How long can postpartum depression last?

Postpartum depression, how long does it last? One study explains how long feelings of sadness, baby blues and depression can last after childbirth.

Postpartum depression , how long does it last? Some researchers have decided to answer a question that is dear to many new mothers. The facets of this sadness that can lead to depression or postpartum psychosis (in the most serious cases and, fortunately, less rare) are infinite, because they are subjective and linked to hormonal and psychological variations that are difficult to predict. Researchers from the National Institutes of Health have revealed that forms of depression and post-partum baby blues can even reach the child's three years : in practice, a mother suffering from this psychological malaise can experience it on her skin, on varying levels, up to three years after giving birth. Not only that: this malaise can also be exacerbated by the changes of the season and become winter blues , a phenomenon that can also affect children and teenagers.

Postpartum depression, how long does it last according to science

The study by researchers from the National Institutes of Health "Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development" took into account the experience of 5,000 women and found that 1 in 4 experienced feelings related to the sphere of depression within three years from the date of birth. Many of the women involved, despite not having had any aftermath for that long, still felt symptoms soon after their baby was born.

Among the causes of postpartum depression or a baby blues that last longer over time, researchers have identified for example gestational diabetes : those who suffered from it during pregnancy in the three years following childbirth suffered most from these states of widespread sadness and anxiety.

The study stems from the need to help new mothers not only a few months after giving birth - the American Academy of Pediatrics, for example, recommends physical and psychological screening at one, two, four and six months after birth - but also within two years subsequent. One of the authors of the research, Dr. Diane Putnick, said that "evaluating the mother's mental and physical health even in the long term is an extra guarantee, given the results of the study". Therefore, it is not enough to check the status of the mother's mental well-being a few months after giving birth, because the hormonal and psychological effects of post-partum depression can have a much more intrusive shock wave.

Going into crisis after the birth of a baby is more than normal: hormonal disruption, family settlements, the imposition of a new routine do not help the mother to take center stage, often focused on the early stages of breastfeeding or on following the baby's sleep / wake rhythms without being overwhelmed.

However, the research on the duration of postpartum depression and its aftermath turns the spotlight on the need to follow new mothers for a long time, not only with the gynecological visit of the order one month after the birth but also with meetings more aimed at her psychological well-being. , whose balance is essential to his serenity, the child and the whole family.

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