Perinatal Mental Health during the Pandemic
The moment has finally arrived. You have likely waited nine long months to meet your little one. This moment is bittersweet. Perhaps this is your first child, or your fifth. Maybe, after adoption or years of planning, or infertility struggles, miscarriage, and heartbreaking loss, you are getting what you have wanted more than anything in this world. You have attended most, if not all of your prenatal visits alone, without the support of your partner or friends and family, wearing a mask and having your temperature taken each time.
That anxiety inducing COVID-19 screening questionnaire is burned into your memory, am I right?! There may not have been a baby shower, and it is unlikely there will be a greeting committee of supportive friends and family when you return home, leaving you with no additional helping hands when everything feels like too much. There will be no play dates, and so many will struggle with the guilt and anxiety surrounding childcare options, or the lack thereof. The feelings are overwhelming, and the experience is exhausting and isolating.
The additional challenge during this time is that many resources utilized to alleviate these overwhelming feelings (asking for help, resting when the baby sleeps, connecting with other moms, taking time for yourself, and being with others/not isolating) is the limited options available during a time of quarantine and social distancing.
Stress As A Mom Is Common
One in seven women will experience anxiety and depression during and after a pregnancy, and one in eight women experience symptoms of postpartum depression (CDC, 2020). Though long-term research has not been conducted, the limited research that has been done suggests that these rates of depression and anxiety are alarmingly higher among new moms living through the COVID-19 pandemic. Common symptoms of postpartum depression include the following: crying more often then usual, feeling angry and/or irritable without warning, feeling withdrawn, extreme worrying, doubting your ability to care for your child(ren), and having thoughts of hurting yourself or your baby. It is not uncommon for these symptoms to be overlooked, ignored, or explained away for the “baby blues.”
No matter what you have been through to achieve parenthood, it is OKAY, and not uncommon to think, “I don’t like being a mom. I miss my old life. I want my body back. I wish they would leave me alone. I don’t enjoy breastfeeding. I wish I could breastfeed. I don’t want to be judged for my feeding choices. I should be grateful for this experience. I feel alone.” Whatever you may be experiencing or feeling, you are NOT alone, and your feelings are valid, despite how contradictory they may seem.
Maternal mental health matters. YOUR mental health matters. Support is available, whether through talk therapy, medications, or a combination of both. Clinicians at Usawa Wellness Services, PLLC are available via teletherapy or in person to support you during this time. Reach out to us so we can connect on how we can support you on your perinatal mental health journey.
Please see below for additional resources.
Postpartum Support International (PSI): http://www.postpartum.net
Call or Text the PSI Helpline @ 1-800-944-4773 (#1 En Español, #2 English)
National suicide prevention lifeline: https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/
Call 1-800-273-8255
Postpartum Progress (Online Community): https://postpartumprogress.com/
Mommies Enduring Neonatal Death (M.E.N.D.): https://www.mend.org/
