The birth of a new baby is an exciting and happy event. Although birth, which creates a great change in a woman’s life, is perceived as a beautiful process, it also constitutes the beginning of a physiologically and psychologically challenging process.
The mother, who leaves the hospital with her baby in her arms after the birth, will experience this happiness as well as the feelings of worry, anxiety and not knowing what to do with the awareness of carrying all the responsibility of this creature. Hormonal changes after birth not only affect this process physiologically, but also increase some sensitivities psychologically. In addition to trying to adapt to all the changes in the mother’s postpartum body, having the feeling of being an adequate mother to take care of her baby, to raise her healthy, to respond to her needs when she cries, will constitute the beginning of the mother’s entering a psychologically sensitive period.
This situation, called postpartum sadness, is a normal process for the mother. She will no longer be able to do some of the things she was able to do before she got pregnant, and she will not be able to devote as much time to herself as before. She has to schedule almost all of her time to meet her baby’s needs. Within 10-15 days, the mother and baby were able to adapt to each other. The mother is now in a process where she can breastfeed her baby, put him to sleep and meet his other needs. She is conscious that she is a mother and that she has a very beautiful being. Knowing that the mother will enter this process during pregnancy will help her get through this period more easily after birth. The situation has become different and reached a dimension that needs to be treated in people who cannot get over this period of sadness and experience these symptoms for a longer period of time.
Postpartum depression can occur within two or four weeks of birth. If it is an unplanned pregnancy, that is, if she is not emotionally ready to be a mother, if there is no spousal support, if there is a problematic marriage before pregnancy, if the person has had depression before, if there is a history of depression in the family, if psycho-social support cannot be provided, a risky pregnancy period If a negative life event has been experienced during pregnancy or after birth (loss of job, loss of money, death, etc.), the probability of having postpartum depression increases.
The mother who has postpartum depression is constantly experiencing intense distress during the day, her concerns have increased in the communication she has established with her baby, she may not be able to look at or even touch her baby from time to time, she may have constant crying spells, her appetite may decrease, the thought that she cannot be a good mother may intensify, and feelings of hopelessness dominate in this regard. . She may show feelings of inadequacy related to motherhood and have fears about babysitting. Constant fatigue and weakness, increase or decrease in sleep can be seen. There may be feelings of guilt about the inability to care for the baby. She can even make sentences expressing that she is tired of life and wants to die.
In this process, the mother should definitely get expert support. Purpose of treatment; to help the person define the feeling of motherhood, to reveal the difficulties that may be encountered in motherhood, to help him develop his skills to cope with these difficulties, to enable him to express all the emotions he has experienced clearly. In cases of intense suicidal thoughts and the mother’s inability to take care of the baby and herself, drug support may be required. The support of spouses and family members is also very important during this period. The relationship established with the mother is very important in the physical and mental development of the baby from birth. The development of the baby, who cannot breastfeed and cannot receive the necessary love and affection from her mother, cannot be expected to be very healthy. For this reason, it should be ensured that the mother who has postpartum depression has an emotion that can take care of her baby and give her love as soon as possible. In postpartum psychosis, the mother may completely reject the baby and attempt to kill it. She can express that she hears voices that no one else hears. In this case, it should be ensured that he receives the necessary treatment by getting support from a psychiatrist immediately.
