Men Urged To Help Prevent Postpartum Depression

Psychiatrist, Olebogeng Dikoleng has advised men to assist their partners in doing house chores after childbirth, saying such assistance is necessary to enable the nursing mothers avoid Postpartum Depression (PPD).

Dikoleng, who said that some women experience PPD after childbirth, defined the condition as “a depression or an illness that some women experience after giving birth”.

“It is a situation where the woman feels sad all the time without any reason, lacks energy, as well as losing interest in things that she normally likes and enjoys. This happens to few women immediately after childbirth.” She explained that PPD occurs as a result of rapid change in the hormonal balance of a woman after childbirth or as a result of certain chemical imbalance in the brain. Dikoleng, therefore, advised men to learn more about the condition, as well as assist the women so as to avoid severe consequences. She added that PPD in some cases can even lead to separation and broken homes because some men are unable to understand what the woman is going through.

The medical expert said, “Normally, childbirth is a happy event that we celebrate; the mother is happy, the father is happy, everybody is happy. “However, for some women after they have given birth to a child, they begin to feel sad, they begin to feel inadequate, they feel they are not good parents, they cannot provide care for the baby. “It is not because they are bad or they are evil, it is not because they are possessed by any demons, the process of pregnancy is stressful, the process of delivery is stressful.“A mother could have PPD if she had gone through Caesarean Section or the labor was prolonged, there are many factors relating to it but it is uncommon, it happens to a few women.” She added that a nursing mother who had depression in the past could also have PPD, “and the condition is not only associated with young mothers”.

According to Dikoleng, lack of support in doing the house chores can also lead to PPD, with symptoms such as insomnia, loss of appetite, intense irritability and difficulty bonding with the baby.

She, therefore, urged nursing mothers passing through the challenge to get enough rest and sleep.

Dikoleng explained that if untreated, the condition may last months or longer, adding that treatment includes counselling, antidepressants or hormone therapy.