I have heard lots of Mothers saying their partners, families or
friends do not understand what they are going through. In an attempt to clear
this up I have created a little blog:
Please tick the statement you believe to be true:
Women with PND or PTSD
a) are finding motherhood difficult
b) are overwhelmed by the amount they have to do, now they have a baby
c) have a chemical/ hormonal
imbalance which makes the simplest of tasks seem insurmountable, their world
seem dark and their feelings out of control and confusing
I want you to imagine that someone has secretly gone into your brain
and tinkered around with the wiring. Imagine they have turned off your ability
to rationalise, to hope, to be happy and to love.
Now imagine you have been given your dream job. You knew the job would
be demanding, with long hours and that there would be very little or no
training. However, your coping mechanisms that should kick-in are non-existent.
You are mentally incapable of enjoying the job, you cannot feel happy around
other people and you begin to feel things are hopeless. You begin to think this
job was the wrong choice and yearn to be back to your old self.
You start to feel extremely anxious and guilty that you are unable to
cope with this new job. You worry that people are judging you and that you are
not up to the task. You cannot understand why your unable to respond to the
situation as you would have done before the re-wiring. You feel weak, confused,
distressed and alone. You feel like no-one understands you, how could they? You
do not even understand what is happening yourself. You feel the only option is
to quit, escape or go back to a time before the job, when you were able to feel
happiness, hope and love.
Now imagine that dream job is having and looking after a new baby.
Imagine you have been left physically weak and mentally drained from the birth
and now you have a small life in your hands. Imagine there is no escape, no
rest and no recovery time. Imagine you cannot rationalise, feel hope, happiness or love. This is a glimpse of what Postnatal Depression feels
like, it is very real and extremely terrifying and very hard for the person
suffering to fully understand.
If a mother has also experienced a traumatic birth, where the baby’s
life or her life has been threatened, or where medical intervention or a lack
of care has taken place, she may also develop Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.
It is thought these illnesses occur due to an imbalance of chemicals
in the brain. At a time when the mother desperately wants to feel happy and
loving, she cannot. At a time when she wants to enjoy this new family unit, she
cannot. These feelings can last for weeks, months or years. It is vitally
important that she feels supported by the people around her, this support will
aid her recovery.
Women affected may experience some or all of the following symptoms:
Postnatal Depression
•
anxiety
•
panic attacks
•
sleeplessness
•
extreme tiredness
•
aches and pains
•
feeling generally unwell
•
memory loss or being unable to concentrate
•
feelings of not being able to cope
•
not being able to stop crying
•
loss of appetite
•
feelings of hopelessness
•
not being able to enjoy anything
•
loss of interest in the baby
•
excessive anxiety about the baby
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
• exposure to a traumatic event
• nightmares
• flashbacks
• psychological distress
• negative mood
• altered sense of reality
• inability to remember important aspects of the event
• attempting to avoid symptoms and reminders of the event
• problems with concentration
• sleep disturbance
• hyper-vigilance
There are simple questionnaires, which can be carried out by a medical professional, to diagnose PND or PTSD.
There are simple questionnaires, which can be carried out by a medical professional, to diagnose PND or PTSD.
