Postpartum Mental Health Disorders A Casebook

Many psychiatrists, obstetricians, primary care physicians, nurse practitioners, and other health care professionals have not been trained to adequately identify psychiatric disorders that present in postpartum women, and yet are often faced with patients expressing mental health symptoms that may lead to serious problems. Postpartum Mental Health Disorders: A Casebook offers brief, practical guidance on the recognition and management of postpartum mental health disorders, including depression, anxiety disorders, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), psychotic disorders, bipolar disorders, posttraumatic stress disorders, personality disorders and eating disorders. Written by experienced clinicians, chapters are organized into collections of case examples and are designed to provide at-a-glance information about diagnoses, treatment, and outcomes with advice on when to refer to a specialist. Each chapter also includes an assessment tool to assist with diagnosis and a list of risk factors for developing postpartum disorders. An appendix of screening questionnaires is provided at the end of the book.

"Postpartum Mental Health Disorders: A Casebook describes the recognition and management of psychiatric disorders that present in the postpartum period. Case vignettes illustrate the type of complaints that may present to the psychiatrist, primary care physician, obstetrician, nurse practitioner, doula or other health care professionals. Chapters cover depression, anxiety disorders, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), psychotic disorders, bipolar disorders, posttraumatic stress disorders, personality disorders and drug abuse. Each chapter includes information about differential and provisional diagnoses, epidemiology, treatment and prognosis with advice as to when to refer to a specialist. More general chapters address risk factors for developing postpartum disorders, prevention and the uses and safety of psychotropic medication during breastfeeding. Two frequently used screening questionnaires are included with instructions as to use. Some key references or links are included"--

This book is the first to present the current research showing that like mothers, some fathers struggle with postpartum psychiatric illnesses and have unique needs of their own. Each chapter opens with a case vignette that describes different psychopathologies in the father and demonstrates the unique struggles presented by each situation. The cases highlight social, emotional and cultural upheaval that fathers may experience during the postpartum period. Sections in each chapter include manifestations of their illness, DSM-5 diagnoses, case discussion, treatment interventions and recommendations for health care professionals. This volume also puts paternal postpartum depression into conversation with other psychiatric comorbidities, including various personality disorders, anxiety disorders, and addictions. The text also addresses the various stigmas associated with these unique cases and offers clinical pearls on how to treat these families while giving consideration to the needs of the family. Written by renown experts in postpartum health, Paternal Postnatal Psychiatric Illnesses is an excellent resource for psychiatrists, psychologists, family therapists, general practitioners, obstetricians, social workers, and all clinicians working with postpartum families.

This book is the first to present the current research showing that like mothers, some fathers struggle with postpartum psychiatric illnesses and have unique needs of their own. Each chapter opens with a case vignette that describes different psychopathologies in the father and demonstrates the unique struggles presented by each situation. The cases highlight social, emotional and cultural upheaval that fathers may experience during the postpartum period. Sections in each chapter include manifestations of their illness, DSM-5 diagnoses, case discussion, treatment interventions and recommendations for health care professionals. This volume also puts paternal postpartum depression into conversation with other psychiatric comorbidities, including various personality disorders, anxiety disorders, and addictions. The text also addresses the various stigmas associated with these unique cases and offers clinical pearls on how to treat these families while giving consideration to the needs of the family. Written by renown experts in postpartum health, Paternal Postnatal Psychiatric Illnesses is an excellent resource for psychiatrists, psychologists, family therapists, general practitioners, obstetricians, social workers, and all clinicians working with postpartum families.

Using real cases based in the South Pacific, Asia, South and Latin America and Europe, this volume sets out examples of community-based interventions that have succeeded by implementing outreach to the families and community to identify those in need, reliable and adequate drug supplies, treatment interventions, healthy psychosocial environments. This book will interest mental health professionals, international public health workers, global program administrators, and clinicians and healthcare workers.

"As a psychotherapist and educator of future mental health practitioners, I believe this work fills an important gap in reference books for professionals who care for childbearing women. Since the volume provides invaluable neurobiological research on depression and anxiety, I recommend this work to all health and mental health professionals."--Illness, Crisis and Loss Over the past three years, pregnancy related mood disorders have become the focus of health care advocates and legislators alike with subsequent reflection in nationwide media. Statistics on the prevalence of perinatal mood disorders suggest that up to 20% of women experience diagnosable pregnancy related mood disorders. The growing recognition of these common disorders, coupled with an increasing knowledge base about the dire consequences of untreated maternal depression, has propelled this issue to the fore of national public health priorities. This increasing awareness has also resulted in recent legislative and healthcare initiatives to screen, assess, and treat such disorders. On April 13, 2006, Governor Jon S. Corzine (D -NJ) signed a law requiring all new mothers to be educated and screened for postpartum depression. This law is the first of its kind in the country, but many states and federal advocates are proposing similar laws. The motivation for states and the federal government to adopt education and screening program is high and may soon be a federal mandate. But a major barrier to successful implementation of such programs is the lack of available resources to train healthcare professionals in this specialty. This book offers a major resource for healthcare professionals, mental health professionals, and medical, nursing, psychology, and social work students who will be confronting this problem in their practices. The contributions, by renowned experts, fill a glaring gap in the knowledge professionals need in order to successfully manage maternal mental health.

Advocating for Women with Postpartum Mental Illness takes the reader into the world of one of the most misunderstood mental illnesses. Through this book, Feingold and Lewis humanize the mother’s experience and provide vital tools for mental health and legal professionals. Complete with case studies and the authors’ experiences in changing the law in their own state of Illinois, this book is a necessary resource for all.

Everyone told Sandra she would be happy. People described in rapt detail the overwhelming feeling of love and purpose that would envelop her at her daughter's birth. Nothing prepared Sandra for the heavy fog of dread and loss that descended upon her in the delivery room on the day she gave birth. When the nurse handed her the crying, bruised, purple-pink bundle, Sandra had to fight the urge to hand the bundle back and run. She wanted to turn the clock back nine months before any of this had happened. When she did spend time with her daughter, instead of singing soothing lullabies, Sandra found herself whispering, "I hate you. I wish you had never been born." Pregnancy, childbirth, and early motherhood is supposed to be a time filled with the joy and wonder of bringing a new life into the world. Unfortunately, some women find that the struggles of early motherhood are accompanied by multiple sorrows that clash with this picturesque ideal. As difficult as it may be for a person who has not experienced it to understand, Sandra's feelings are quite common among new mothers struggling with the physical, emotional, and social upheaval that follows giving birth. In this transitional period, some women become more vulnerable to depression and may experience psychiatric disorders such as postpartum depression and postpartum psychosis. Postpartum Disorders will tell you more about these disorders, the experiences of the women who have faced them, and the treatments that can help.