Category Archives: Perinatal Mood Disorders

Newsflash: Postpartum Depression & Domestic Violence – New study results

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In a new study appearing in the Journal of Pediatrics, researchers discovered a tie between Postpartum Depression and domestic violence. The study, Postpartum Depression and Intimate Partner Violence in Urban Mothers: Co-Occurrence and Child Healthcare Utilization, focused on urban mothers and screened for both Postpartum Depression and domestic violence during pediatric visits for children.

Of those screening positive for Postpartum Depression, 7% also screened positive for “intimate partner violence” according to the researchers. Also according to the study, 60% of those who screened positive for intimate partner violence also screened positive for Postpartum Depression. an interesting side note is that mothers screening positive for Postpartum Depression in this study were more likely to take their children to the Emergency room. Perhaps this is related to the higher level of anxiety and worry we experience during a Postpartum Mood & Anxiety Disorder.

The most important thing to keep in mind as a result of this study is that the researchers did not definitively determine cause/correlation between Postpartum Depression and intimate partner violence. When you’re in an abusive relationship, it can be difficult to leave for many reasons. It may cause depression or you may “allow” the abuse for longer if you are already depressed. It’s a very fine and exhausting line on which to find yourself teetering.

There is always help and hope available though.

For those with Postpartum Depression, visit Postpartum Support International’s website to find a coordinator near you.Or call the warmline at 1-800-944-4PPD.

If you’re in an abusive relationship, you can find help throughout the United States through The Hotline.

You’re not alone, there is help, and there is hope.

Postpartum Voice of the Week: Bravado Designs

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Tuesday morning began like any other. Until I saw a tweet from @phdinparenting referencing an earlier tweet by @postpartumprogr, Katherine Stone. This tweet questioned the title of a giveaway post at BabyCenter involving Bravado Designs products. At the time, the title of the post was “Can Color Cure PPD?”

I discussed it briefly on Twitter then decided to do some research into the legitimacy of colour and PPD. I’m always wary when someone, anyone, claims to be able to “cure” PPD. It turns out Chromotherapy does indeed exist and has a long history. But nothing I found directly linked it to treatment of PPD, let alone a cure.

Having read the post at BabyCenter, I decided to write a reactionary piece here at my blog. There was a growing concern within the #ppdchat community regarding the approach used by BabyCenter in the giveaway post.

Within minutes of my post appearing, I was in touch with marketing from Bravado. She was concerned about the reaction the piece was receiving and interested in elevating the discussion to educate new moms, something to which Bravado is very dedicated.

By the end of the day, after a few edits, the piece at BabyCenter moved well away from claiming to “cure PPD.” The piece is now titled “Can color help the baby blahs” and an italicized paragraph in the beginning of the post states the following:

Special Note: While color therapy can never cure anything as serious as PPD, which is a very serious condition best left to a doctor’s treatments, there is something to be said of boosting your mood through color therapy. There have been many studies that have shown an improvement of mood due to exposure to certain “happy” colors.

BabyCenter also publicly tweeted an apology regarding the article.

But the real gem in all of this is the apology note at Bravado’s website from their CEO. It’s respectful, engaging, and acknowledges the struggles moms with Postpartum Depression face, stating they should never be taken lightly.

If you’ve not read it, you really should. Go here to do so. 

Thank you, Bravado, for diving in and taking a stand in a situation gone wrong. We, mothers who have fought and are fighting Postpartum Depression, deeply appreciate your willingness to listen and react to our concerns.

Huge thanks too, to all of the #ppdchat community who raised your voices as the awareness of this grew. Many of you were fearless in speaking out against this. Don’t ever stop speaking up. It makes a difference.

Breaking: Colourful nursing tanks & bras cure PPD!

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Here we go again.

Postpartum Depression is a diagnosis. It’s not a marketing tool, people.

My initial response to just reading the tweet? “So we should have been prescribed a colour wheel instead of meds and therapy?” Then I read the actual post at BabyCenter and my hackles raised. Disappointed doesn’t begin to cover how I feel about this.

"Color Wheel" by Nathan Stang Photography Sourced here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/nathanstang42/5446973750/

Chromotherapy is a legitimate form of therapy for many ailments and is used by Naturopaths quite often. But as a cure for PPD? In reference to a spring giveaway by a company manufacturing Nursing under garments? Not okay.

Chromotherapy relies upon the delivery of colour via the light spectrum. Blues and violets are the most commonly used colours for reducing anxiety and inflammatory conditions, according to “Chromotherapy, Let there be Light” by Sussana Czeranko ND BBE at NDRN.com.

Chromotherapy has a place in the therapeutic realm for many. If you’ve had success with it, good for you.

Art therapy is also a popular form of therapy for those struggling with mental illness. It works for many.

Dear marketers, please, do not use the term “cure for PPD” in your materials. It’s highly offensive and ultimately disingenuous to vulnerable mothers and desperate family members truly searching for successful treatment options.

Imagine being presented with an ornately wrapped box. Your fingers deftly remove the gorgeous exterior paper, your expectations growing as you wonder what could be inside such a beautiful package. Once you have the wrapping off and open the lid, there’s nothing but stale air inside.

This?

Is how vulnerable mothers feel after they read your post. Let down, disappointed, upset, and angry.

Postpartum Depression is very real and a rocky road to travel. Please don’t pretend it’s a premium paved interstate requiring us to pay a toll to you to catch a ride to recovery.

**UPDATE**

Speaking out makes a difference. The post’s title has been changed to “Can color help postpartum depression?” and there is mention of color therapy now within the post. It’s a start. Bravado and BabyCenter do want to support women as they go through the motherhood experience and not dismiss any mother’s journey. Don’t ever hesitate to speak up when you see something not quite right. Your voice might just be the one which gets things changed.

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A friend of mine shared this blog post on FB. I had no idea there was even an issue with commenting at WP.com blogs. If you have had an issue, please know it’s not because I suddenly changed my policy. I don’t require people to be logged in or registered to comment. The only thing I do is require initial approval of a first comment. I do moderate all comments for inflammatory or incendiary context. But nothing beyond that. As this author points out, there are some ways to properly complain about this particular issue if you’ve experienced them. Please be firm and polite in doing so though. Apologies if you have experienced any difficulty in commenting here at my blog. Hopefully the powers that be at WordPress will get this fixed as soon as possible.

Postpartum Voice of the Week: Afterbirth by @angiekinghorn

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Music. The way feelings sound.

The above is a quote featured in a picture I shared at my Facebook account not too long ago. I believe in it, strongly. Music, for me at least, is one of the most powerful ways to enhance or change mood. It’s powerful, all-encompassing. Hidden in the beats, rhythms, and lyrics of certain songs, there are memories. Some blissful, others haunting and terrifying.

I blogged about overcoming the haunting memories which Linkin Park’s album Reanimation held for me. It’s the album I listened to as my then 9 day old daughter had major surgery for the first time in her life. It was while listening to this album I first slid under the waves of the sea of Not Okay and wanted to stay there, drowning in my terror at the hard swirling around me. It took me five years to listen to the album in it’s entirety.

Yesterday I read Afterbirth over at Angie Kinghorn’s blog. In it, she recounts how a specific song, “Lines Upon Your Face” by Vertical Horizon, holds similar memories for her. Angie writes, “I’ve tried playing it in small doses to get used to it, musical allergy shots, if you will, but the violin pulls my heartstrings out and flays them bloody every time.” 

Unlike me, she didn’t play this song purposely, it simply happened to play on her iPod as she sat in the dark in the nursery after a traumatic birth, her father in pain in his illness, and the fear it brought forth within her soul.

With each verse, she swirled deeper into the darkness, just as I did while listening to Linkin Park. The darkness was comforting for me, but for Angie, it broke her wide open, shattering her into pieces, ultimately leading her to the realization she needed help.

I’m listening to the song Angie listened to that night in the dark right now via Grooveshark. I understand how it could break someone apart.

Go read Angie’s post. Show her some love for sharing such a powerful experience with the world. It takes courage to fight your way out of the dark but it takes even more courage to share it as Angie has done at her blog.