Last Updated on 22 July 2024 by Brisbane Livewell Clinic
Many women report experiencing postpartum depression and anxiety, but these symptoms are transient and relatively mild for most. However, 10-15% of women experience mood disturbances such as Postpartum Depression (PPD) (1) and Postpartum Anxiety (PPD-A). The neuroplastic changes within the maternal brain can provide insight into why these disorders occur. Brain plasticity is adaptive, supporting the transition to parenthood, but may also increase a woman’s neural vulnerability to negative experiences such as exposure to severe stress. (2) Essentially, adaptive changes can become maladaptive, and it’s important to recognise the early warning signs.
Emotional well-being after giving birth is of the utmost importance, so here are some signs and symptoms to recognise
Naturally, it’s easy to blame depressive symptoms on sleep deprivation in those first few months, such as low mood, sleep disturbance, change in appetite, poor concentration, and irritability. Women with PPD may also experience guilt about their inability to look after their new baby (1), and postnatal depression is common in mothers of babies with infantile colic (3) (4) or infants with difficult temperaments when caregiving becomes more challenging and may also trigger anxiety.
Postpartum anxiety may be a standalone diagnosis, as one study found that not all anxious mothers were depressed. (5) Anxiety can be considered healthy, adaptive and even necessary for new mothers as caregivers. At the extreme, anxiety can become detrimental to maternal caregiving and child development. (6) Women with PPD-A feel restless, unable to make decisions, fatigued, angry, overwhelmed, and have difficulty sleeping. They may experience excessive worries that focus on the baby’s well-being, feel disconnected, and avoid social situations. (6)
Nurturing the Nurturer
- Seeking help early on is important to help to reduce the impact of PPD and PPD-A on home life.
- Healing from birth trauma – seeking counselling or finding a support group could be the key to letting go of any negative feelings.
- Stress management – reducing stress levels in mothers may reverse the negative impact of stress exposure on the maternal brain. (2) Tools to better deal with stress may come in the form of extra sleep, self-care rituals like massage or going for short walks – ultimately, whatever feels manageable
- Breathing practice – deep breathing may benefit subclinically anxious women, with this simple practice shown to improve social bonding between mother and child in individuals with high levels of stress and anxiety (6)
- Wholesome nutrition – never underestimate the power of a whole foods diet for mental health and wellbeing! Perfect foods for new Mums include complex carbohydrates in the form of oats and root vegetables, quality protein sources including grass-fed meat, poultry, fish, tofu and legumes, healthy fats like nuts, seeds and avocado, fruit as a convenient snack, smoothies for hydration and slow-cooked meals that can be prepared ahead of time.
Supplement Support
A little ‘catch-up’ nutrition can go a long way for new Mums since the tendency for deficiencies increases due to the demands of pregnancy and breastfeeding. Appropriately prescribed supplementation shown to aid with PPD can include:
- Vitamin D – studies suggest that low levels during pregnancy may be a biomarker for PPD (7)
- Zinc – lower zinc levels may predict PPD, and a correlation between the severity of depressive symptoms and decreased zinc three days after giving birth has been noted in PPD patients (7)
Mum’s the Word
If you or a loved one appear to be experiencing symptoms of depression or anxiety during new motherhood, there is no need to suffer in silence. Asking for help is the first step. Naturopathic care will always serve you best by offering tailored advice and acknowledging that other forms of support are also vital. Mental and emotional resilience doesn’t always come naturally – there is a reason why the expression ‘it takes a village’ describes all the ways new mothers can be supported. Sometimes talking about the issues is enough to begin to resolve them – so seek out your tribe, the people who help families to live well.
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