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Balance Women’s Health specializes in treating mood and anxiety disorders related to reproductive lifecycle transitions, including the peri and postpartum periods. We are dedicated to helping women who experience mood and anxiety disorders during and after pregnancy.
POSTPARTUM ANXIETY DISORDERS
Anxiety during and after pregnancy commonly occurs along side depression but may occur on its own. Most people know about postpartum depression but postpartum anxiety can take several forms and be just as debilitating for moms. Women may worry that they are not doing a good enough job in caring for the baby. These symptoms can worsen to the point of impairing a woman’s ability to care for herself or the baby.
Postpartum Anxiety Disorders Include:
- Generalized Anxiety Disorder
- Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
- Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
- Panic Disorder
MATERNAL MENTAL HEALTH
When a mother has postpartum depression, it makes a significant impact on her entire family. This illness is serious, so it is essential to quickly treat postpartum depression when it is recognized and diagnosed. Past treatment options could take weeks to work, causing new moms to wait several months for symptom relief. We now have Zulresso, a postpartum depression medication that begins working in only a matter of hours. We are one of the few doctors offering this highly effective IV infusion treatment to patients.
HOW CAN BALANCE HELP?
Balance physicians and advanced practice practitioners are dedicated to helping you determine the appropriate treatment that will help alleviate symptoms and help you feel better.
ZULRESSO (BREXANOLONE) INTRAVENOUS INFUSION FOR POSTPARTUM DEPRESSION.
In extreme cases, a woman may lose touch with reality, for example hearing voices or believing the baby would be better off dead. This is an emergency and requires immediate treatment and possible hospitalization.
Loneliness
So often, women who are emotionally struggling during pregnancy or after delivery feel alone and find it difficult to admit this to others. Many research studies have shown the benefits of support groups for women, both during pregnancy and after. It can be reassuring and healing to know others share similar worries, fears, doubts, and guilt. Participating in a support group may provide a safe, judgement-free place to talk about the realities of motherhood and its hardships.
Helping yourself
Self-care activities include:
- Drinking enough water
- Eating on a regular basis
- Skipping meals can contribute to mood swings and junk food has been associated with depression
- Exercising
- Asking for help
- Asking friends and family for support in practical ways (laundry, dishes, and chores) can go a long way in alleviating anxiety
Additional Resources
- Psychiatric Disorders in Pregnancy
- Postpartum Support International
- Center for Women’s Mental Health Harvard and Mass General Hospital
- Postpartum Progress – award winning blog by a survivor
- Beyond the Blues: Understanding and Treating Prenatal and Postpartum Depression & Anxiety (2010) by Pec Indman and Shoshana Bennett.
- Hyperemesis Education & Research
- Life With A Baby
- Women’s Mental Health: Reproductive Psychiatry Resource Information Center
- Mother To Baby
Please remember this information is intended for educational purposes only and should not substitute medical advice from a healthcare provider.