Psychology: Postpartum Depression
ryamar1Running Head: Post-Partum 1
Postpartum depression 2
Postpartum depression
Student’s Name
Institutional Affiliation
Postpartum depression
The birth of a child brings with it feelings of joy and happiness to the family and relatives but more so the mother. It may also result to depression after the birth the newborn. This leads to a condition referred to as postpartum depression. Postpartum depression describes the range of emotions, physical and behavioral changes that mothers experience after the birth of the baby. These feelings may include hopelessness, isolation, worthlessness and lack of interest in the baby which are harmful to both the mother and the baby as it may result to harming the baby (Dobson, 2000). This condition is different from the baby blues that normally last for a few days after the birth of the baby. Baby blues on the other hand is characterized by sad feelings, anxiousness, mood swings and loss of appetite.
So, what causes this disorder among women? Melinda(2013) observes that postpartum depression is caused by the changes in the levels of hormones of women during pregnancy. During the period of pregnancy, there is an increase in the levels of estrogen and progesterone. After delivery, there is a sudden reduction in the levels of the hormones including thyroid which causes the brain to develop feelings of hopelessness and sadness.She adds that a woman who has experienced a miscarriage is likely to develop the disorder. The factors that are likely to cause the disorder among pregnant women are poor support from family, friends and relatives, giving birth to a sickly baby, stress or prior experience of depression in ones’ life. Moreover, the chances of post-partum depression are increased by the occurrence of the bipolar disorder among the woman’s family members.
The symptoms of the disorder include losing interest in the activities that the individual loved to do, insomnia, inability to concentrate, loss of appetite that may eventually lead to weight loss and feeling hopeless. In addition, the mother has hallucinations that make her to hear or see things that are not present. These may also be compounded with the thoughts of suicide or killing the baby.
In turn, the disorder has a ripple effect to the emotion and physical behavior of the mother. Her behavior normally changes for the worse. The mother develops weak and negative emotions that may cause her to harm herself or her child. Physically, she becomes less active with little or no interest in the activities that once were her hobby. The woman also becomes weaker due to poor feeding habits as a result of loss of appetite. Subsequently, she becomes detached from her partner and her friends. Dobson (2000) observes that those who do not recognize the disorder may take the attitude to be a negative one thus harming the relationship that they had with the woman. In addition, the mother losses interest in the baby and this may lead to the development of negative feelings that harm the mother child bonding process. The effects of the postpartum are more serious if not treated. It may lead to the death of the mother and the child due to the thoughts of suicide.
In order to avert the effect of the disorder, the mothers who exhibit the symptoms of the disorder ought to be given medical treatment. The common methods that are used to treat the disorder are using antidepressants and counseling the mother. Melinda (2013) says that those with the lighter from of the disorder are better off with counseling alone while those who are burdened with the disorder ought to be given the antidepressants. However, the use of antidepressants can affect the baby through the breast milk and therefore Lyness(2010) recommends counseling. The process of counseling involves instilling positive thoughts that are meant to counter the effect of the reduced levels of hormones in the mother’s body.
During therapy, the women are emphasized to take focus on things that they would like to do in the day such as taking a walk. The importance of reading inspirational books is also highlighted during these sessions. The books lift up the moods and lighten the emotions of the women. In addition, the mother is urged to focus on activities that she once loved so as to bring back her old moods.
Lyness(2010) recommends the use of exercise for the women who are suffering from the disorder. This could be in the form of yoga and joking. Exercise as she notes, serves as a distraction of thoughts that face the woman by engaging her mind in physical activities. In addition, it enhances the appetite levels and reduces stress. She stresses that the women who face the disorder ought to be with their friends and relatives. This will help ease the burden that she has. She underscores the importance of sleep and rest to the individual as it is crucial in calming the mind. Lyness(2010) concludes by noting that patience and optimism are very important in the road to recovery of the woman.
The benefit of helping the women with this disorder is that they will be able to lead normal livesas before and with strengthen the bond betweenthe mother and the child. The relationship of the woman and the partner will also be enhanced as a result of positivity in the life of the woman. The treatment method is stated in the advocacy plan below. ( that transition is a little rough and it is our intended purpose to assist the individuals in our area with POST PART Depression. The paper can be more stated as the who, what, when, were , why (its important to childhood development and the bonding and attachement the mother and child under go. ( poor bonding causes what kinds of issue’s later on in life could be in their so that our desired outcome is to do the below
Outcomes In our advocacy plan, we hope to help women who are suffering with postpartum depression. By helping them emotionally and physically, we will assist them in getting back on track with their lives and learn how to manage any feelings of depression that might emergency
Advocacy Plan
The first step in our plan will be to find women who have postpartum depression. We want to assist women to help them alleviate the symptoms of postpartum depression. Since a great deal of women who have it don’t know about it until it’s been going on for a while, it is critical for us to find and help women before it gets to the point that they will need extra care. We will begin our action plan January 1, 2014. For our plan we will set up a safe quiet place for women to get treatment which will be paid for through ongoing grants and federal funding. This is not something we will be able to get money for once and be done with; we will need continuing fundraising and grants written. Women who are already seeing a doctor can ask for a referral to the facility, or can see one of the on-site doctors for an evaluation. This evaluation would help the doctors determine what type of treatment the patient needs and determine and course of treatment. In this facility we will give women who are experience postpartum depression access to the therapy they need so they can talk about how they are feeling each time they come in and not be judged. We will have a councilor as well on site to discuss progress with the women on their emotional status. Meditation and exercise will also be offered at the building so the women can relieve stress and relax. Medication will also be obtainable through doctors on site when needed. Women who are prescribed medication though will have to check in weekly for check-ups. This is to ensure everything is going smoothly and they aren’t having any unexpected changes while on the medication. We will need to talk to the city for land, but ultimately the people involved in this project will be the families of the women who are ill and need medical help. The women cannot be expected to do this on their own; they will need emotional support from their family and friends while undergoing treatment. While doing so, family members can come be with the women in treatment and help her whenever possible. The end result we hope to accomplish by doing this is to assist women who are suffering from postpartum depression, whether it be the early stages or late stages, and help them be able to have a positive outlook on life. We want them to go through their day to day routine with no symptoms of depression, and be happy with themselves and experience the joy of their new baby
Date to begin |
Objective |
Action |
Desired result |
Resources needed |
Date of completion |
January 1, 2014 |
To help women suffering from post-partum. |
Build a center and have counseling and therapy available |
To create a place for women to get the help they need. |
People -Money -Building |
June 1, 2015 |
Helping Women Suffering From Post-Partum Outcome: To help women suffering from post-partum be able to find coping mechanisms and relaxation techniques in the Coos County area |
To build this structure and have the medical staff on site that we need, it is going to take a lot of money. This will be done through grants and fundraisers. We will also need a location for the building. With the amount of medical staff needed, we might want to use land near the hospital. The building could also be a large wing added onto the medical center or perhaps an unused area of the hospital. There are several options for the placement of the facility. We will also need an exercise and relaxation trainer to help the women on a daily basis. The community may get involved with this project by helping to build the center and by volunteering their various expertise. The center will need doctors, nurse practitioners, physical therapists, and other experts as well. The expected completion date for the center will be June 1, 2015.
Assessing Your Advocacy Plan The biggest problem we’re going to run into is not having enough money. Even with ongoing grants and fundraising, we’re not entirely sure we will have enough to build the structure and equip it with medical staff, a full gym, and a relaxation room. A way to fix this though would be to make it accessible to anyone for a fee. They would pay at the front desk, and have access to the gym and relaxation rooms. A women who is there for postpartum depression however would be on a list and, since it would be a medical visit, would be covered by her insurance. She would have full access to everything, including the medical personnel on site for prescriptions, therapy, and counseling. This way the center would be bringing in some money to help pay off the debt it incurred from its creation. The major benefit the center will have will be that it is not only going to affect the women who attend, but also the community. The center will help women with their depression, and by doing so will strengthen the community because there will be healthier, more emotionally happy people in the community. It will also help the area by creating jobs and volunteer opportunities for the people in the area.
References
Dobson, V. 2000.The Science of Infanticide and Mental Illness. Psychology, Public Policy and Law 6 (4): 1098–1112.
Lyness, D. 2010. Postpartum disorder. Retrieved from http://drmaryalm.wordpress.com/2012/07/18/how-postpartum-depression-affects-your baby/
Melinda, S.2013. Self-Help for Postpartum. Retrieved from http://kidshealth.org/parent/pregnancy_newborn/communicating/bonding.html