It's a great blessing when a new mom with postpartum depression (PPD) is fortunate enough to be diagnosed early by a knowledgeable medical practitioner or therapist. But without guidance, it isn't always clear where the boundary between normal baby blues and PPD lies. As with any other illness, the quicker that PPD is identified and treated, the faster the woman will recover. Postpartum Depression For Dummies can help you begin the process of determining what’s going on with you and give you a better idea of where you fall so that you can get yourself into proper treatment right away. The book covers all aspects of PPD, from its history and its origins to its effects on women and their families to the wide variety of treatments available—including conventional Western medicine, psychological therapy, alternative medical treatments, and self-care measures. Postpartum Depression For Dummies reveals: Why some doctors may be hush-hush about PPD How to distinguish between pregnancy hormone changes, "baby blues," and PPD The difficulties of getting a proper diagnosis The role and importance of a therapist The benefits of medication for depression Alternative treatments with a successful track record How to find the right balance of psychological, medical, and alternative treatment Ways you can help foster recovery The nutrition you need to care for yourself properly How to help your partner help you Postpartum Depression For Dummies also provides the additional resources you need—web sites, organizations, and further reading—to help avoid the unnecessary suffering caused by undiagnosed and untreated PPD and survive and thrive as a new mom.

“I thought I was the only one...” After she gave birth to a bouncing baby girl, Sandra Poulin felt like crying. And she did—for months. But they weren’t happy tears—Sandra felt worthless, could hardly sleep, and had thoughts of death. Like too many mothers around the world, Sandra had no idea that this common but baffling condition had a name: Postpartum Depression... “Shouldn’t this be the happiest time of my life?” What kind of mother, some might wonder, could feel depressed after having been so richly blessed with a baby? The answer: every kind, women from all walks of life, from all over the world, younger and older. And here, in a unique collection, are their stories of battles with PPD, with intimate details about the symptoms, the struggles, and the strategies that helped them emerge victorious. Written by mothers, for mothers, this collection is an uplifting, enlightening—and perhaps even lifesaving—book.

This 2019 edition of Beyond the Blues contains the most current pregnancy and postpartum resources for prevention and treatment of mental health challenges for all parents. Updated information and research about medications, as well as complementary and alternative options are included. Direct and compassionate, it is required reading for those suffering before or after the baby is born and for all professionals working with them. “An indispensable guide to understanding and treating prenatal and postpartum depression. This book is a gift not only to healthcare providers but also to family and friends of mothers suffering from these devastating perinatal mood disorders.” —Cheryl Tatano Beck, DNSc, CNM, FAAN Professor, University of Connecticut, School of Nursing Coauthor of Postpartum Depression Screening Scale “In Beyond the Blues, Bennett and Indman offer a compact yet surprisingly comprehensive manual on prenatal and postpartum depression. Readable and practical, they systematically address screening and assessment, finding a therapist, myths about nursing and bonding, and treatment. Interesting and helpful are suggestions for family and friends. For health professionals, there is detailed diagnostic and treatment information. Beyond the Blues is a quick read with an easy-to-handle format. Recommended for consumer health and health sciences collections.” —Library Journal “This book will be of great help for both women and their health care providers, providing information on all aspects of depression in pregnancy and in the post-postpartum, including safety/risk of medication therapy.” —Adrienne Einarson RN Assistant Director, The Motherisk Program, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Canada “Take prenatal vitamins for the baby, but for the long-term health of the mother, this is a must read for both her and her doctor.” —Timothy A. Leach, M.D., F.A.C.O.G. OB/GYN, San Ramon Regional Medical Center, John Muir Medical Center

Written by a pioneer and continuing advocate for perinatal health, this book remains remains an enduring reference for any therapist working with pregnant or postpartum women and their families suffering from perinatal mood and anxiety disorders.This Classic Edition includes a new preface by Hilary Waller that reflects on changes in the field since the book’s first publication. Using a blend of professional objectivity, evidence-based research, and personal, straight-forward suggestions gathered from years of experience, this book brings the reader into the private world of therapy with the postpartum woman. Based on psychodynamic and cognitive-behavioral theories, and on D.W. Winnicott's ‘good-enough mother’ and the ‘holding environment’, the book is written by a therapist who has specialized in the treatment of postpartum depression for over 30 years. Chapters address diagnosis, medication, depression, psychosis, suicidal thoughts, bonding, as well as finding meaning and the power to heal during recovery. Bringing further attention to under recognized illnesses which plague mothers and cloud the childbirth experience, this Classic Edition serves as an accessible companion tool for clinicians and the women they treat.

For many women, having a baby delivers all the profound joy they anticipated and brings happiness beyond description. For women who experience depression after the birth of a baby, this joy can seem elusive. Instead, women with postpartum depression (PPD) are often gripped with feelings of deep sadness, confusion, anxiety, and despair, and they are deprived of their anticipated joy in their first precious months with their baby. At some point, the question of having another baby arises. If you ask a woman in the throes of a depression this question, she may say, no. No more children. If you ask a woman who has recovered from postpartum depression if she wants more children, she may say, yes, but I'm scared to go through that again. This book was written to accompany these women on their journey toward a subsequent pregnancy after postpartum depression. What Am I Thinking contains essential information for a woman and her family who plan on having another baby after a previous experience with postpartum depression. As these women know, planning another pregnancy can be a process filled with profound anxiety, indecision, fears, and self-doubt. What if I get depressed again? What if it's worse this next time? What if something terrible happens? What if I'm making a mistake? Filled with self-help strategies, current treatment recommendations, and practical advice, this book offers women the hope, confidence, and support they need to make this journey in spite of their anxiety. With this resource and available knowledge in hand, they are likely to feel more empowered, enabling them to proceed with confidence.

Postpartum Depression: Causes and Consequences chronicles a decade and a half of research into this relatively common mood disorder experienced in various forms by between 10-40% of all women following delivery. The author has conducted three major studies all of which are presented in this volume. The most recent study comprises the bulk of the monograph and presents the results with regard to psychological, social and hormonal factors in postpartum depression and the blues. Information regarding the epidemiology, etiology and treatment of postpartum depression is also included. The work described in this volume represents the attempt by the author to begin to address several of the major unresolved questions regarding the prevalence, causes, and consequences of postpartum mood disorders. The important negative implications of poor maternal adjustment for both the new mother and her family as well as the increased awareness of childbearing women who are now demanding answers and information make this book indispensable for all practitioners in psychology, psychiatry and obstetrics-gynecology as well as for the students of these disciplines.

For all, it causes discomfort. For many, deep distress. For some, it robs them of life. Postpartum depression (PPD) is a far more common, misunderstood, and life-debilitating illness than most people realize. At a time when most moms expect to feel happy and content, those suffering from PPD experience the crushing weight of despair and anxiety. Living Beyond Postpartum Depression offers hope to not only those moms but also their husbands, family members, and friends. Because women battling PPD, and those walking with them through this valley, often don't know what to do, this book explains what they're facing physically, emotionally, and spiritually and how these three aspects are inseparably intertwined. Best-selling author Jerusha Clark shares her own PPD story while offering scripturally based truths that will help restore, heal, guide, and support readers. With practical advice, treatment options, and steps to moving forward, Living Beyond Postpartum Depression is the compassionate, biblical encouragement those affected by PPD need.

A leading expert on postpartum depression offers new mothers an insightful, medically sound guide to recovery A full 20 percent of new moms will be affected by PPD--but the good news is that PPD is very responsive to treatment. This guide, written by psychiatrist and internationally acclaimed PPD specialist Ariel Dalfen, leads women out of the maze of depression, offering medical and psychotherapeutic options, practical lifestyle changes, and an impressive array of resources for further support. Complete with a PPD diagnosis questionnaire, a treatment plan checklist, and a table of medications and side effects, this upbeat guide also includes daily affirmations used by Dr. Dalfen's own patients when recovering from PPD. Dr. Ariel Dalfen (Toronto, ON) is a psychiatrist at Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto and an acclaimed lecturer and medical researcher in the area of post-partum depression.

Written by two postpartum experts, a definitive guide offering compassionate support and solid advice on dealing with every aspect of Postpartum Depression (PPD). If you or someone you love is among the one in seven women stricken by PPD, you know how hard it is to get real help. This proven self-help program, which can be used alone or with a support group or therapist, will help you monitor each phase of illness, recognize when you need professional help, cope with daily life, and recover with new strength and confidence. Learn how to: Identify the symptoms of PPD and distinguish it from "baby blues" Deal with panic attacks, obsessive-compulsive urges, and stress overload Break the cycle of shame and negative thoughts Mobilize support from your husband or partner, family, and friends Seek and evaluate treatment options Cope with the disappointment and loss of self-esteem

After perinatal or postpartum depression, the decision to have another baby can be fraught with emotion. Rebecca Fox Starr movingly shares her story and those of others who have decided to carry, adopt, or not have another child and helps readers explore their own feelings about their own baby ever after. In her last book Beyond the Baby Blues: Anxiety and Depression During and After Pregnancy Rebecca Fox Starr gave a candid account of her battle with prenatal and postpartum anxiety and depression. Rebecca’s story has touched readers deeply and, as her own journey has continued, so has her story, having veered in an unexpected direction: the decision about a future baby. What many people do not realize is that the idea of another pregnancy post-postpartum can be cripplingly frightening to a woman and her loved ones. Rebecca addresses this woefully in her first book, opening up about her sadness that her “shop is closed.” Having a baby was an option taken off the table, for a reason completely out of her control. Until it wasn’t. In 2017 Rebecca and her husband began exploring the idea of expanding their family, and, therefore consulted experts in the fields of obstetrics and gynecology, psychiatry, perinatal mental health, fertility, adoption, surrogacy, and grief (in coping with the idea that, despite all of the options, the most sound of all could be to not have another child). Books on the topic of pregnancy after postpartum depression are scarce, making it difficult to find support or advice. This book, anchored in Rebecca’s story, offers an informative guide to the expert advice and insight, alongside current research, for women who want to explore pregnancy and other family expansion options after postpartum depression. With heartfelt stories, clinical data, and a consideration of the range of options and the emotions that along with them, Rebecca’s book fills a gaping hole in an area that leaves too many women feeling abjectly alone.