How long does postpartum depression last?

Written by Yue Hua
Obstetrics and Gynecology
Updated on September 02, 2024
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Postpartum depression can generally be cured within a year in 70% of women. In families where such cases occur, it is important to pay attention, communicate more with the patient, and provide sufficient care and guidance. Additionally, timely psychological and pharmacological treatments should be administered to boost the patient's confidence and self-worth. It is also necessary to use antidepressant medications under a doctor's guidance that do not enter the breast milk, meaning they do not affect breastfeeding.

Other Voices

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Written by Pang Ji Cheng
Psychiatry and Psychology
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Where to get a diagnosis for depression?

The diagnosis of depression often recommends consulting with a psychiatry or psychology department for confirmation. Clinically, depression is categorized as a mental and psychological disorder, primarily characterized by low mood, slow thinking, and reduced willpower. Patients usually lack interest and pleasure, feel fatigued, self-blame, valuelessness, incapability, have low self-esteem, and poor concentration. They often feel that life is meaningless, harboring thoughts or behaviors of self-harm and suicide. They view the future as bleak, sad, helpless, and hopeless. Patients generally exhibit poor eating and sleeping habits, and there is a noticeable decline in sexual function. Therefore, in clinical settings, if the aforementioned symptoms persist for over two weeks and interfere with work, study, daily life, social, and occupational functions, a clear diagnosis is required to develop a treatment plan involving medication, psychotherapy, and physical therapy.

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Written by Pang Ji Cheng
Psychiatry and Psychology
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What are the symptoms of depression?

The clinical manifestations of depression include core symptoms primarily characterized by low mood, reduced interest, and lack of emotion. Patients often display an inability to feel joy, experiencing a persistent sadness and a noticeable decrease in interest and pleasure in activities they previously enjoyed. The psychological symptoms are dominated by anxiety, slowed thinking, and cognitive symptoms, with patients exhibiting irritability, tension, worry, and often slow thought association, dull thinking, impaired short-term memory, reduced attention, and significantly diminished learning, comprehension, and judgment abilities. The physical symptoms include sleep disturbances, eating disorders, and loss of energy, with common issues like difficulty falling asleep, light sleep, early waking, poor appetite, weight loss, feeling listless, fatigue, and an overwhelming sense of exhaustion in their daily lives.

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Written by Du Rui Xia
Obstetrics
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Can you have intercourse with postpartum depression?

Women may experience a decrease in sexual desire when they suffer from postpartum depression. Therefore, if a woman wishes to engage in sexual activity after childbirth, the husband must be fully understanding and should not force intercourse, as it may worsen the symptoms of postpartum depression. When suffering from postpartum depression, a woman may experience emotional lows, decreased interest in hobbies, reduced motivation, and physical fatigue. However, with active treatment, these conditions can be improved. At the same time, the psychological care provided by family members and the husband is very important. They should offer sufficient reassurance to help the woman recover from postpartum depression.

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Written by Pang Ji Cheng
Psychiatry and Psychology
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Can people with mild depression drink alcohol?

Patients with mild depression are generally advised not to drink alcohol, especially those who have sleep problems and rely on drinking to solve these issues; they are strongly urged to abstain completely. Patients with mild depression may experience mood swings, slow cognitive responses, and an inability to feel joy. They might have difficulty falling asleep or frequently wake up during sleep. Some patients might attempt to alleviate their symptoms or improve their depressed, suppressed mood through drinking. The adverse consequences of this are an increase in the severity of depression and ultimately the potential development of a substance dependency on alcohol, which negatively impacts the treatment of depression. Therefore, for patients with mild depression, it is clinically advised to forbid or reduce alcohol consumption, with abstinence being the best treatment approach.

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Written by Pang Ji Cheng
Psychiatry and Psychology
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What is depression?

Depression, clinically referred to as depressive disorder, is a type of mood disorder. Its primary manifestations are persistent and significant low mood, reduced volition, and slow thinking. It is accompanied by sleep disturbances, eating disorders, low self-esteem, difficulty concentrating, feelings of guilt and self-blame. Patients do not feel pleasure or interest, sometimes feel excessively guilty, and even find life meaningless, leading to thoughts and behaviors of suicide. In severe cases, depression may also present with psychotic symptoms such as hallucinations and delusions. If these symptoms occur daily, are present most of the time, and persist for more than two weeks, significantly affecting work, study, daily life, social interactions, and family functions, then it can be diagnosed as depression. This describes the relevant clinical aspects of depression.