Antidepressants as an Effective Treatment to Postpartum Depression

Introduction 

Postpartum depression is one of the most serious epidemics that indiscriminately affect new mothers. The epidemic deprives new mothers of their joy, especially after successful delivery. In fact, study reviews that an estimated 6.5% to 12.9% of new mothers experience either minor or major episodes of depression within their first year of their delivery (Craig, 2016). Notably, the feelings and the symptoms of postpartum depression sometimes appear deeper than suffering from the “baby blues”. Consequently, medical practitioners and researchers have embarked in a concerted search for the most effective cure of postpartum depression in order to save mothers from the resounding effects of the postpartum depression epidemic. 

Thus, research shows that there are varieties of treatment plans that may be applied in the treatment of postpartum depression. For instance, experts have recommended the use of SSRIs, hormones, antidepressants, and St John’s Wort, as the current effective methods of postpartum depression treatment (Sharma & Sommerdyk, 2013). However, based on the credibility and safety of the treatment methods, this paper argues that the new antidepressants are the most effective drugs in the treatment and control of postpartum depression; they are effective in restoring the brain chemical imbalance, they are effective in long periods of treatment options, and they are efficient in controlling and gradually reducing the severity and symptoms of the postpartum depression. In supporting antidepressants as the best solution to postpartum depression, this paper considers four claims regarding the use of antidepressants as opposed to the other methods of treatments; effectiveness, safety, availability, and convenience of usage. 

Risk Factors to Postpartum Depression 

The severity of postpartum depression varies from one mother to the other. Some mothers have high risk factors than others and hence end up experiencing higher levels of severity than their counterparts who have lower risk factors. There are several risk factors that expose mothers to high levels of postpartum severity. One of the risk factors is presence of signs of depression either during or after a previous pregnancy ( Benazzi & Akiskal, 2001 ). Another predisposing factor is cases of bipolar disorders at some time of the mother’s life ( Benazzi & Akiskal, 2001 ). A mother who has been previously diagnosed with mental disorder is also likely to experience postpartum depression. Another predisposing factor to postpartum depression is the mother’s exposure to stressful life during the pregnancy period or the mother’s lack of emotional support from close relatives during the pregnancy period ( Benazzi & Akiskal, 2001 ). Mothers who engage in alcohol and substance abuse during have also high risk of postpartum depression attack. 

Effects of Postpartum Depression 

In order to appreciate the importance of establishing the best treatment measure for postpartum depression, it is crucial to first look at the effects the epidemic poses to the victims. Although postpartum is expressed in varying degree from one mother to the other, there are various shared effects across all mothers who suffer from the epidemic. For instance, victims of postpartum depression experience serious feelings of hopelessness and over-anxious ( Sharma, Burt, & Ritchie, 2009 ). The mothers lack the ability to concentrate and make the right decisions. Due to frequent headaches and stomachaches, mothers suffering from postpartum depression usually lack joy in activities that are meant to bring joy in life ( Sharma, Burt, & Ritchie, 2009 ). The mothers usually lose interest with both their babies and family members; and consequently the mother-infant bond weakens ( Sharma, Burt, & Ritchie, 2009 ). More disgusting is that mothers suffering from postpartum depression usually have feelings of harming both themselves and their babies, hence increase the risks of murder and suicidal cases among the mothers ( Sharma, Burt, & Ritchie, 2009 ). It is therefore, necessary for the healthcare practitioners to look for a long-lasting solution to the postpartum depression epidemics in order to save new mothers from its severity. 

Alternative Treatments for Postpartum Depression 

Clinicians and researchers have suggested various practices that aid in reducing the intensity of postpartum depression severity. One of the practices proposed is yoga. Yoga has been found to work in eliminating mild cases of postpartum depressions in new moms (Craig, 2016). For instance, the studies conducted by Craig (2016) indicate that new mothers who practiced yoga at least twice a week recorded positive cases of postpartum recovery. However, yoga may not work well with new mothers who experience severe cases of postpartum depression. Massage is another method of relieving postpartum depression among the new mothers (Sharma & Sommerdyk, 2013). Sharma and Sommerdyk (2013) assert that good massage may be a good way of reducing or even eliminating postpartum among the new moms. This method of treatment lacks scientific back-up, hence needs more studies for recommendation. Another alternative method for postpartum depression treatment is relaxation training (Sharma & Sommerdyk, 2013). This involves the practice by new moms on learning to soothe themselves when they start experiencing cases of postpartum depression (Sharma & Sommerdyk, 2013). Again, this method of postpartum treatment is not always effective especially with mothers who experience severe cases of postpartum depression symptoms. 

Why Yoga, Massage, and Relaxation Training Are Ineffective Methods of Postpartum Treatment 

Albeit many alternative forms of postpartum depression treatment, use of depressants remains the outstanding method of postpartum treatment for a number of reasons. First, the other alternative methods of treatment (yoga, massage, relaxation training) are not reliable especially under severe cases of postpartum depression. Mothers suffering from postpartum depression experience severe cases of sadness and anxiety ( Sharma, Burt, & Ritchie, 2009 ). This implies that such mothers lack the morale to participate in activities, such as yoga, massage, and relaxation training (Hughes, 2018). Besides, the victims of postpartum depression lack the ability to care for both themselves and their babies. Prompting such mothers to participate in yoga, massage, and relaxation training may therefore not work, as the victims are already in great depression and see no sense in life (Hughes, 2018). This implies that formal treatment with the use of antidepressant drugs remains the only best option in order to help new mothers recover effectively from their deep state of postpartum depression. 

Secondly, yoga, massages, and relaxation training requires trained personnel to assist the affected mothers. A lot of therapy talks are therefore, needed in order to help the victim gradually learn how to evade negative thoughts and develop good behavioral practices (Hughes, 2018). Thus, mental health professionals, such as therapists, psychiatrists, counselors, and social workers are needed in order to help mothers experiencing postpartum depression in understanding and working to get away from personal problematic relationships (Hughes, 2018). This implies that if mothers suffering from postpartum depression fail to get qualified personnel who may effectively equip them with cognitive behavioral therapy and interpersonal therapy, such mothers end up failing to get the right treatment (Hughes, 2018). Failure to help mothers in recovering from their postpartum state of depression in time may lead to serious reputations, such as neglecting their babies or even commit suicide due to high levels of depression. 

It is also observed that the talk therapy, as a method of postpartum depression treatment, leads to slow recovery (Hughes, 2018). This implies that mothers suffering from severe cases of postpartum depression have to go through a long period of suffering if they rely on talk therapy -type of treatment. Time taken between the diagnosis and recovery of postpartum depression is crucial especially for the new mothers experiencing the epidemic. Tom Hughes (2018) argues that if new mothers experiencing postpartum depression go through prolonged periods of suffering, the mother-infant bonding is seriously affected (Hughes, 2018). The mother may eventually neglect the baby and the body between the mother and the infant is seriously weakened. Therefore, it is necessary to have the mothers suffering from the postpartum depression be exposed to quick treatment methods, such as antidepressant drug treatment in order to help in restoring the mother-infant bond. 

In summary, while practices such as yoga, massage, and relaxation training may be recommended methods of helping new moms in recovering from postpartum depression, the practices are only applicable in mild cases of postpartum depression. Besides, study has shown that not all mothers may respond positively to talk therapies as a method of relieving their devastating states of postpartum depression. There is therefore, the need for the new mothers diagnosed with symptoms of postpartum depression to be exposed to quick and reliable methods of treatment early enough in order to help them evade the devastating effects associated with prolonged cases of postpartum depression, such as weakened mother-infant bond and suicidal cases. 

Antidepressant Drugs as the Game Changer for Women Suffering From Postpartum Depression 

Use of antidepressant drugs remains the current best solution to postpartum depression for a number of reasons ( Wisner, Hanusa, & Perel, 2006 ). Medical professionals have come up with new antidepressants that are known to have no side effects or reduced side effects as opposed to the old drugs. The new antidepressants available in the market include bupropion, paroxetine, escitalopram, sertraline, and fluoxetine (Hughes, 2018). These drugs have proved to be effective in helping new mothers come out of their devastating effects of postpartum depression as quickly as possible. For instance, the new depressants have the ability to rectify the brain chemicals that cause the postpartum depression and have been found to be effective in relieving mothers of their agony within a period of twenty four hours (Hughes, 2018). This is quite credible, especially compared to the other methods of treatments, such as yoga, massage, and relaxation training; which take several weeks before showing positive results. 

As opposed to talk therapy, antidepressants are readily available in chemists and if properly prescribed by doctors, the patients of postpartum depression cheaply purchase the drugs in the chemists and upon use they quickly get their happiness restored (Hughes, 2018). Patients therefore, need to only see doctors for diagnosis and drug prescriptions, as opposed to talk therapy where the patients waste a lot of time and money staying with the therapists while receiving little help from them. No special skills are needed in the use of antidepressants in the treatment of postpartum depression. Patients only need to see qualified personnel for diagnoses and drug prescriptions after which they continue using the drugs on their own and at their convenient places of residence. 

Besides, doctors use the predisposing factors to determine mothers who are at the risk of suffering from postpartum depression. Mothers found with high risks of contracting postpartum depression may be injected with certain antidepressants, such as doxepin and trimipramine, which act to prevent the mothers from experiencing postpartum depression (Hughes, 2018). Therefore, antidepressants are available both as curative forms and preventive forms. In addition, mothers who are known to experience severe cases of postpartum depression may be given a combination of drugs that doctors may find helpful for them ( Wisner, Hanusa, & Perel, 2006 ). Therefore, in either way, doctors use antidepressants to provide a long-lasting solution to the victims of postpartum depression. 

Studies by various researchers show that antidepressants are effective and reliable in the treatment of postpartum depression. For instance, a research conducted by Sharma and Sommerdyk (2013) in a placebo-controlled randomized data indicate that antidepressants have up to 98% efficacy in the treatment of postpartum depression. In a separate study conducted by Wisner et al. (2006), it was found that either a single dose or a combination of multiple doses of depressants offered up to 96.7% efficacy in the treatment of postpartum depression. Hughes (2018) on his side asserts that the new antidepressants available in the market have up to 99% efficacy in the treatment of postpartum depression. In summary, most of the researchers have established that antidepressants are reliable drugs for the treatment of postpartum depression. 

Some critics argue that antidepressants may pose devastating side effects to the users. For example, Ashrafinia et al. (2015) assert that antidepressants may have side effects, such as nausea, dizziness, dry mouth, and sexual problems. However, what Ashrafinia et al. (2015) forgot to mention is that there are also effective drugs, such as brexanolone, that effectively get rid of these side effects (Hughes, 2018). Furthermore, the advantages offered by the antidepressants in the cure and prevention of postpartum depression outweigh their side effects by far. Besides, doctors have the mechanism of establishing the right kind of depressants for each specific patient in order to avoid any possible outcome of the drugs’ side effects. 

Conclusion 

In conclusion, this paper has established that postpartum depression is a serious health issue that affects new mothers indiscriminately. Some of the predisposing factors of postpartum depression include depression and stressful life during the pregnancy period and lack of moral support from the family members. The epidemic has serious effects, such as high feelings of sadness, hopelessness, headaches, and self-denial; hence postpartum depression is a key contributor of murder and suicidal cases among new mothers witnessed in the world at large. There is therefore, the need for provision of proper and effective treatment to mothers who are diagnosed with postpartum depression in order to avoid its devastating effects. Alternative treatments of postpartum depression, such as yoga, massage, and relaxation training, have been found to be ineffective due to their slow rate of helping the patients to recover. They are also limited to mild cases of postpartum depression mitigation. Use of the new antidepressant drugs therefore, remains as the outstanding method of postpartum treatment, as it is reliable, safe, and convenient to the user. The drugs are also readily available in both hospitals and chemists. This paper therefore, recommends that new mothers who may experience postpartum depression should use antidepressants in order to get a quick and a permanent solution to their problem. 

References 

Ashrafinia, F., Mirmhammadali, M., Rajabi, H., Kazemnejad, A., Haghighi, K.S., & Amelvalizadeh, M. (2015). Effect of Pilates Exercises on Postpartum Maternal Fatigue. 56(3): 169-173. 

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Craig, C.M. (2016). Postnatal Depression: Drug Treatments: Clinical Evidence. 2016:1407. (Online).Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4711886/ 

Hughes, T. (2018). Postpartum Drug Could Be “Game Changer” For Women. (Online).Retrieved from https://www.futurity.org/postpartum-depression-drug-1861492/ 

Sharma, V., & Sommerdyk, C. (2013). Are Antidepressants Effective in the Treatment of Postpartum Depression? A Systematic Review. 15(6). (Online).Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3977774/ 

Sharma, V., Burt, V.K., Ritchie, H.L. (2009). Bipolar II Postpartum Depression: Detection, Diagnosis, and Treatment.  Am J Psychiatry. 166 (11):1217–1221. 

Wisner, K.L., Hanusa, B.H., Perel, J.M. (2006). Postpartum Depression: A Randomized Trial of Sertraline versus Nortriptyline.  J. Clin Psychopharmacol. 26 (4):353–360.