Natural Birth

The August 2009 issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Child Adolescent Psychiatry has recently caught my eye as it contains a new study looking at the impact of postnatal depression on infant development. There are many studies which show the impact on the person (mum or dad) dealing with depression, however very few showing the impact on their baby.

Israeli researchers reviewed the infants on the basis of three foundations of social-emotional growth which are associated with an infants ability to manage stress and regular negative emotions. These three foundations are social engagement, fear regulation, and physiological stress reactivity.

Out of a group of 100 mother-infant pairs, researchers found that babies of depressed mothers scored the poorest on all measures after 9 months. The infants showed the lowest levels of social engagement during interactions with their mothers, were unable to self-regulate during situations that introduced novelty, fussed and cried more often, and their physiological stress response showed both higher baseline levels and a more pronounced stress reactivity.

Other than pushing for additional research in this area, the key here must be for people to do more to prevent postnatal depression. So many people who experience postnatal depression do not actually have a hormone imbalance and for them, it's something which can be either prevented or if experienced it can be overcome quickly and effectively. Increasing the knowlegde of mums, birth companions and care providers about depression and how to prevent it is key to reducing these cases. From my own experiences of treating depression, both for those who have recently had a baby and others who have been through other changes in their lives, I'd absolutely recommend How to Lift Depression…: ….fast (Human Givens Approach)

Remember that if you are pregnant and have purchased the Psychology of Giving Birth Program, this includes some excellent information and exercises both for mum and birth companion focussing on the prevention of post natal depression as well as a free guide.

Link to summary at Psych central.
Link to source.

Yours for calmer births, more often,