How is postpartum depression manifested? Key signs and first symptoms

Many new mothers are susceptible to postmortem depression. This is a serious disease, the consequences of which can be very deplorable. That is why it is important to consider the woman's first signs and symptoms of depressive disorder after delivery, to help her cope with this pathological condition as quickly as possible in order to protect her and her newborn baby, because this is not a whim and not a moment's mood, but rather a serious mental disorder. In this article we will describe how to recognize postpartum depression in a woman who has become a mother and how to help in this situation.

Depressive disorder belongs to the group of affective disorders, that is, psychiatrists are classified as mood disorders. According to statistics, the disorder after childbirth is expressed in about 18% of women, but the corresponding diagnosis in the medical card receives no more than 3%. As a rule, these three percent include severe cases that simply could not be left without the intervention of a doctor. For the majority of those who have given birth, depression can have a mild or moderate course. According to some reports, such forms of mood disorders occur in more than 70% of puerperas.

The difficulties lie in the fact that in the primary medical unit they do not particularly attach importance to the likely signs of depression, attributing it to fatigue and moral exhaustion after childbirth. Yes, and women themselves do not like too much to contact a psychiatrist or psychotherapist to discuss with them the difficulties that have arisen. As a result, sometimes depression progresses and becomes noticeable even when its consequences are obvious - divorce, family breakdown, deterioration of a woman’s relations with relatives and friends, refusal to have contact with them, development of psychopathic reactions, including suicide and murder of one’s own children.

Such cases are occasionally reported in the news, but at the same time indicate that the cause of death of a woman or her cruel deed towards a child is lack of money, quarrels with her husband, etc. Protecting your own child is the strongest of instincts in nature. It is only a mentally unhealthy woman who can break it. therefore in 99% of these tragedies, experts see a manifestation of postpartum depression, started, untreated in time, evolved into a persistent personality disorder.

Another reason for which it is necessary to identify and treat postpartum depressive disorders as soon as possible is that the child is more likely to develop an early mental disorder if the mother has depressive disorders.

The reasons why postpartum depression develops are multifaceted. Postnatal depression (this is its official name for ICD) occurs in women, and sometimes in men, but among women, it manifests itself more often and brighter.

The psyche of the newly-minted mother is influenced by hormonal factors, because childbirth is always associated with global hormonal changes.

Factors provocateurs include social causes, and especially the psyche and personality, as well as economic and biological factors. The most common causes include:

• a significant difference between reality and expectations (caring for a baby was difficult);
• poor health, postpartum complications;
• the inability to quickly get rid of excess weight, return to normal forms, a sense of inferiority, loss of feminine charm;
• problems with lactation, guilt for the fact that there is little milk or unwillingness to breastfeed;
• features of the psyche - disposition to mental disorders;
• the puerpera is too young - up to 19 years;
• "Age" mothers after 38 years;
• severe debilitating childbirth;

• the presence of episodes of depression in the period of carrying a child;
• lack of close contact with the spouse, lack of help from him;
• fear for a career downfall;
• financial dependence or shortage of funds;
• poor housing conditions;
• internal conflict of the mother (the discrepancy between the real behavior and the ideas about the ideal mother that the woman had in advance);
• immaturity of the puerperal, her lack of independence and indecision, phlegmatic or melancholic temperament;
• suspiciousness, touchiness and guilt complex.

Depressive disorders can also manifest themselves in direct connection with childbirth and pregnancy, when the child is undesired, for example.

Depression manifests itself in different ways. Most often, symptoms start at 1-4 months after delivery. In some cases, the first signs of disorder may appear as early as the second day after the birth of the child. More rarely, the violation becomes noticeable in the period from 6 to 12 months.

Sometimes it is difficult for both the woman and her family to set exact dates, because the first symptoms may be subtle, they may not be given due importance. How long the depression will last depends on how the woman, her relatives and the doctors will react to it. If the treatment is correct and timely, it will be possible to cope with a depressive disorder in a couple of months. If treatment is not initiated, the timing may increase significantly.

You should not blame any fluctuations in the mood of the young mother for depression, because in the first few days, due to fatigue, pain, hormonal adjustment, the mood may indeed be unstable. This condition in Western psychiatry has received the name “postpartum blues”, and domestic psychiatrists call it “sadness of pregnant women”. These conditions are not painful, pass quickly and have no relation to depressive disorders.

First of all, all signs of depression will persist and recur day by day. This is what should be on the alert of loved ones. The most active symptoms will have a manifestation in the morning, in the morning. By evening, the woman is changing somewhat in a positive way.

The common (clinical, classical, traditional, depressive triad) is usually attributed to the following symptoms:

• bad mood;
• the inability to enjoy everything that gave pleasure earlier, lack of interest in something;
• motor, emotional slowness and some inhibition.

A bad mood is negative thoughts for most of the day for at least two weeks. Tosca, laconic speech, slowness of speech, lethargy are also manifestations of a bad mood.

A woman ceases to be interested in new, old and even necessary, she ceases to rejoice even when good events happen.The newly-minted mother quickly gets tired, her movements are slowed down, the reactions are weak, it is difficult for her to concentrate and remember something, she is extremely dispersed.

Additional signs include a large list of symptoms:

• moral destruction of oneself, devaluation of one’s own merits and achievements, fall in self-esteem;
• a strong sense of guilt, which almost always has no basis;
• pathological indecision, the inability to make a simple decision at the household level (what to cook, where to go);
• thought processes slow down, a woman hardly digests events, interprets them;
• pessimistic thoughts are present - the puerperal does not see positive prospects, believes that everything that happens will necessarily lead to trouble and will end in a bad way;
• sleep disorders - insomnia or drowsiness;
• lack of appetite or excessive appetite, in which a woman is constantly trying to chew something;
• suicidal thoughts and inclinations.

Anxiety levels are increased in 90% of puerperas with post-natal depression.

At first, the symptoms are exclusively such, and not all of them can be combined in one person. Gradually, psychosomatic attitudes become physical and the woman begins to feel very specific discomfort. What complaints in this case may appear in the newly-made mother:

• weight gain or weight loss;
• persistent problems with the bowels - constipation or diarrhea, as well as a combination of diarrhea and constipation;
• decreased libido or its absence;
• idiopathic (causeless from the point of view of doctors) pain in the stomach, in the heart and in any other organ;
• heart palpitations and blood pressure instability;
• dry skin, brittle nails, hair loss.

What else is recommended to pay attention to family and friends? First of all on carelessness - a woman begins to carelessly treat her household duties, ceases to take care of herself, neglects the rules of hygiene. She becomes alienated, moves away from communication with people, even the closest.

Love for children becomes less, its manifestations are increasingly stingy. A woman does not demonstrate emotionality, more and more often she is “not care”. Breastfeeding causes a negative - a woman complains, complains that she does not want to, that she is hurt, unpleasant.

One of the brightest signs of postnatal depression is considered to be the extreme anxiety of the mother for the health and life of the baby. Unreasonably, she begins to argue that the doctors are hiding something, do not see the disease in the baby, which, according to her, is completely obvious. She reads medical books, articles, carries a child for different doctors. This is how the phobic side of postnatal affective spectrum disorder manifests itself.

In a state of psychosis, a young mother can be aggressive, her mind is often confused, she can begin to wander, constantly repeat the same phrases, make the same gestures, deny the obvious.

For the symptoms and treatment of postpartum depression, see the following video.