Prenatal Depression – Causes, Symptoms And Treatment

6 min read

Written by Editorial Team

Editorial Team

prenatal depression

In spite of the fact that pregnancy is regularly depicted as a period of incredible satisfaction, that is not the truth for all ladies. No less than one in ten pregnant ladies experiences episodes of psychological issues. We have already discussed severe anxiety experienced by some women during pregnancy. Here, we discuss a type of clinical depression that affects some pregnant women known as prenatal depression or antenatal depression.

Being depressed in the course of pregnancy can also put the mother at a higher danger of postpartum depression. If the mother shows any of the symptoms of depression during pregnancy, it is significant to confirm and go for treatment because the baby desires a mother who’s healthy in both body and thoughts.

In This Article

7 Causes of Antenatal Depression

As we all know mood swings during pregnancy are quite common. But developing depression during pregnancy is another story.
The reasons for developing depression vary from person to person. Some of the reasons are:

1. Stressful Lifestyle

stressful life style

Pregnant women who are feeling low for a blend of reasons like finances, change of job, relocation, hectic lifestyles, etc. are much more prone to experiencing depression during pregnancy

2. Victims of Abuse

When the mother is unfortunate enough to be a sufferer of home abuse, there are more chances of experiencing severe depression in the course of pregnancy or after delivery. Be that as it may, it’s not uncommon that abusive behavior at home and psychological mistreatment increase when the woman is pregnant. It’s in this way vital for the well being of you and your child that you speak to somebody and seek help

3. Preceding Infertility or Miscarriage

When a woman finds it hard to get pregnant or has had a miscarriage(s), there are more chances of anxiety about the present pregnancy which eventually turns out to be prenatal depression. Women who have had unsuccessful fertility treatments earlier or have had one or more miscarriages do not fully recover emotionally or physically easily

4. Financial Worries

Family finance may be a challenge in most pregnancies. However, in case of heartfelt worry about managing finance once the child arrives, it can originate substantial strain

5. Hormones

Hormones straightforwardly influence the chemistry of the brain that controls feelings and inclination.

6. Physical Discomfort

physical discomfort

From morning sickness to pelvic torment, it’s surely understood that pregnancy is extreme on the mother’s body. Adjusting to these indications for quite a while can likewise take its toll on the psychological well-being of the mother

7. Preceding Complicated Pregnancy or Delivery

In the event that the mother beforehand had a complicated pregnancy or a troublesome or traumatic birth, she may feel more on edge this time around

What Happens If The Depression During Pregnancy Gets Overlooked As A Mood Swing?

Depression and tension may go undiagnosed because women frequently brush aside their feelings, mistaking them as moodiness that often pilots with pregnancy. These women will not bother for treatment thinking that it will disappear in the course of time.

However, research shows that untreated or undertreated depression can lead to preterm delivery, low birth weight of the baby, potentially gestational diabetes, and, in extreme cases, developmental delays in the child. What’s greater, despair may not end with the delivery.

The Symptoms Of Prenatal Depression

Symptoms Of Prenatal Depression

It’s usually difficult to diagnose prenatal depression due to the fact its signs replicate such a lot of “every day” pregnancy signs and symptoms like sleep, an urge for food modifications, loss of enthusiasm for sex, uneasiness, failure to think properly, and mood swings. What’s not typical is to sense constantly unhappiness, hopelessness, or a general loss of interest in life.

In case you’re now not certain whether your emotions are inside the normal range, it’s nice to speak about your signs and symptoms with your health practitioner to be safe. When you have any of the subsequent symptoms of depression for most of the day continuously for a period of two weeks, you must seek help and treatment:

  • Feelings of bitterness, distress, or hopelessness
  • Feeling tragic, or “unfilled” for the greater part of the day and for every day
  • Not able to enough rest, awakening in the night or dozing off excessively
  • Needing to eat all the time or no longing by any means
  • Loss of interest or pleasure in activities that you used to enjoy or a feeling that nothing is worth to be pleasant or fun any longer
  • Showing a tendency to withdraw from dear and near ones
  • Experiencing difficulty in the course of considering, thinking, or deciding
  • Repeated thoughts of suicide
  • Putting on the weight that surpasses your objective pregnancy weight pick up
  • Missing pre-birth visits or not taking after medicinal guidelines
  • Having frequent headaches, stomach issues, or different agonies (without any significant reasons) that don’t leave and feel extremely tired of without any particular reason

Am I At A Risk For Developing Prenatal Depression?

Risk For Developing Prenatal Depression

Prenatal depression can happen to any woman. But the odds are on the side of the women experiencing the following conditions:

Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS)

PMS is a disorder that includes a group of physical, mental, and behavioral indications fixing a lady’s menstrual cycle. Women experiencing ill effects of PMS are more prone to prenatal depression than normal women.

Genetic Reason

Depression is likely to keep running in families. In the event that anybody in the pregnant woman’s family has a background marked by depression or any other temperament issues, she is more prone to encountering it, as well.

Thyroid Condition

Levels of thyroid hormone, which control how your body uses and stores energy, can alter the course of pregnancy, which can bring about side effects of depression. A basic blood test can tell if a thyroid condition is bringing the issue.

Prehistory of Depression

Women with a history of depression or another mental illness have more chances to undergo prenatal depression.

Age

It is found that very young mothers are more susceptible to prenatal depression than the rightly-aged ones.

How Can Prenatal Depression Be Treated?

Counseling

The treatment of prenatal depression can be non-drug methods like psychotherapies or medication with antidepressants. Psychotherapy treatment includes:

Counseling

Counseling is recommended for moderate depression. A counselor will provide an opportunity to talk through the worries that are bothering the mother and allocate a prejudiced atmosphere where she can even cry and shout in case she wants to. Then the counselor will work with her that will help her see the issues from a different perspective

Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

CBT is a powerful treatment for depression. The basis of CBT is a presumption that a person’s temper is at once associated with his or her sequence of notions. Abnormal and negative thinking affects mood, the feeling of self, behavior, and even functions of the body. The aim of cognitive behavioral therapy is to assist the patient to learn to understand negative styles of thought, compare their validity, and substitute them with more healthy methods of thinking

Light Therapy

Light therapy, otherwise known as phototherapy, uses light to encourage healing. It’s used for treating depression. The doctor will find an apt time that works for the patient and make her sit in front of an artificial light source which is brighter than indoor light but not as bright as the direct sunlight

Let’s Conclude

For more severe depression the doctors will opt for antidepressant medications as the non-drug method does not work in severe antenatal depression. There are several anti-depressant medicines. There isn’t sufficient proof to figure out if antidepressants are totally safe to take in the course of pregnancy. Be that as it may, not taking medicine when you have to, can likewise harm mother and child.

In the event that your doctor suggests taking medicines, he will have precisely weighed up the dangers and advantages to you and your infant first. So follow his instruction for a happy pregnancy and issue-less delivery. Whatever method you follow, regular exercises, spending time with family and friends, finding more outdoor times, healthy eating and drinking habits, joining a support group, discussing your feelings open-mindedly, etc. will help in getting positive results as fast as possible.

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Editorial Team,

With a rich experience in pregnancy and parenting, our team of experts create insightful, well-curated, and easy-to-read content for our to-be-parents and parents at all stages of parenting.Read more.

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