Thinking about my mother…..
As it was Mother's Day yesterday thoughts of my wonderful mother were going through my mind….My mum was an amazing woman. She caught diphtheria when she was 5 years old and then caught polio through cross infection while she was in the Northfield Infectious Diseases Hospital. She was never angry or bitter about this...it was just something that happened and she go on with her life. When she had her third child, she had a 'nervous breakdown'. Today we would recognise this as Post Natal Depression, or Post Natal Depression and Anxiety (PNDA).
Postnatal depression and anxiety (PNDA) can be devastating and debilitating illnesses that can persist and affect not just a new mother but everyone around her. It is not a modern condition. Each generation calls it something different. What we call PNDA today may have been called a 'nervous breakdown' fifty years ago.
I was six at the time and sent to stay with my Grandparents and my younger sister went to stay with an Aunt and Uncle. Mum and the baby were sent to have a holiday in the country with my Great Aunt and Uncle. That's what they did in those days…..sent the mum for a rest in the country.
Thank goodness today we know so much more about PNDA. If you know someone who has just had a baby and you suspect that they have PNDA the first thing to know is that real help is available. GP's are a very good starting point in a journey out of PNDA.
Please don't forget that pregnant women can also have Antenatal depression. It is probably more common than you think. About 10% of pregnant women have antenatal depression. Please click here for a link to PANDA, Perinatal Anxiety and Depression Australia.
My mum recovered from her 'breakdown' with the help of her wonderful family and friends.
