You Have To Be Happy For The Baby But What About Me?

Postpartum depression is defined as the presence of depressive symptoms in the postpartum period. It is a complex mix of physical, emotional and behavioural changes that happen in a woman after giving birth. There are many reasons that cause PPD like chemical changes involved after delivery, hormonal changes in the body, age at the time of pregnancy, lack of support from family members and so on.

You would be surprised to know that one out of every ten women will develop depressive symptoms after delivery.

In our country, mothers face a lot of emotional problems during early caregiving days. However, this problem is not addressed by the family at all. In most of the cases, they even don’t have an idea that these are signs of depression that require medical attention. During this time they experience severe mood swings, excessive crying, difficulty in handling the infant, insomnia or excessive sleeping, overeating or lack of appetite, and such depressive symptoms. Under extreme cases, they have the tendency to harm the young baby or themselves.

Birth of a child, a new member of the family is usually a time of happiness and joy for the entire family, but this becomes the opposite when the mother feels depressed after the delivery. Pregnancy and the delivery of a baby is not only a physiological or biological process but a psychological and emotional process as well.

In our conservative culture most of the times, we are unaware of the mother’s pain and mood swings. We start passing our own judgments, ascribe our own definitions and most of the times also prescribe own treatments.

There are many social and cultural factors for this postpartum depression. These could be poverty, lack of education, family problems, unsupportive partners, in-laws and parents, previous psychological disorders, etc. In India, the desire for a boy child in spite of having more than one girl child and the excessive pressure from society for the same is also a cause of depression among young mothers.

At this time, if they give birth to another girl child, this adversely affects the newborn child’s development too. At this point, I have a question. Who is responsible for all these emotional difficulties that a woman goes through?

You may have seen often among your friends, someone who was ambitious and a go-getter in school but gets married at the age of 18. All her dreams shatter and she is forced to bear children at an early age. She has to forego her studies for this and is forced into doing something that she is not at all prepared for, both mentally and physically. Who is responsible for her psychological distress?

There could be another case where a mother delivers a baby and reaches home to find her alcoholic husband, unsupportive in-laws and an atmosphere of hostility at home? Who will then look after her and her postpartum emotional needs?

Society, please be aware of the postpartum depression. Do extend all the medical, emotional and psychological care to the mother.

Hey people, it is all normal, but we have to make this normal. That’s our duty.

Image via Pixabay

Shadhiya

Learn More