Hey everybody.
Today I want to talk with you about Postpartum Depression.
How do we know if we have it?
And how do we deal with it?
So like I said,
Today I want to talk with you about Postpartum Depression.
Now what is Postpartum Depression?
This is when we experience a depressive episode,
Or major depressive disorder,
After having a baby.
Now, first I want to let you all know,
That there are over three million reported cases in the US alone.
For Postpartum Depression.
In the US alone.
So you are not the only one going through this.
Having Postpartum Depression,
Doesn't mean that you are a bad mother.
It doesn't mean that you are flawed in some way.
It doesn't make you a bad person.
It's honestly one of the most natural experiences,
That can affect our mental health.
Now firstly,
There is something that can occur,
And I don't know the percentage.
Because it varied a lot depending on what article I was reading,
Or what thing I was looking up.
But most women,
We will just say most because it's over, usually around 50% or more.
Experience the 'baby blues'.
Now how are the baby blues different from Postpartum Depression?
Well, the baby blues are usually short lived.
They happen right after having the baby.
And within a couple of weeks,
Like two weeks or so,
They go away.
So they're transient.
And so it will be like we kind of have a downer,
And then we come out of it.
And we're okay.
But if this depression,
Like this depressive episode,
Or this depression feeling,
Lasts for more than two weeks.
That's when we would say that it's Postpartum Depression.
That it's something that you should seek help with.
Now I wrote down some differences between Postpartum Depression,
And just to give you an idea of how it may feel.
So that you know, if you've just had a baby,
And you're experiencing this,
You'll know if this is something that you're struggling with.
Now, most people report fatigue.
Also severe mood swings.
And a lot of these are characterized as having, you know, severe fatigue.
Where it's hard to get up.
It's hard to shower.
It's hard to take care of your baby.
You'll have difficulty bonding with your baby.
Withdrawal from your family and friends.
And even thoughts of even harming yourself or your new baby.
And there is a caveat off the side of this.
And something I want you all to be aware of.
That there is something also called Postpartum Psychosis.
So if you find yourself imagining, like seeing things that you never saw before,
Hearing things you never heard before,
Please please please see your doctor.
Take yourself to the hospital immediately.
That's a very serious condition.
And something that can be treated and taken care of.
But to go back to Postpartum Depression,
The most common symptoms are the ones that I just described.
And obviously if you are worried that you may harm yourself or harm your baby,
It's time to seek help.
There is no time to wait.
But if it's something like fatigue and mood swings,
Like I said, after two weeks,
Is when they say that you should be seeking help.
They also say if it's getting worse,
Or if it's making it difficult for you to care for your child,
That you should also seek help.
Now the causes of Postpartum Depression,
Are the things that we kind of hear about.
It's like a 'drop in hormones'.
Or it's a 'hormone change' when you have the baby.
And that's what causes it.
And that essentially is what it is.
Now I wrote down,
There are a ton of causes.
So you can see why this is so so common.
Now there's the dramatic drop in hormones,
Estrogen and Progesterone.
Those go down right after we have a baby.
And we know how hormones,
I've talked about in many other videos with depression and things like that,
Our hormones can really affect our mood.
That's why some women really struggle with different birth controls.
Because that affects our hormones.
And that can make us feel really bad.
Like my PMDD video.
Also there are changes in our blood volume.
Our blood pressure.
And this is what leads to those extreme feelings of fatigue.
Like it's so hard to get out of bed.
It's so hard to do anything.
You can't even imagine taking care of a child.
And that's not even to mention the fact that part of having a new baby is being tired,
We're getting up in the middle of the night.
And we're feeding all of the time.
And it can just be exhausting as a whole.
But this is an extreme fatigue.
Where doing anything, regular even,
Like if you had, lets say your spouse is taking care of the baby,
You can't even take care of yourself.
Also there is emotional factors.
Having a baby can bring up a lot of feelings.
Even being pregnant.
You know, where there's all of that excitement.
But there's also that anxiety.
You know, what kind of a mother am I going to be?
What kind of a parent do I plan to be?
How am I going to do things differently?
All of that.
And so all of those changes.
And it can just be really overwhelming.
We're feeling a lot.
Also they talk about lifestyle issues.
Finanaces.
Having a child can make a financial situation that may be kind of bad, worse.
And that puts a lot of pressure on both parents to, you know, pull their weight.
And if you just had the baby,
You're at home.
Also getting support from your partner.
Making sure that you're sharing in the care-taking of the child.
And all of the work that's involved in that.
And also, if you have another child,
It can be hard for you to manage both.
And trying to get your toddler to sit still while you do things with the baby.
And while you bathe the baby.
You know, it's a lot more to manage.
And it can be really overwhelming.
Now, so what do we do?
What do we do if we think that this is something that we're struggling with?
How do we even pull ourselves out of it?
I know many people who struggle with this,
Feel like they're a horrible person.
'I'm a horrible mother. I can't even believe I had a child. This is so terrible.'
This is not as bad as it feels.
I know depression as a whole can just feel like this huge dark cloud,
That just is suffocating.
It feels like we can't get out.
And there is nothing we can do.
And every day just seems longer and harder.
But there is a light at the end of the tunnel.
I promise.
If we get treatment quickly for Postpartum Depression,
It will not last.
Honest.
And the things that are recommended,
Obviously is counselling.
Hidey-ho.
Someone like me.
You can come talk.
You can process through all those things you're feeling.
All of the experiences that you're having with your child.
Maybe feelings of overwhelm, or financial issues.
You can have someone to talk about with it.
And you can process through any of those feelings that you're having.
Many people who had depression in their past,
May be more susceptible to Postpartum Depression.
Therefore hopefully you have a therapist or psychiatrist that you have already been seeing.
But if you haven't, now is the time to reach out.
And start talking about it.
Another thing that they obviously recommend are anti-depressants.
Now, I know many of you out there are like,
'Kati, I wont take drugs.'
And if you are breastfeeding,
I would encourage all of you to, or if you are even trying to get pregnant.
If we are at the beginning and this hasn't even happened yet,
If you are seeing a psychiatrist and they tell you, you know,
I think we're going to put you on this.
Always ask how can this affect my baby.
Is this something that I need to be concerned with?
Do I need to switch to formula?
You know, ask what class it's in.
Because there's a 'pregnancy class'.
And most are class c.
Which means that it can be transferred to the baby.
So just something to be aware of.
And something to ask.
Now, the last thing that's recommended,
And I got this treatment recommendations,
>From the Mayo Clinic's research article on Postpartum Depression.
And the last thing they recommend is hormone therapy.
Now this is because, like I said,
Estrogen and Progesterone are going down.
And we have a lot of different things that are going on in our body hormonally.
And if we are given the right hormones,
We can come back out of it.
And be okay.
And so those are all things that I would encourage all of you to reach out, to ask for.
And like I said,
Those support groups,
There are over three million cases in the US alone,
Each year.
Those groups are available.
I know, almost every hospital in LA that I have worked with,
Yes, they all have groups for this.
And talk to your doctor.
Your OBGYN.
Your lactation consultant.
Anybody in that area will know of one in your area.
Usually they are even free.
It's something that the hospitals put on.
So reach out.
Get the support.
Know that you are not alone.
And this is something that you can overcome.
The world is not coming to an end.
You are not a horrible mother.
You are just struggling with a severe drop in hormones.
And an extreme change in your lifestyle.
But together, we will get through it.
And as always,
Don't forget to subscribe to my channel.
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Hop on there.
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Our tree of hope.
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