DrRoberta Dear Dr. Roberta,
Ever since I gave birth two months ago I am having a hard time getting organized. Sometimes when my husband comes home from work I’m still in my nightgown. Do you think I could be having postpartum depression? I need to know because I don’t want to hurt my baby in any way.
New Mom, Idaho
Dear New Mom,
Congratulations on your new baby. Most new moms have a hard time for the first few months. It is not easy to get along on limited, interrupted sleep. It is not easy to be fully responsible for a brand new life. Yet, most moms survive those beginning months with nothing worse than occasional blue days.
A few women, however, develop a brain condition called psychotic postpartum depression. Those are the moms who need medication to resume regular functioning and those are the moms, who if they don’t get medication are at risk of listening to their hallucinations and harming their child.
If you are in doubt about your mental health discuss it with a family member and go to a doctor. If you have thoughts about harming your baby tell the doctor and tell some family members. This condition is 100% curable so immediately go to a mental health professional for an evaluation. You and your baby both deserve to have you at your best.
-Dr. Roberta
