How To Support A Newly Postpartum Family

Written by Whitney Frost, Mental Health Therapist and Clinical Director

Whitney is a Licensed Professional Counselor in Colorado, specializing in working with women with Borderline Personality Disorder, Bipolar Disorder, and women navigating matrescense, infertility, pregnancy loss, pregnancy, and the postpartum journey. Whitney is the founder of The Rylie Center for Hope and Healing.

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May is Maternal Mental Health Awareness month, which lends awareness to the growing epidemic of Perinatal or Postpartum Mood and Anxiety Disorders (PMAD). Perinatal or Postpartum Mood and Anxiety Disorders (PMAD) encompasses Depression and Anxiety in pregnancy, Postpartum Depression, Perinatal Panic Disorder, Perinatal Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD), Postpartum Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PPTSD), Perinatal Bipolar Disorder, and Postpartum Psychosis. It is estimated that 1 in 5 birthing people will experience PMAD within the first year after giving birth, while 10% of non-birthing people will develop signs of depression, anxiety, or a mood disorder in the first year postpartum.

It is currently believed that Perinatal or Postpartum Mood and Anxiety Disorders (PMAD) is the leading complication of childbirth. It's important to know that Perinatal or Postpartum Mood and Anxiety Disorders (PMAD) is not just for those who physically birth a child. PMAD can affect those who adopt, those who foster, surrogates, and the non-birthing parent. Without proper intervention, such as talk therapy or medication management, poor maternal mental health can have adverse and prolonged implications on the entire family unit for years to come, including but not limited to child with insecure attachments, slower infant development, strained marital relations, poor fetal development outcomes, children with behavioral disorders, and children with impaired cognitive functioning.

What are the signs of perinatal/postpartum mood and anxiety disorders?

Perinatal or Postpartum Mood and Anxiety Disorders (PMAD)can affect anyone regardless of age, race, religion, income, education, or ethnicity; it is not a reflection of who you are as a person or a moral failure. Research has indicated that those with a history of depression, anxiety, or mood disorders prior to pregnancy are at a high risk of developing PMAD. Other risk factors include things like pre-term delivery, high-risk pregnancy, infertility, multiples pregnancy, diabetes, teen pregnancy, limited social support, stressful life events, financial stress, marital stress, thyroid disorders, and a family history of depression or anxiety. PMAD is treatable and help is available; you are not alone. These are the things to look for that indicate the onset of a Perinatal or Postpartum Mood and Anxiety Disorder:

• Increased tearfulness

• Feelings of anger or irritability

• Withdrawn from loved ones or the baby

• Feeling of disconnection

• Dissociation

• Depersonalization or Derealization

• Worries around hurting the baby

• Excessive guilt

• Feelings of inadequacy

• Difficulty sleeping given the opportunity

• Difficulty engaging or completing activities of daily living

• Excessive worry

• Difficulty controlling worry

• Trouble relaxing

• Racing thoughts

• Waking to check on the baby

• Feelings of restlessness

• Difficulty leaving the house or leaving the baby due to worry

• Intrusive thoughts or bizarre thoughts

What does effective support look like for postpartum families?

We have learned that familial and social supports play a vital role in the prevention and recovery of Perinatal or Postpartum Mood and Anxiety Disorders (PMAD) in the first year and beyond the birth of a child. The use of familial and social support in the immediate family structure to prevent to occurrence of PMAD can vary by family based upon the current need due to socioeconomic status, financial needs, health status, and location. The role of social and familial supports in the reduction and recovery of PMAD has evolved over time due to societal pressures, the use of technology, the changing family structure, the demands of our growing workforce, and the cost of living which has greatly impacted the growing rates of PMAD. You can support a loved one that is newly postpartum in many ways:

• Ask them what they need or what would be helpful

• Bring them meals/start a meal-train

• Stock their refrigerator/freezer with nourishing foods

• Offer to hold the baby so they can nap

• Offer to hold the baby so they can shower

• Offer to help with household chores—run the laundry, mow the lawn, wash the dishes, fold the laundry, tidy the house

• Pay for their home to be cleaned

• Offer to walk the dog or tend to pets

• Pick-up or drop-off the older children from school or activities

• Tend to the older child in the home

• Encourage them to talk about their feelings

• Listen to them and normalize their feelings

• Contribute to a postpartum doula, lactation consultant, or postpartum support provider

• Respect their boundaries

• Accept “no” gracefully

• Don’t overstay your welcome

• Wash your hands upon arrival

• Don’t visit if you have a cold or virus

• Keep things simple and easy

• Don’t overwhelm them with questions, requests, or activities

The postpartum period is a vulnerable time for birthing people and their family due to the intense shifts in hormones, the erratic shifts in sleep, and the physiological changes within the body. Offering support to a newly postpartum friend or family member can be a crucial part of a healthy, postpartum recovery experience. If you, a friend, or a loved one experience a symptom of Perinatal or Postpartum Mood and Anxiety Disorders, there is help available. It is important to seek treatment rather than leaving the symptoms left unmanaged. You are not alone, you are not to blame, there is hope for a brighter tomorrow.

Read more from Whitney Frost

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Whitney Frost, Mental Health Therapist and Clinical Director

Whitney is a mom, wife, therapist, business owner, author, mental health advocate, and champion for policy change for all women and moms in the US, and serial entrepreneur. Whitney is an advocate for women navigating motherhood by creating equitable, quality mental and physical health care for all women and those identifying as women. Whitney is the founder of The Rylie Center for Hope and Healing, Colorado's largest perinatal collective.

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Resources:

• Postpartum Support International HelpLine: 1.800.944.4773

• Text in English: text “help” to 800-944-4773

• Text en Español: 971-203-7773

• Dial 9-8-8 suicide and crisis lifeline

• National Maternal Mental Health Hotline: 1.833.852.6262