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Pregnant and Depressed?
Find the Support You Need
By Heather Johnson Durocher
"Most people view this as some sort of weakness or just do not believe it at all," says Rachel. "But I am a much better nurse because of this, because I really pay attention to patients who have histories of depression or signs of it in the hospital."
Experts suggest watching for the following symptoms of depression:
- Insomnia or excessive sleep;
- Changes in energy (low energy levels, feeling unmotivated);
- Feelings of inadequacy, guilt, hopelessness;
- Inability to take pleasure in things that are normally pleasurable;
- Suicidal thoughts;
- Difficulty making decisions;
- Fear of being left alone;
- Desire to run away;
- Panic attacks;
- Feeling that life is out of control;
- Eating disturbances (other than typical morning sickness).
"When these persist consistently, for two weeks or longer, that's when we begin to consider a diagnosis of mood disorder or major depression," Dr. Howard notes.
Women of childbearing age are at a high risk of suffering from depression, according to Dr. Howard. While it's not clear why this is, Dr. Howard says women at this time in their life are more likely to experience their first episode of depression. In general, women are twice as likely to become depressed at any time in their life compared to men, she notes.
"At least for a sub-group of women, there seems to be a connection between hormonal fluctuations and mood states," Dr. Howard explains.
The risk increases, Dr. Howard adds, if they've experienced depression prior to getting pregnant or they have a family history of depression. In addition, "there's some suggestion that women with an unwanted pregnancy or women with very poor social support are at higher risk for developing depression."
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