One of the most joyful times of your life can be among the most challenging times, too. Sometimes the difficulties may overshadow the bright points of joy. If you are experiencing symptoms of postpartum depression, self-care may help you move through this part of your life.

This condition, which is now known as perinatal depression, may also benefit from professional treatment. Lightfully, a mental health treatment provider, offers several levels of care. You can learn about perinatal support here.

What is perinatal depression?

Perinatal depression refers to depression occurring during pregnancy or 12 months after birth. It shares many symptoms with other forms of depression, like feeling sad, apathetic, irritable or withdrawn. It can cause dramatic changes in eating, sleeping and hygiene habits. It affects new mothers frequently, but it has been reported in new fathers, too.

Perinatal depression’s distinctive symptoms include:

• Feeling disconnected from your child, as if they aren’t your child or they lack an emotional connection to you
• Withdrawing from your child or other loved ones, feeling that you can’t manage relationships or should be alone
• Fearing that you may be a bad or inadequate parent, disbelieving in your competence or preparedness
• Thinking about hurting yourself or your child, having thoughts of intentional or accidental harm
• Ideating about death or suicide, feeling that you have no other option or cannot be helped

If you are having thoughts about hurting yourself or someone else, please seek emergency care by calling 911 or going to an emergency room. Call or text 988, the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, for immediate support.

Help is available, and you can move forward. When you are not in an emergent situation, Lightfully’s Virtual Partial Hospitalization Program (vPHP) can provide treatment. You can plan a path to treatment with an experienced clinician on our team.

Support yourself with gentle self-care

Perinatal depression is a serious condition, and it may require intensive treatment. Self-care is no substitute for that, but it can be a helpful part of your routine. It can give you a way to show compassion to yourself during a challenging time. Additionally, it may help you get the most out of professional mental health care.

You can:

• Try a few simple diet changes

Researchers have studied the connections between diet and depression. They have identified a few things that are correlated with a better mood or a decrease in depressive symptoms. You might try to incorporate fruit and vegetables in your diet, cut back on caffeine, or choose nutrient-rich food. For more information, you can read this blog article.

• Connect with people going through similar things

Depression can lead to feelings of isolation, but you’re not the only person going through it. If you talk to friends or family about perinatal depression, you might find that some have experienced it. They might welcome the chance to support you. You may also meet caring, understanding people in Lightfully’s peer support.

• Turn to your doctor for advice

Your doctor may have seen patients through perinatal depression, and they may have excellent advice for you. Your doctor might be able to connect you with local resources, like support groups mentioned above, or assistance for new parents. They may also have resources specific to your family’s or child’s situation, such as peer support for parents of premature children or children with a medical condition.

Lightfully offers virtual mental health treatment

You don’t have to leave home to get professional treatment. Lightfully’s several levels of care include our vPHP, which consists of 20 hours of programming per week. It includes therapy, peer group sessions and family therapy. If you might benefit from psychiatric medication or you are already taking it, our vPHP can include psychiatric medication management.

With virtual care, you can:

• Reduce disruption to your routine during treatment
• Stay at home with your baby and any young children
• Remain in a comfortable, familiar place instead of an office
• Get confidential, secure treatment from our professionals
• Participate in evidence-based care with a clearly defined goal
• Improve your mental health with whole-person-centered care

If you have any questions about our vPHP, we’ll be happy to answer them. You can also read this blog article to find out more about this program.

Change is possible. When you’re ready to take the first step, reach out to our Admissions Concierge Team. We’ll take the next steps together, toward the fullest, brightest version of you.