Perinatal Mental Heath
Perinatal mental health problems occur during pregnancy or in the first year following the birth of a child
Perinatal Depression
Symptoms
Feeling sad, depressed, or hopeless
Feeling no pleasure or having no interest in usually enjoyable things and activities
Feeling so numb that you can`t cry
Excessive guilt, feelings of worthlessness
Feeling isolated and lonely
Feeling hostile or indifferent to your partner or your baby
Having suicidal thoughts or urges to self-harm
Treatment
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
Perinatal OCD
Symptoms
Presence of Obsessions - recurrent and persistent thoughts, urges, or images
Presence of Compulsions - repetitive behaviors or mental acts that the person is driven to perform in response to an obsession
Treatment
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
Exposure (direct or VR) and response prevention (ERP)
Perinatal Anxiety
Symptoms
Fear of the worst happening to the baby or self
Feeling tense, nervous, irritable, on edge
Not being able to stop or control worry
Difficulty falling asleep due to worry
Feeling restless and not being able to relax
Muscle tension, chest discomfort, shortness of breath
Treatment
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
Perinatal PTSD
Symptoms
Feeling that you`re reliving traumatic experience - flashbacks, intrusive thoughts and images, nightmares
Avoiding memories of the event
Intense distress and panic when reminded of the traumatic experience
Irritability, anger, aggressive behavior
Extreme alertness, being easily startled
Treatment
Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioural Therapy