When women get pregnant, they experience countless changes in their bodies at a very fast rate. The changes they experience range from blood pressure, to hormonal changes and also physical alterations follow. The brain is not left behind as chemicals inside begin changing to levels that may be deemed imbalance. This may lead to depression. Other reasons include personal history of mental illness, unwanted cases of pregnancy, complicated delivery, and financial difficulties after birth, history of drug and substance abuse, history of miscarriages, relationship problems among many more.
Analysis
The major factor thought to cause postpartum depression is hormonal changes. This changes cause the many symptoms associated with the depression such as sleep deprivation, anxiety about offering parenthood and care to the newly born child ( Stanton & Dunkel-Schetter, 2013) . This paper basically will try to explore the dynamics of postpartum depression, the percentage estimate of nature versus nurture as far as the causation of the depression is concerned and finally the implications or applications for the individuals concerned with the developmental issues.
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Just like other traits such as alcoholism, diabetes, heart diseases and cancer, depression is a genetically acquired trait. Genes have been implicated in predisposing woman to postpartum depression. Several studies have been done to investigate if susceptibility could be explained to specific gene variations. However, this association remains unclear and can only be helped by a thorough research. Two main genes have been associated with depression especially in women. These genes are TTC9B and HP1BP3 ( Wisner et al. 2013) . They are thought to work by creating new cells in the hippocampus region of the brain leading up to reorganization in the face of the new environment.
Once somebody experiences postpartum depressions, they are very likely to develop it again in their subsequent deliveries. To prevent the development of the depression or a recurrent of it, first you have to stay in touch with your doctor, therapist or psychiatrist to provide you with the necessary guidelines on how to deal with the depression. Taking medication prescribed by the doctors is another key element in preventing the occurrence of the depression. It may also serve to reduce the severity of the depression if it occurs. It is also very important to share thoughts with the loved ones such as partners and family members which will help to ease the tension involved with the depression (Suri et al., 2017). It is very important to establish a support plan. Those people who will be there for you once you deliver your baby. It is also very vital to take precautions against fatigue and stress. One should be keen to avoid stressors in life, rest for an enough amount of time. Finally, self-confidence is very essential. One of the biggest source of postpartum depression is the diminishing confidence in oneself.
Conclusion
Depression generally has a risk on the entire family as it brings some gloom and sense of hopelessness in a family. The family therefore spends so much energy and time trying to solve the issue hence finding themselves alienated from other activities of equal magnitude. It creates fear among the couples, especially when they plan on having another baby. This may force the couples to restrict themselves to small families for the fear of unknown. It is also important to note that the gloom and unhappiness characterized by depression has a general negative effect on the development of the family as far as association with other people is concerned.
References
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Dağ, Z. Ö., & Dilbaz, B. (2015). Impact of obesity on depression in women. Journal of the Turkish German Gynecological Association , 16 (2), 111.
O'hara, M. W., & McCabe, J. E. (2013). Postpartum depression: current status and future directions. Annual review of clinical psychology , 9 , 379-407.
Stanton, A. L., & Dunkel-Schetter, C. (Eds.). (2013). Postpartum Depression: Perspectives from stress and coping research . Springer Science & Business Media.
Suri, R., Stowe, Z. N., Cohen, L. S., Newport, D. J., Burt, V. K., Aquino-Elias, A. R., ... & Altshuler, L. L. (2017). Prospective Longitudinal Study of Predictors of Postpartum-Onset Depression in Women With a History of Major Depressive Disorder. The Journal of clinical psychiatry .
Wisner, K. L., Sit, D. K., McShea, M. C., Rizzo, D. M., Zoretich, R. A., Hughes, C. L., ... & Confer, A. L. (2013). Onset timing, thoughts of self-harm, and diagnoses in postpartum women with screen-positive depression findings. JAMA psychiatry , 70 (5), 490-498.
