Maternal mental health poses a huge human, social and economic burden to women their infants, their families and society and constitute a major public health challege. (Mental illness in one family member can affect the intire family). During Pregnacy and after delivery many women go through various emotions issues which can lead to mental health illness such as anxiety, post partum depression, and psychosis just to name a few. These can lead to other illnesses such as highblood pressure, pre-eclampia early and difficult delivery which will cause the baby to be premature or have a low birth weight for its age. Infants of chronically depressed mothers show less socialbility with strangers, fewer facial expressions, smiles less, cry more and are more irritable than infants of normal mothers. (World Health Organization, Feb. 2008)
When I read information on this topic, it reminded me of a women that I know personally that stayed depressed throughout her pregnancy. As a result, she gave birth to a depressed baby. The little boy, never smiled, he never showed any facial expressions, basically he exibited the same behaviors stated in the article. Fortunately, he lived with his grandparents, who worked tiredlessly to help him to overcome the depression, he is now the most bubblely child around. He laughs and plays with other children. It is wonderful to see.
Worldwide, mental illness is the fourth leading cause of disability and the tenth leading cause of death. Forty percent of all countries have no mental health policies and one in four countries have no mental health legislation whatsoever to protect the civil rights of the mentally ill. Which means there is no help for women with postpartum depression. (Stone, K. 2011)
Often it is said that there is not enough support for mental illness in this country, and there is not, however when we look at the support world wide. It is hard to complain.
References:
World Health Organization, The Issue, Feb. 2008, (Maternal Mental Health and Child Health and Development) http://www.who.int/mental_health
Stone, K. July 2011, Mental Health Matters to New Mothers Across the Globe. http://postpartumprogress.com
Martha, you have mentioned post-partum depression, which is a very critical factor that can negatively impact the healthy development of children. I remember undergoing some of these symptoms after I gave birth to my first baby; fortunately, it did not last for more than 10 days. Although, I was away from home, and did not have my family around, I was blessed to have my husband’s care. A mother, who finds it overwhelming to take care of her baby for a long period of time, tends to emotionally neglect or mistreat her child (Berger, 2009). Naturally, a significant reinforcement for the mother would be the father, whose crucial part is to provide the baby with the appropriate attention and give adequate support for the mother by helping her overcome her challenges. In the case of his absence, it is vital to seek support from the mother’s entourage to help her and her baby get through it; otherwise it will have long-term impact on the baby. Thank you for sharing this important information.
ReplyDeleteAttitudes about depression are often expressed by phrases such as "think happy thoughts", "it is all in your mind", and "it's just PMS." I can say from experience that depression is not "all in your mind" and, though PMS can cause depression in some, every female who is depressed are not all suffering from PMS, and thinking "happy thoughts" does NOT help a person who is depressed. I have clinical depression and the only thing that helps me is medication, and I still have "off" days. I have a very supportive family who, when I had stopped taking my medicine, spoke up and said "Mom, get back on your meds!" My family is actually the only people who can tell when I am having an "off" day because I have learned to cover my depression when I am out in public. The only symptom that I show when in public is that I become very quiet. Luckily for me, when I am around children at work I am able to push my depression to the back of my mind and treat them as I always do.
ReplyDelete