I treat many ladies for this sort of depression which comes on a few weeks or months after birthing. It can be devastating and long lasting and it is preventable.
The demands that many women put on themselves while preparing for a new baby can be very high indeed. Many also place very high expectations on themselves and on the birthing itself and can set themselves up to be so disappointed when things don't go completely to plan, that they become very stressed and this can lead on to depression.
In nutritional terms, very high expectations and getting run down before the birth can consume all of your available Vitamin B reserves. You can therefore find yourself with a brand new baby and very little emotional energy no vitamin B's in reserve.
There are positive and negative stresses in life and they both place demands on your Vitamin B reserves. Therefore having a baby and winning the lottery, place stress (in terms of rapid learning and lots of new experiences all of a sudden landing on you) just as do the negative demands and stresses of life.
A useful preventative is to take a course of Vitamin B coupled with additional Vitamin B12 right through the last three months of pregnancy and the first three months of the baby's life, just to make sure that your reserves are kept high during this whole time.
The dream of a short and easy, natural labour and delivery and a baby suckling at the breast happily immediately after birth is the one most of us carry with us to the delivery room. We do know that there is a lot of pain and drama also but we are able to put up with this because we know that it is all going to be so wonderful afterward.
This rather unrealistic ideal can set us up for a huge disappointment and the frustration of any complications can produce a huge feeling of failure, unworthiness and disappointment in ourselves. This can set us up for a bout of depression and a complete collapse of our Vitamin B reserves which I mention above.
Every birth is different and in the modern surgical environment with its impatience and tendency toward intervention and treating birthing as some sort of health crisis rather than a natural process. This can mean that there is a sense of drama and crisis attending the lead up to the birth and the delivery itself.
Further, in a hospital situation you are unlikely to have the full time care of an experienced Midwife before the birth and her reassurance and assistance during birthing and afterwards. Also, with our busy lifestyles, you may not have enough support from those you trust nor sufficient help, advice and assistance of people to assist with the early stages of breast feeding. All this can produce a huge let-down and this is where Post Natal Depression comes from.
There are, of course, huge hormonal changes taking place within us during birthing and feeding and assimilating these can be part of the demands placed on our system.
However, to blame the hormones primarily, and to take no responsibility for preparing for and understanding all the other factors is a sign of not taking charge of things or responsibility for yourself.
You must expect that if you don't prepare and plan for the birth and beyond, and if your head is full of unrealistic expectations, that the hormonal changes will have a much greater impact than they would otherwise.
The primary advice I give my expectant lady patients is to be selfish during the later stages of pregnancy. Ask for and dont feel bad about accepting all the help and support you can get. You want to arrive at the delivery fit and healthy and not run down physically or emotionally. I always say that they should treat having a baby as a marathon race and that the delivery is the start of the race, rather than the end. I then ask them how much preparation they would do before lining up to run a marathon?
Personal Consultation in preparation for Birthing:
There are no standard herbal preparations for preparing you for this sort of situation as such although, if an expectant mother is in consultation with me, I am able to prepare her nervous system and her health and resilience generally, as well as provide support and advice where needed. For an online consultation to allow me to assist in bringing your health and resilience up to peak for your birth you may submit your medical history through the link:
online consultation
Delivery Support Herbal Mix
I do provide expectant Mothers's with a Blend of Nervous System and Adrenal Tonics containing also remedies to minimize the effect of shock and birthing pain on your nervous system.
The herbs I have chosen for this mix are Vervain, Chamomile, Borage, Rosehips, St Mary's Thistle and Yarrow, with the Bach Flower Rescue Remedy, Walnut and Gorse.
5 to 10 drops of this herbal formulation is to be added in all drinks during labour and after giving birth (as well as right through any intervention and surgery which happens along the way). It will protect your adrenal reserves and nervous system which can be a big help and speed your recovery.
Post Natal Depression Mix:
For those suffering depression after the birth of a child I recommend taking taking this combination of Nervous System and Hormonal Balancing support herbs along with very large doses of Vitamin B Complex and Vitamin B 12.
The ingredients in this mix are Oats, Oak, Chamomile, Vervain, Pulsatilla, Phytolacca, Elecampane Pine Bark and Yarrow with the Bach Flowers Mustard, Walnut, Beech and Scleranthus.
Stretch Marks Cream Additive:
This herbal mix contains herbal extracts of Maritime Pine, Linseed, Elecampane, Rosemary, Hypericum, Equisetum, Elecampane and Wheat grass which will improve the elasticity of your skin and the connective tissue supporting the skin and allow it to stretch during pregnancy and recover after birthing to minimize or eliminate the appearance of stretch marks.
The cream is to be massaged gently into the stomach and upper thighs daily before bed at night and after a hot shower in the morning. It should be used continuously throughout the second half of pregnancy and for three months after birthing.