“For as long as I can remember, I’ve wanted to be a mom,” says Missy Nichols of Columbia, MO. When she and her husband, Spencer, learned they were expecting their first baby in 2014, they were overjoyed. But on a routine checkup, Melissa was diagnosed with severe pre-eclampsia. She was rushed to Boone Hospital Center and put on bed rest. Her daughter, Scarlett, was born a few days shy of 35 weeks’ gestation. “I was able to touch her long enough for one photograph, then she was rushed to the NICU,” Missy recalls. “So many emotions flooded over me then – instant love for this beautiful little girl, overwhelming fear about what having a preemie would mean for our family longterm, and somewhere, the strength to keep myself together for her.” While Scarlett was in the NICU, Missy was visited by a social worker who explained that postpartum depression, or PPD, was common in mothers of premature babies. But Missy didn’t think that applied to her. “I thought I was too strong to be affected by depression,” she says. “To
be honest, before I had depression, I never understood it was a real medical condition. I did not understand how overwhelming and crippling it is.” Missy was no stranger to adversity; she’d grown up in foster homes and overcome many obstacles, but relied upon her drive, resolve and resourcefulness. She also drew strength from her faith; she and Spencer are active members of their Assemblies of God church. “Life has not necessarily been kind to me, but I’ve never been one to sit and wallow in a situation,” she says. When Scarlett came home, after three weeks in the NICU, Missy says, “I thought I was home free.” But the relief and happiness Missy had expected to feel didn’t come. She worried constantly about Scarlett’s health and woke up frequently at night to check on the child. She felt guilty and blamed herself for the premature birth, even though her doctor told her she hadn’t caused the pre-eclampsia. Missy was also sad that Scarlett’s birth did not go as she had wanted – she missed out on pictures and visits from friends —
and mourned the time when she’d been separated from her baby. “Going home and leaving Scarlett in the hospital that first night was so hard,” Missy says. Over the next year, she would wake up with vivid, painful memories of that event. “The experience of having your baby in the NICU is emotional, and it does take a toll.” Patti Blanchard, MSW, a social worker with Boone Family Birthplace, has one thing she wants everyone to know about postpartum depression: “It can affect anyone.” Parents of premature babies are at higher risk. New mothers at Boone Family Birthplace are provided with information about perinatal mood disorders, which include PPD, and resources for follow-up. Social workers also check in regularly with parents of NICU babies. “When you have a baby who has to stay in the NICU or has a specific diagnosis, the stress of that situation increases the risk of depression in both parents. Dads can get it, too,” Patti says. About 1 in 7 fathers in the United States experiences post-natal depression in the year after a baby is born. Perinatal mood disorders can start during pregnancy and up to a year after the baby is born. The most common is called the “baby blues.” Up to 80% of mothers experience mood swings or crying spells the first week after childbirth, but they fade within 2 or 3 weeks. PPD, however, lasts more than 2 weeks and symptoms may include loss of energy and motivation, feelings of guilt or worthlessness, changes in appetite and sleep, loss of pleasure in activities you enjoy, lack of interest or negative feelings
If you have symptoms of postpartum depression that interfere with daily functioning and last longer than
two weeks, talk to your physician or a mental health professional.
You may also find help and local resources through Postpartum
Support International’s website (www.postpartum.net) or their
helpline, 800-944-4PPD. Depression
is a treatable health condition, not a weakness or personal failing.
28
BOONE HOSPITAL CENTER
Summer 2017