Mental Health For Moms and Dads

Part 1: Postpartum Help

Parenting is the hardest job on earth. Add to that all the stresses of daily life, and it is no wonder we end up with so much postpartum depression.

The best cure is prevention. Organize friends and family to bring meals and help with household chores in the immediate weeks after birth, join a mama-baby group of any sort, and talk with your partner before the birth about parental roles and responsibilities so that you two have a plan of how things will work. Eat healthy food and consider a little Lemon Balm tea (available loose at Limbo, or is many brands of packaged "postpartum tea" - just read the label).

A little "blues" is normal after birth, as it is with any emotional life change. If the feelings last longer than a week, are precluding you from doing normal daily activities, or are turning into fleeting thoughts of causing harm to yourself or your child, that is NOT normal, and intervention is needed. A good place to start is the Baby Blues Connection. If you find yourself needing more professional help, or if you have feelings of causing harm, you need to see someone experinced in both the perinatal period and mental health. Many nurse midwives are also psychiatric nurse practitioners - a wonderful combo for the postpartum mama! Here is the finder for Nurse Practitioners in Oregon. There are also many Psychiatrists, Therapist and Counselors who aren't CNM's but who specialize in portpartum depression.