People often make jokes about female hormones. When a woman hasa bad day, lashes out or binges on fattening foods, peopleimmediately blame hormones.
"She's just 'PMS-ing,'" they say. "Leave her alone for a fewdays."
But female hormonal imbalance has a more-serious effect:postpartum depression.
Postpartum depression might occur after a woman gives birth to achild. Some women face deep depression, lose the ability to reasonand might hurt their children or themselves.
Rebeka Amaya, a Colorado woman, has been charged with killingher 4 year old and infant by drowning them in a bathtub.
This case bears an eerie resemblance to that of Andrea Yates.Yates drowned her children in a bathtub and was charged withmurder.
A March 2002 Time magazine article quoted Yates from a tapeddeposition stating she did not think the drowning was wrong beforeshe did it.
She had to save her children from Satan, she said.
She then said the Devil left her after she completed the task,according to the article.
Amaya also had delusions. An Associated Press article reportedthat before she allegedly murdered her children, Amaya said shefelt at peace with a spider crawling across her hand. She usuallywould have been afraid, the AP reported.
The article then states that Amaya saw the spider as a sign thatit was time to set her children free.
Amaya is facing first-degree murder charges.
There is no way to tell if postpartum depression played a rolein this situation, but the pressure a new child brings can gobeyond the worries of parenting.
Women with spouses, careers and children are usually driven toreturn to their previous duties. Some women experience shock,depression, or, like the mothers mentioned before, psychosis.
In most cases, women act "bummed out." That's what most peoplecall it. They are tired, can cry uncontrollably or might not wantanything to do with their children.
New mothers should be aware of their reactions to their recentbirths. Women should seek treatment if their symptoms last longerthan two weeks, states WebMD.com. The Web site also states thattreatment can include medication and psychotherapy.
Awareness of this disease should expand. When it comes topsychological problems, people tend to brush them off. In caseswhere the problem is hormonal, people around the affected personneed to understand that outside intervention is sometimesneeded.
Psychological evaluations should become part of women'spost-birth medical visits. Evaluations can help detect problemsearly, and more people will accept psychological treatment to helpmaintain wellness.
Until Americans are more accepting of psychological treatmentfor postpartum depression, more women will progress to the statesof Yates and Amaya. Not every bad day can be blamed on depression,but getting help early on could prevent horrible consequences.
Write to Lauren at lmphillips@bsu.edu
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