could prevent you from being able to care for yourself and your baby. It is characterized by:
- Chronic fatigue
- Frequent crying spells with no triggers or reasons
- Feelings of panic and rapid heart rate
- Feeling of loss
- Excessive worry, often about one’s own or the baby’s health
- Feeling a lack of attachment or connectedness to the baby
- Difficulty sleeping or eating
- Difficulty concentrating
- Experiencing frightening thoughts or fantasies
- Feeling overwhelmed
- Headaches
Treatment has typically focused on postpartum depression, but research indicates that many women experience these symptoms during pregnancy too. Up to 15-20% women report feeling anxious, sad, depressed, panic, frustration, and hopeless during pregnancy. Mood disorders such as depression and anxiety that occur during pregnancy or within a year of delivery are now referred to as Perinatal Mood Disorders (PPMDs).
Aspiring Families offers perinatal mental health services and postpartum depression treatment in San Diego.