The Lowdown

• 1 in every 7 women will get a perinatal mood or anxiety disorder like postpartum depression or anxiety. These illnesses are not normal but very common.
• If you are experiencing any of the symptoms on these lists, call your doctor. Don’t try to wait this out. These illnesses require professional treatment, and there are different types of treatments that work. You WILL get well with help.
• If you are already past 12 months postpartum and still suffering, you could still have postpartum depression or anxiety. Women who haven’t received treatment or who were not effectively helped can have symptoms that continue past the first year. You can still get help.
• If you are having moments when it seems like you are seeing or hearing things that no one else does, are feeling paranoid as if others are out to get you, have more energy than you’ve ever had and feeling like you don’t need sleep, or are having thoughts of harming yourself or others, call for help immediately. These could be signs of postpartum psychosis, an illness that can lead you to act in ways that you wouldn’t normally.