PPD is Seldom Destructive

According to study results released by the Women and Teen Girls’ Mood and Hormone Clinic and the Center for Women’s Mental Health, about 85% of women experience some mood changes in the year after giving birth. In about 15% of those women, Postpartum Depression also known as Post Natal Depression may be diagnosed. Very rarely, 1 or 2 in 1000 women may develop Postpartum Psychosis that usually shows itself in the first 2 to 4 days after the child is born.

• …postpartum psychosis represents an episode of bipolar illness; the symptoms of puerperal psychosis most closely resemble those of a rapidly evolving manic (or mixed) episode. The earliest signs are restlessness, irritability, and insomnia. Women with this disorder exhibit a rapidly shifting depressed or elated mood, disorientation or confusion, and erratic or disorganized behavior. Delusional beliefs are common and often center on the infant. Auditory hallucinations that instruct the mother to harm herself or her infant may also occur. Risk for infanticide, as well as suicide, is significant in this population, says the Center for Women’s Mental Health.

That risk of harm may be a lot lower than once thought. A report in the Toronto Star quotes experts from the Mood and Hormone Clinic as saying that fewer than 4% of women who are diagnosed with Postpartum Psychosis actually harm their children. That said, there is a telling quote from Louann Brizendine, author of The Female Brain that should tell people who know the new mothers in their lives are severely depressed to stay close, involve medical and social services:

• Brizendine says that even if new parents aren’t getting along, it’s better if a vulnerable woman isn’t living alone with very young children….”Being alone with small children is not easy for any woman. For women who are depressed, it’s like asking a person with a broken leg to walk miles without a crutch.”