Mental health Problems in the perinatal Period

Mental Health Problems in the Perinatal Period

Introduction

One of the common mental health problems that pregnant women face during and after pregnancy is bipolar disorder. Bipolar disorder may also be called as manic depression. According to its name the definition of bipolar disorder can be defined as the different moods swings in the human life. It may create intense happiness or intense depression or sometimes the mood swings from being sad suddenly after being happy. This may be called as a mixed feeling in bipolar disorder.

Every human being suffers from bipolar disorder at least once in their life. This is more common in teenage years and especially in the prenatal and postnatal period.

Discussion

Chances of Having Bipolar Disorder

Bipolar disorder among other maternal illness during pregnancy is considerably the worst. It is considered to be the most dangerous illness that the mother and the baby can suffer from. Usually cured by medication, if the medication is stopped by any reason the mother might have to go into relapse. These are the most critical situations that can happen during pregnancy. Therefore it is of highest priority that the mother and child are cured from bipolar disorder from proper medication and treatment. Care should be taken when prescribing medicines to pregnant mothers. Usually Tricyclic antidepressants are prescribed by physicians and doctors, but it makes the case even worse. They are considered to be the worst medication to be provided to pregnant women.

Some serotonergic antidepressants are at a good rate of curing and helping the mothers than the tricyclic antidepressants. But pregnant women should not self medicate themselves without any supervision or instruction. The most safe mood stabilizer is lithium. However the intake of lithium should be discussed with the psychiatrist. With the help of discussion the mother can find helpful ways to manage the mood swings during pregnancy and the postnatal period.

Bipolar Disorder

Bipolar disorder can be inherited by parents with the same illness. The chances grow higher if both parents have suffered from bipolar disorder. If one of the parents is affected with bipolar disorder the chances of inheriting the illness is 33%. However, if the other parent has also suffered from bipolar disorder than the chances of inheriting the illness grow up to 67%. Bipolar depression is at a higher risk than unipolar depression and is much harder to control and treat.

Therefore, it is important to discuss the problems of inheritance with the mother and father who have any family history of dipolar disorder.

Risks Involved In Bipolar Disorder

There are several risks involved when suffering from bipolar disorder. The general medication that mothers use is lithium (lithium carbonate) to treat their illness. This is why it is important to discuss the risks involved when taking lithium.

Bipolar disorder starts at the early teenage and stays with the human body throughout their life. Pregnant women are a bit more high risk that they would be suffering from bipolar disorder. Pregnant women are 7 times more at risk than others to be ...