Tom Cruise and Brooke Shields are currently engaging in a word war against each other because of a type of depression, called postpartum depression. Cruise’s and Brooke’s debacle started when Tom Cruise openly disapproved of Brooke Shield’s personal choice of opting to take prescribed medicines to cure her postpartum depression, when he guested at the Today Show. According to Cruise, who is a popular devotee of Scientology (who believes that we can be cured through natural means and that taking medicine is doing our body harm), Brooke Shields should have instead, opted to cure her postpartum depression by doing healthy exercises. Adding that a lot of people have been misinformed about depression and how to actually cure this common illness.

But what is postpartum depression really? We’ve heard about it often enough, yet are we really sure that we know enough about it for us to actually understand this illness in order for us to help ourselves as well as others? Being pregnant should really be a source of joy for everyone, especially the mother to be, who for nine months, will actually have living being grow from inside of her. Unfortunately, there is another side to this joyous occasion, being pregnant means that you and your body will have to get used to some adjustments for you to have a safe pregnancy. Smoking, alcohol, strenuous activities as well as stress should be avoided at all cost. A healthy baby means having a healthy mother as well. But given that you have been able to successfully avoided all these bad habits for your baby to be, childbirth is a whole different thing, as much as we may try to avoid it, there are still some unfortunate cases wherein the mother’s as well as the baby’s life might be in danger.

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Postpartum Depression that occurs during pregnancy or within a year after delivery is called perinatal depression. The exact number of women with depression during this time is unknown. But researchers believe that depression is one of the most common complications during and after pregnancy. Often, the depression is not recognized or treated, because some normal pregnancy changes cause similar symptoms and are happening at the same time. Tiredness, problems sleeping, stronger emotional reactions, and changes in body weight may occur during pregnancy and after pregnancy. But these symptoms may also be signs of depression.

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Causes of Postpartum Depression

The exact causes of postpartum depression are unknown,but rapid hormonal changes that accompany pregnancy and delivery may trigger depression. Levels of the hormones estrogen, progesterone, and cortisol fall dramatically within 48 hours after delivery. Women who go on to develop postpartum depression may be more sensitive to these hormonal changes. Postpartum depression (PPD) is a condition that describes a range of physical and emotional changes that many mothers can have after having a baby.

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I can’t imagine the depression getting worse, but the reassurance of other mothers who have been through this would be terrific.

Thank you for your answers in advance.
BTW, I’m not taking anything right now. They will put me on something if I insist, however, I don’t think that this is beyond tolerable, yet. I am still functioning.

If I can handle this without meds, I would rather do so so that if I get hit with PPD after she’s born, the medication will have a better effect.

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Everyone experiences moments of sadness. In most cases, these times last for only hours or days. Nearly twenty percent of the world’s population, however, are diagnosed with major depression, which causes depression that lasts for weeks, months, or longer. These moods cause the person to develop problems functioning in work, family, or social relationships, which can become disabling.

Females who experience signs of depression after they become pregnant may be treated for perinatal depression. This illness can develop any time after pregnancy begins, or any time thereafter, until the baby is a year old. Most commonly, however, women who encounter this illness after the child is born are diagnosed with postpartum depression.

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