Contents:
- Medical Video: Anxiety Disorders : Anxiety Medications Used in Pregnancy
- How can pregnancy affect mental health?
- What can trigger mental health problems during pregnancy?
- Mental health problems that may occur during pregnancy
- 1. Depression
- 2. Panic disorder
- 3. Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
- 4. Disorders of eating patterns
- 5. Bipolar disorder
- 6. Schizophrenia
Medical Video: Anxiety Disorders : Anxiety Medications Used in Pregnancy
Good mental health, such as feeling calm and happy, is very necessary during pregnancy, because it greatly affects the health of a pregnant woman and an unborn baby. The emergence of mental health disorders during pregnancy can trigger risky behaviors for pregnancy such as smoking, alcohol consumption, improper nutritional intake, avoid pregnancy checks, or trigger dangerous behavior for the mother and her womb.
Unfortunately, feelings of depression and sources of stress during pregnancy are often often ignored and left untreated.
How can pregnancy affect mental health?
Feeling anxious and confused is a natural thing for someone who is undergoing a pregnancy or when she is about to give birth. But the source of stress can increase a person's risk of experiencing mental health problems, such as depression and psychosis. The risk is also much higher if pregnant women have a history of serious mental health problems before.
Mental health problems in pregnant women can also last up to some time after giving birth. Not only that, lighter mental health problems such as mood disorders and anxiety, can be more serious at that time. As a result, this not only affects the mental and physical health of a mother after childbirth, but can also interfere with the closeness between mother and newborn baby.
What can trigger mental health problems during pregnancy?
In addition to a history of mental health disorders, some things can also trigger pregnant women to experience mental disorders, including:
- Pregnancy in adolescence
- Experience experiencing trauma - physical, emotional or sexual violence
- History of drug dependence, including smoking behavior
- Lack of social support
- Become a single parent while pregnant
- Has a low socio-economic level
- Ever experienced domestic violence
- Treatment of incomplete depression
- Having financial difficulties
- Having conflicting thoughts about her pregnancy
Mental health problems that may occur during pregnancy
Here are some mental health problems that can arise in pregnant women and how to overcome them.
1. Depression
Depression is the most common mental health disorder during pregnancy. This is often a trigger, and appears together with other symptoms of mental health disorders such as anxiety disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and eating disorders.
Depression in pregnant women has a varied pattern. In the first and third trimesters, depression is usually more severe, but tends to be lower or decrease in the second trimester.
Depression during pregnancy is treated just like depression in general with the main treatment options that are safe for the fetus, such as cognitive behavioral therapy and interpersonal psychiatric therapy.
2. Panic disorder
Disorders that can arise during pregnancy even though the woman has no history of sufferingpanic disorder. This can arise from anxiety and stress characterized by an increase in the hormone cortisol.
If not treated, an increase in cortisol can affect fetal development in the womb.
Handling without medication can be done by cognitive and supportive behavioral therapy, applying relaxation techniques, application sleep hygiene , and dietary arrangements.
3. Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
OCD is a disorder in the form of obsessions and repetitive habits that are difficult to control, which can appear in the early period of pregnancy, and increase with the period of pregnancy to postpartum. OCD during pregnancy can greatly interfere with the activities of pregnant women and need to be treated with behavioral therapy or by taking drugs.
4. Disorders of eating patterns
Although this tends to improve during pregnancy, a pattern disorder can still occur during pregnancy. Eating disorders can not only affect the readiness of pregnant women to give birth normally, but also can increase the risk of postpartum depression and can have an impact on giving birth to low birth weight babies.
5. Bipolar disorder
Bipolar disorder is a recurring disorder in pregnant women, but the occurrence is more common after childbirth.
Like bipolar disorder in general, this can be overcome by using drugs mood stabilizer, but requires an examination and consideration of risks and benefits. However, monitoring the psychiatric conditions and behavior of pregnant women with bipolar disorder is the most important thing.
6. Schizophrenia
Schizophrenia is a psychotic disorder that can increase or decrease during pregnancy. Pregnant women with this disorder need supervision and treatment by a doctor.
Schizophrenia affects the health of the mother and baby due to inappropriate treatment, can lead to premature birth and low birth weight, to the death of the fetus and pregnant women.
Handling the symptoms of acute psychosis during pregnancy is very necessary, to reduce the intensity and impact of schizophrenia. This includes support, treatment, and intensive treatment at the hospital. Therapy elektroconvulsive also needed to treat depressive symptoms in patients.
