Depression and anxiety
It is very natural for a new mom to experience a wide range of emotions. Four in five new moms will experience something called the Baby Blues. Symptoms include fatigue, sadness, tearfulness, poor concentration, and irritability. These symptoms can appear a few days after birth and last up to two weeks. One in five mothers will experience a perinatal mood disorder. These mood disorders occur when pregnancy/postpartum blues don’t go away. If these Baby Blues last longer than two weeks and you feel overwhelmed, seek help from your health care provider.
Pregnancy and Life with a New Baby is a handout that provides information to help recognize the signs and symptoms of depression or anxiety during pregnancy or postpartum.
Your family, partner and friends can help as well. Here are examples of what you can do, if you are a partner, family member or a friend:
- Listen and support her feelings.
- Be helpful and don’t judge.
- Encouraging her to seek help.
- Develop your relationship with the baby.
- Ask how you can help.
- Educating yourself about Perinatal Mood Disorders.
- Finding someone to talk to.
- Not taking anything personally.
Very rarely mothers can have postpartum psychosis. This is very serious for both the mother and baby. Some feelings that may be experienced are:
- Thoughts of harming yourself or the baby.
- Seeing or hearing things that aren’t there.
- Believing that someone or something is going to harm you and/or your baby.
- Feeling confused or out of touch with reality.
If you have any of these feelings it is very important to seek help right away.
This item was last modified on February 12, 2024