Did you know that up to 10% of pregnant women in Australia suffer from depression in pregnancy?
I read this article late last year from the BBC and felt just awful. It explored the incidences of depression in both pregnant women and post-natal new mums. And more upsetting was the reluctance to speak up about it. More than 22% of these women in Britain suffering depression did not talk about their feelings and concerns honestly with their GP or obstetrician.
We are often reminded of the impact of having a baby and it is well written about in mother and parenting publications. The incidence of post-natal depression is spoken of openly. However, it is not often that you hear about the same terrible times had by some mums-to-be when still carrying their baby. This is called ante-natal depression.
This has really encouraged me to read up more and share with you some further reading.
So what defines ante-natal (or post-natal) depression? Because, as you may be aware, mood swings, anxieties and feelings of sadness are all a part of the most normal of pregnancies and early months of motherhood. It is however, not considered normal if these feelings (and many more – a very long list) become over whelming and last for more than 2 weeks. This is enough to interfere with your normal functioning life.
If this is you, please share your feelings – with your partner, friends, doctor or even online support groups. I hope you can find the time to read a little more. The PANDA site in particular had the most wonderful PDF handouts to download, of which I have linked one below.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-20265786
http://www.panda.org.au/
