The experience of depression during pregnancy

Far from being a time of relaxed contentment, pregnancy can be the first time that some women ever experience depression. The emotional turmoil, shame and embarrassment that accompany this is sometimes misunderstood or not recognized for what it is. Appropriate intervention can help women understand what is happening to them, reduce fears about their pregnancy and provide a structure for regaining control over their life. A great deal of clinical literature exists in relation to the outcomes of maternal depression, but very little is known or understood about women’s own experiences of depression during pregnancy. Major depressive disorder is twice as prevalent in women. The average age of onset also coincides with the time that most women conceive, that is, between their early 20s and 30s. Women with a history of depression are at greater risk of a depressive episode during pregnancy and it is know that some women develop depression for the first time during pregnancy (e.g. Wisner et al, 1999)...  Read More   |   Discuss   |   Suggest An Article

Depression, anorexia, childbirth affect sex life

Childbirth and the psychiatric disorders anorexia and depression can affect a woman's sex life, but in different ways, a small study suggests. Research has shown that women with mental health conditions, including major depression and eating disorders, tend to report more problems with their sex life than other women do. The same has been found in studies of new mothers. But the nature of this sexual dysfunction has not been clear. In the new study, researchers found that women with either anorexia or depression typically had sex more frequently than new mothers did. They were, however, more likely to report having "problems" during sex, according to findings published in the International Journal of Eating Disorders... Read More   |   Discuss   |   Suggest An Article 

Depressed moms' kids at higher injury risk

Young children of depressed mothers are at heightened risk for behavioral problems and injury, new research shows. A team at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center looked at 1992-1994 data on more than 1,100 mother/child pairs taking part in the National Longitudinal Study of Youth. During the study period, 94 of the children (all under age 6) suffered injuries serious enough to require medical attention. Two-thirds of the injuries occurred at home. Children of mothers who had persistently high scores on measures of depression symptoms were more than twice as likely to be injured as children of mothers with low scores of depression symptoms...  Read More   |   Discuss   |   Suggest An Article

Five excuses that might prevent you from getting help for depression

So you know you have depression, or you're pretty sure you do, but you're putting off doing anything about it. Procrastinating is a fairly common state of affairs for people with depression. I once put off renewing the registration for my car (before I was diagnosed with depression) and of course it expired, as they do. I ended up getting a huge ticket, about one week's pay, because I was unlucky enough to be in front of a state cop in stop-and-go traffic. It seems really stupid now that I didn't get it done, but I do remember the complete lack of motivation that came with my depression. "... Read More   |   Discuss   |   Suggest An Article

Smaller babies prone to depression, study finds

Plump babies may really be happier babies, Canadian and British researchers reported on Monday in a study that found people who had a low birth weight were more likely to have depression and anxiety later in life. Adverse conditions in the womb that interfere with a baby's growth may also cause brain differences, the researchers report in the December issue of Biological Psychiatry. Ian Colman of the University of Alberta and colleagues in Britain studied the records of 4,600 Britons born in 1946 who took part in a 40-year study. "We found that even people who had just mild or moderate symptoms of depression or anxiety over their life course were smaller babies than those who had better mental health," Colman said in a statement... Read More   |   Discuss   |   Suggest An Article

Depressed pilots no risk -- as long as they're on their meds: study

Pilots suffering from depression are no more likely to crash a plane or make errors than other pilots -- as long as they are taking medication, an Australian study showed Friday. Unlike in much of the world, Australian pilots are allowed to fly aircraft while on anti-depressant drugs. A study presented at a conference of the World Psychiatric Association in Melbourne on Friday found no statistical difference between medicated and non-medicated pilots in terms of their safety record. "There was virtually no difference in the number of incidents or accidents," said Kathy Griffiths, a mental health researcher from the Australian National University. "But importantly, there was a tendency for more accidents in the period prior to pilots going on to anti-depressants, but not once they were on them."... Read More   |   Discuss   |   Suggest An Article

Diet drug Rimonabant tied to depression, anxiety

People who take the weight-loss drug rimonabant may face heightened risks for severe depression and anxiety, Danish researchers report. The finding follows a recommendation by a U.S. Food and Drug Administration panel in June that the agency not approve the diet drug because of continuing concerns about increased risks for suicidal thoughts among some users. Previously, the FDA rejected the drug as an aid to help people quit smoking. "Up to this point in time, there has been controversy over the rates and severity of psychiatric adverse effects with rimonabant," noted Dr. Philip Mitchell, head of the School of Psychiatry at the University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia, and co-author of an editorial that accompanies the study... Read More   |   Discuss   |   Suggest An Article

What are the risk factors for childhood depression?

I had untreated clinical depression starting from a young age. When I was finally diagnosed at age 27, I started trying to figure out why this had happened to me. Why would a child suffer from depression? What are the factors that can combine to create depression in a young child? In many cases, one of the usual suspects is a family history of mental illness. But there was no such history on either side of my family. So I started looking for other explanations. What I found was very interesting to me, as a few of the risk factors had been present in my life before my depression... Read More   |   Discuss   |   Suggest An Article

Five excuses that might prevent you from getting help for depression

So you know you have depression, or you're pretty sure you do, but you're putting off doing anything about it. Procrastinating is a fairly common state of affairs for people with depression. I once put off renewing the registration for my car (before I was diagnosed with depression) and of course it expired, as they do. I ended up getting a huge ticket, about one week's pay, because I was unlucky enough to be in front of a state cop in stop-and-go traffic. It seems really stupid now that I didn't get it done, but I do remember the complete lack of motivation that came with my depression... Read More   |   Discuss   |   Suggest An Article

The link between sleep deprivation and psychiatric disorders

Recently, research by a team at the University of California, Berkeley, uncovered a link between sleep deprivation and psychiatric disorders. Previously, it was thought that psychiatric disorders caused sleep deprivation, and not the other way around, but it appears now that sleep deprivation may create symptoms that mimic psychiatric disorders or may be partially responsible for them. Color me completely unsurprised. Sleep deprivation has already been linked to heart disease, obesity and early stage Type 2 diabetes, due to its undermining functions like metabolic control. I would have been more surprised if it didn't affected our mental health... Read More   |   Discuss   |   Suggest An Article