A recent study suggests that maternal depression in the postpartum period, and even beyond, is associated with the development of atopic dermatitis throughout childhood and adolescence.
Maternal depression and atopic dermatitis in children linked — Skin Care News — ScienceDaily
I swear, sometimes I think Google and life in general has started to track my every movement. Although this is linked directly to a journal it’s still creepy that this popped up.
The concept that your own mental health can have a significant affect on the health of your own skin is nothing new. But it seems there is additional aspects of an expectant mother’s mental health can have life-long affects on the child.
Some might think, well duh!. But scientists build theories and we’re constantly changing (or should be changing) how we approach problems and conclusions that we’ve drawn as new research comes out.
Mental health has always been under researched area. Mental health among pregnant women and how that relates to birth outcomes and long-term health outcomes of the child is even more under researched. Part of that is because pregnant women are considered a highly vulnerable work and as such require a lot of scrutiny when it comes to the study protocol. I’ve been through those procedures and they don’t joke around. Every period and comma is evaluated. If you have a survey, it is ripped apart. It’s very rare that you won’t be given changes to be made and questions to exclude or add as part of their recommendations. And they aren’t really recommendations, those changes much be integrated or else your study won’t be approved.
All of that is very stressful as an academic, but we do it because it’s rewarding. To be able to answer these questions is why I became a scientist.
Depression isn’t something that pregnant women don’t face. I’ve been depressed and frustrated. After throwing up for the 15th time in one day you can’t help but get down a little bit. If you are depressed or feeling blue, second guessing your ability to carry or raise that child, DO find someone you can talk to be it your partner, friend, parents. Having someone to vent to that won’t judge you for your thoughts is crucial. If you feel like you need to cry, DO IT!!!! Lord only knows how many times I’ve cried in the shower in my life. It’s amazing how much better I feel after all that bottled up emotion gets released.
My poor husband. Thankfully, we have an amazing communication between us. He didn’t know what to do while I was throwing up, he’d just stare at me or play his video game and it pissed me off so much. But I asked him to just rub my back and let me know I wasn’t alone. It grossed him out but that helped me quite a bit to be comforted while I felt like garbage. Don’t be afraid to ask for those little things. Whatever helps you feel comforted and loved will go along way.
That went to a dark place…. but depression is a very serious and can be a very dark place for many people. Those hormones do some amazing and terrifying things all at the same time and can affect mental health. Hope everyone is having an awesome day. I’m going to eat a pint of ice cream with a face mask while taking a bath and watching the Story of Yanxi Palace because that’s just what I want to do and that’s what sounds entertaining tonight.
-XOXO-
Andrea
