Postnatal Depression in Childbirth - Essay Example

Running Head: Postnatal Depression Postnatal Depression [Institute’s Postnatal Depression Introduction Postnatal depression is a significant form of mental illness that usually goes undiagnosed by doctors and health professional in any sample space. Mental illness or mental disorders due to the postnatal depression can accompany with bipolar mental disorders like mania or hypomania or the unipolar mental disorders (Hearn & Iliff, pp. 1064-6, 1998). These mental illnesses can differ from one another by the effect of symptomatolgy, the time of attack, and the patterns of backsliding. However, maternity blues and postpartum psychosis also happen after childbirth but these issues are distinct from postnatal depression by means of preponderance, the clinical demonstration of the illness, the time of onset, period of illness, and time of recurrence of disease. The most usual mental illness linked with post pregnancy and birth of the child is unipolar depression either major or minor, this depression can happen to any women anytime after the childbirth and within the first postnatal year. Postnatal depression is chiefly second to women with caesarean cases, as these cases result in more frequent complexities during and after childbirth (Walsh, pp. 24-29, 2009). During the last few years, the facilities and services rendered to the expected women, mothers and their infants have undergone major improvements complimenting with exponential decline in death rate of infants and the expecting women (Affonso et al, pp. 255-271, 1991). These improvements are due to the development in different departments such as obstetrics and medicine, bettered obstetric standards, much improved midwifery care and concern, and the development in health education, social service, health of people and maintenance of general hygienic environment. Nevertheless, the sector of mental healthcare has not achieved such great improvements in order to reduce the mental illness and depression among the expecting women, mothers and their infants. The wide range of variation in symptoms of the mental illness can result in difficulty in diagnosis of postnatal depression (Affonso et al, pp. 255-271, 1991). The situation gets even more difficult when the women do not have enough knowledge to understand the symptoms as signs of depression or if the corporeal symptoms have greater influence than the symptoms of mental illnesses. Sad, gloomy, irritated and exhausted moms attend the primary care more often but with issues related to their child only and not themselves. Authentic methods and reliable techniques are compulsory in order to recognize depression and distinguish it from the adjusting problems during the start of postnatal period (Affonso et al, pp. 255-271, 1991). Mostly women do not consider their psychological problems significant enough to discuss with their doctor as compared to the problems, issues, and concerns related to their infants. While the other group of women endeavor to maintain the status of a perfect partner and a perfect mother and reject the depression symptoms. Serious anxiety and mood swings can also occur to women that results in lack of attachment, negative thoughts and feelings for their children, different issues and concerns related to home and work, lack of sexual desire, results in tension in the marriage bond, issues relating care and bringing up of children, and not doing as good as expected. There is a wide range in nature of the disease or mental illness, the no of symptoms vary from patient to patient and so is the complexity and intensity of the mental illness (McClarey & Stokoe, pp. 141-43, 1995). Nevertheless, there exist certain similarities between the postnatal depression and unipolar mental illness happening to the normal and non-childbearing women, though the linked factors are not the same (Affonso et al, pp. 255-271, 1991). Postnatal depression usually relates to the tensions linked with then presence of new member in family, that results in complexity in adjusting with household chores, lack of attachment in marital bonding, difficulties due to absence from job, reduction in social activities, additional responsibilities, and problems relating to other members of the family (Affonso et al, pp. 255-271, 1991). In clinical matters, the symptoms of postnatal depression are widely distributed; some of the significant symptoms include (Walsh, pp. 24-29, 2009): Intense and illogical dejection related to the delivery Breastfeeding or other sides of the motherhood picture Reduced sexual desire or desire of being physical with the partner Lack of interest in social and cultural activities Lack of self confidence, feeling of inability to cope up Anxiousness or irritation Feeling afraid of or for the infant Feeling afraid as not to do any harm to infant Being afraid of rejection by the partner Feelings of distress Feeling of losing personal beauty and attraction Classification Issues As postnatal depression is not a part of the particular diagnostic groupings or classifications in most of the international definitions of mental illnesses, many people believe as if it never existed. Usually, poor and improper information collection of information takes place in recent health environment regarding the occurrence and presence of postnatal depression among childbearing women (Hearn & Iliff, pp. 1064-6, 1998). This issue interlinks with the deficiency of information consensus regarding the exact definition of postnatal depression. Many healthcare professionals claim there is not any distinction between the postnatal depression and unipolar major or minor depression that can happen to anyone, any time in terms of symptomatolgy, clinical representation and time of recurrence etc. However, there are certain proofs that unipolar depression of minor form can be more dominating and persisting during the time of child birth and the start of childbearing when put in comparison to the rates of other women of different ages and conditions. Nevertheless, there is not any sign about the fact that the samples of other types of women were the victim of depression or not. There is a need to analyze these issues more in a large epidemiologic setup. A short study conducted in America analyzed the flow of normal postpartum modification in women with no depression compared to symptoms of women with depression after the childbirth. To the health professionals there were no substantial differences between the symptoms and nature of illness of twenty-five clinically depressed women and twenty-four non-depressed women (Hearn & Iliff, pp. 1064-6, 1998). These symptoms underwent comparison in terms of irregularity of sleep, sleeplessness, anxiety, loss of libido, irritation, disturbance, and feelings of suicidal attempts. However, the symptoms that were different and distinct between the groups of depressed and non-depressed women were lack and loss of interest, being guilty for no reason, lack and loss of energy, and complexities and problems in concentration and attention. These results (Hearn & Iliff, pp. 1064-6, 1998) concluded that women could undergo serious corporeal and psychological changes after the childbirth, even if the women never had any clinical depression and a part of these variations is the fraction of abnormalities of normal postnatal adjustment. They resolve that strict judgment schemes are mandatory in order to distinguish clearly between the normal abnormalities and the abnormal abnormalities after the childbirth. The reported estimates for the existence of postnatal depression have varied over the time depending on the studies, recruited samples size, timing of assessments and the use of different diagnostic criteria like BDI scores. These results tell us the diagnostic methods and self-report scales of a number of women who suffer from depression (McClarey & Stokoe, pp. 141-43, 1995). Postnatal depression occurs in about 10% to 20% of all childbearing women. Cases of minor depression are unrecognized. Course Onset The women’s expectations of normal postpartum adjustment are due to the onset of depressive indications in childbearing women. Time of onset varies initially appearing during the antenatal period and increasing after the birth within first 12 months postpartum (Altshuler et al, pp. 29-33, 1998). Duration The postnatal depression can vary from several weeks to months and severe episodes may go on for years. It has proved that a significant amount of women will remain depressed in untreated cases, throughout the first postpartum year; however, most episodes remit within 2 to 6 years. The length of follow up assessment influences the measurement of duration (Altshuler et al, pp. 29-33, 1998). Recurrence The rate of recurrence depends on how and when episodes are measured. Some studies simply observe a continuation of an earlier depressive episode. Researchers (Altshuler et al, pp. 29-33, 1998) say that Women who have subsequent deliveries are at an increased risk of depression over a period of 5 years. Women with previous episodes of major depression are at a 30% to 50% risk of relapse. There is a large difference between such episodes and predicted relapse rates. Researchers (Altshuler et al, pp. 29-33, 1998) have found that two groups of women experience depression after childbirth. Women that cannot cope up with the emotional demands of motherhood and women for whom the birth is a non-specific stress, the former group has is more capable of having postpartum depression than women for whom there were recurrent episodes of postnatal depression (England, pp. 93-96, 1994). Risk factors The biological, psychological and social factors contribute to depression. There is a complex correlation between parental risk factors although factors vary between individuals. It is essential to develop suitable screening and evaluation methods for understanding risks and their influence associated with postnatal depression and families at risk of developing postnatal and antenatal depression (Walsh, pp. 41-53, 2009). The women having account of clinical depression are most likely to have affective disorders during the postpartum period. Best prediction of postnatal depression has carried out by a history of depression after subsequent deliveries with high estimates of recurrence. Women having miserable marital bonding are more prone and susceptible to the occurrence and development of postnatal depression. Many researches have confirmed that women with postnatal depression had marital complexities and problems after the childbirth. Nevertheless, further studies indicate that miserable marital bonding is one of the many root causes of postnatal depression among the childbearing women (Fontaine & Jones, pp. 59-63, 1997). Surprisingly, a few researches indicated that there is no association between the growth of postnatal depression among childbearing women and the complexities in maintaining marriages, complexities and tensions between the partners, and poor marital relationship after the childbirth. A more general research concluded that marital difficulties and problems shares chemistry with the postnatal depression no matter what comes before the depression or the marital distress. Demonstrations made on human relationships have showed that social and interpersonal relationships and interpreted heights of the support readily available put a significant effect on women going through postpartum adjustment and mental illness. Making it short and obvious, the deficiency of support from the family of childbearing women results in postnatal depression and postpartum mental illness (Fontaine & Jones, pp. 59-63, 1997). Deficiency of confidence in family, partner, or oneself, living without the partner, or living in family without the partner, and lack of support and care from people around the childbearing women result in increment and worsening of symptoms of postnatal depression in women after the childbirth. Birth of a child is an important incident in human life but the same can become a source of permanent depression for both men n women and especially the women if the mother giving birth is under any kind of stress at the time of delivery. Women usually pass their lives under various kind of stress and more often than not limited support is available for them to combat it. Different factors contribute to this postnatal depression which include but are not limited to unemployment, poverty and else. Significant observations have been made at times which conclude that postnatal depression is really linked to stresses and recent untoward and uncomfortable situations faced by the person (Fontaine & Jones, pp. 59-63, 1997). Initially, a particular school of thought used to believe and think that if someone has psychopathology in his or her family history and if the person becomes the victim of depression then that family history becomes the only potential and authentic reason of depression throughout one’s life (Fontaine & Jones, pp. 59-63, 1997). However, after some further research in this regard, the same school of thought concluded that postnatal depression also occurs because of affective disorder in family history but not only due to the positive family history with regard to depression. Apart from this, several researches conducted, studies made in this background have indicated, and showed postnatal depression has some links with maternity blues as well. Women who have neuroticism become more of a victim of this kind. In recent days, the height of attention and concentration of partner has gained significant importance; this has strong linking with the depression symptoms and mental illness of the wives. However, opposite to the ideal vision of parents, parents and family has a substantial effect on the health of childbearing women in her postpartum days. Nevertheless, these researches are not concrete and precisely accurate; a large amount of error arises while collecting the data for these researches. Hence, for a clear, concrete, and complete study it is compulsory to do some more accurate research in order to enlighten the relation between postnatal depression and the depression due to partner and family after the childbirth. Effects Your classmates’ part References Affonso D., Lovett S., Paul S. (1991). "Predictors of depression symptoms during pregnancy and postpartum." Journal of Psychosomatic Obstetrics and Gynecology supplementary. Volume 12, pp. 255–271. Altshuler L. L., Hendrick L. L., Cohen L. S. (1998). "Course of mood and anxiety disorders during pregnancy and the postpartum period." Journal of Clinical Psychiatry. Volume 59, pp. 29–33. England S. J., Ballard C., George S. (1994). Chronicity in postnatal depression. European Journal of Psychiatry. Volume 8, pp. 93–96. Fontaine K. R., Jones L. C. (1997). "Self-esteem, optimism and postpartum depression." Journal of Clinical Psychology. Volume 53, pp. 59–63. Hearn G., Iliff A. (1998). "Postnatal depression in the community." British Journal of General Practice. Volume 48, pp. 1064–6. McClarey M., Stokoe, B. (1995). "A multi-disciplinary approach to postnatal depression." Professional. Volume 68, pp. 141–143. Walsh, Lynne. (2009). Depression Care across the Lifespan. John Wiley & Sons. Read More