Postpartum Anxiety: What it is and how measuring helps
You’ve probably heard of postpartum depression, or even postpartum psychosis. Mood disorders are common for women during their postpartum period, due to the hormonal imbalance that naturally happens with gestation and childbirth. Major depressive disorder (MDD), is the most common mood disorder that women experience during this time and it can be devastating and demoralizing.
Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), is a mental disorder that affects women and is more commonly experienced in postpartum mothers than the general population. GAD causes persistent and impairing worry. In general, all mothers worry to some extent but GAD goes way beyond the natural, protective instincts of motherhood. Do you remember that time when you drank way too much coffee, because you had a whole laundry list of things to do? Then you became so scatter brained that you couldn’t get any of those ‘to-does’ knocked off your list. A person with GAD experiences that around the clock minus the caffeine. Now imagine someone hands you an infant on top of that. That’s postpartum anxiety!
Since 1986, healthcare professionals have been measuring MDD, and these efforts have shown to aid in the detection and treatment of the disorder. GAD is more common in postpartum mothers, yet we do not routinely measure or test for this debilitating disorder. Solving the Social Determinants of Health has a positive impact on society and by not measuring and accounting for GAD, many mothers are being underserved and suffering needlessly.
Some mental healthcare professionals believe there is an overlap in the symptomology between depression and anxiety. They assert that the symptoms are different manifestations of the same disorder. This belief, however, is flawed. How can we make a claim that two distinct disorders are the same if they are not being independently measured? Healthcare is more effective with empirical evidence.
In order for women to have access to care that could likely treat their disorder effectively, measurements need to be taken and Social Determinants of Health need to be recognized.
Pierson et al., (2017), has conducted extensive research in this field and compared responses provided by postpartum mothers with clinical interview diagnoses. They demonstrated that generalized anxiety and major depression are not the same thing - at least not in postpartum mothers.
Why are their findings important? Because women have suffered for over 30 years and we now understand what we’re dealing with. GAD, like MDD, can be treated. Women do not have to suffer. Treatment for depression and anxiety are different and mothers need to be mindful of the effects that medications have on their breast milk. If therapy is the chosen treatment, then the psychological underpinnings for depression might be different compared to anxiety.
Today, there is strong evidence for a screening metric for GAD in postpartum mothers and treatments can be recommended by healthcare professionals. When these treatments are effective, the harmful effects that GAD causes for new mothers and their families can be avoided.
And remember to call your mom – she’s worried about you.
References
For more information, please see the original article:
Pierson, M. E., Prenoveau, J. M., Craske, M. G., Netsi, E., & Stein, A. (2017). Psychometric Properties of the Generalized Anxiety Disorder Questionnaire - IV (GAD-Q-IV) in Postpartum Mothers. Psychological Assessment. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/pas0000443
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Mark Pierson is a Data Analyst for TAVHealth in Austin, Texas. He began conducting data analyses as an undergraduate student at the University of North Texas. He also studied statistics, research methodology, and clinical psychology at Loyola University. Mark was also employed as a Data Analyst at Johns Hopkins University for five years.