COVID-19: Increasing Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Disorders
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Many of the suggestions we encourage new moms take to manage the symptoms of Perinatal Mood Anxiety Disorders– connect with others, ask for and receive help from family and friends, establish a self-care routine – they can’t do at this time. It can set a mom up for having a more difficult time in an already difficult time of isolation and adjustment. Friends and family can’t meet the new baby or celebrate in-person one of the biggest life changes a woman can experience.
Seeking in-person help and support from providers such as lactation consultants or postpartum doulas may pose anxiety as well as comfort. The support of new mom groups, strolling Target as an outing and reason to get out of the house, and now walking outside in extreme heat are all non-options. Many moms, especially those who have other children, say they feel cheated of the maternity leave they were looking forward to. Hopes to spend time alone with their new baby and heal and rest while other children are off at daycare or school and partner is at work were dashed. Stay-at-home orders quickly shifted expectations into realities of managing the needs of other children, caretaking of a newborn, often healing from a c-section, running a household, all while partner is home but often unavailable due to work demands. With no outside help and no end in sight, moms have become increasingly stressed and depressed.
Hope is not lost! Although the typical ways of helping our new moms have shifted, help and support are still accessible. Friends and family can still offer hands-on assistance by providing meals, running errands, or even a friendly check-in call or text. Here at South Shore Perinatal Wellness Center, our mental healthcare providers are using online platforms to provide telehealth sessions to new moms and families. MA based insurance companies have waived copays and coinsurance effective during/through the state of emergency. Other states vary.
Support groups such as pregnancy and new mom groups as well as support for managing a traumatic birth are being held virtually. Our midwife, doulas, and lactation providers are currently conducting in-home visits, adhering with the stringent and strict Covid19 protocol. While Covid19 many have altered expectations as well as how access to help and support are achieved, it has not eliminated the fact that premium physical, mental, and emotional care is still widely available.
Seeking in-person help and support from providers such as lactation consultants or postpartum doulas may pose anxiety as well as comfort. The support of new mom groups, strolling Target as an outing and reason to get out of the house, and now walking outside in extreme heat are all non-options. Many moms, especially those who have other children, say they feel cheated of the maternity leave they were looking forward to. Hopes to spend time alone with their new baby and heal and rest while other children are off at daycare or school and partner is at work were dashed. Stay-at-home orders quickly shifted expectations into realities of managing the needs of other children, caretaking of a newborn, often healing from a c-section, running a household, all while partner is home but often unavailable due to work demands. With no outside help and no end in sight, moms have become increasingly stressed and depressed.
Hope is not lost! Although the typical ways of helping our new moms have shifted, help and support are still accessible. Friends and family can still offer hands-on assistance by providing meals, running errands, or even a friendly check-in call or text. Here at South Shore Perinatal Wellness Center, our mental healthcare providers are using online platforms to provide telehealth sessions to new moms and families. MA based insurance companies have waived copays and coinsurance effective during/through the state of emergency. Other states vary.
Support groups such as pregnancy and new mom groups as well as support for managing a traumatic birth are being held virtually. Our midwife, doulas, and lactation providers are currently conducting in-home visits, adhering with the stringent and strict Covid19 protocol. While Covid19 many have altered expectations as well as how access to help and support are achieved, it has not eliminated the fact that premium physical, mental, and emotional care is still widely available.
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