Depression During Pregnancy and Its Consequences

Why is it so important to treat it?

Depression during pregnancy. What are its signs? First of all depression during pregnancy is associated with a severe stress. Its signs are sadness, changes in weight and appetite, troubled sleep, agitation, energy loss, difficulty concentrating, feelings of guilt and worthless, loss of interest in activities your liked before, thoughts of suicide and death. Feeling sad is normal in our life, but, if it is combined with the signs mentioned above, it will hardly pass without medical intervention. Moreover it can result in postpartum depression. Though most pregnant women realize negative after-effects of this mental state on new born babies and their relationship with loved ones, some of them are not informed well about consequences of depression during pregnancy which can affect development of the baby. According to some studies, depression during pregnancy can result in premature birth and low weight of the newborn baby. About 25% of women have depression during pregnancy. Pre-natal depression is a strong predictor of the postnatal depression, which makes a new mother unable to cope with her duties and bond with her baby. In order to prevent it, women should know symptoms of depression during pregnancy. It can help them to call in aid in time and treat this disorder successfully.

Depression during pregnancy: what are the most effective ways of its treatment?

There are plenty of effective ways to treat depression during pregnancy. First of all, such antidepressants as selective serotonin uptake inhibitors effectively reduce non-psychotic depression during pregnancy and they are relatively safe for the health of the expectant mother. Psychotherapy is one more effective way of treatment. There are two effective types of psychotherapy used for treatment of depression during pregnancy. The first type is cognitive behavioral therapy. It encourages the woman to develop more helpful and realistic thinking, increase pleasurable activities, resolve problems associated with her depression step by step and adjust to the forthcoming birth. The second type is interpersonal psychotherapy. It helps the woman suffering from depression during pregnancy to feel better and learn to resolve disputes with loved ones, learn to take care of herself and identify own needs, learn to rely less on the unreliable man and increase social support from reliable people surrounding her. Interpersonal psychotherapy also enables the woman to talk about both her positive and negative feelings about pregnancy. On the other hand, a lot of women are afraid to tell their relatives about depression during pregnancy. They do not want to go to the doctor and refuse to take antidepressants, because they are not sure in their absolute safety. If you are one of those women, interpersonal psychotherapy and cognitive behavioral therapy are an ideal way out of this situation. Suffering from depression during pregnancy, talk to the social worker or your consulting physician. You can also turn to the mental health center for help. In such a way, you can fence off the consequences and feel better before you child draws the first breath!