Post Natal Depression
In Chinese Medicine, Post-natal depression is primarily to do with the Heart,the heart houses (looks after) the mind and governs blood, when there is a deficiency of Heart blood, the mind becomes anxious and depressed. This can be as a result excessive blood loss during childbirth. With some women already having a pre-existing deficiency in blood, Post-Natal Depression may arise even if the blood loss during childbirth is not particular heavy.
From an Acupuncture point of view, and from my experience, we always treat the heart, the symptoms here can include, Anxiety, Insomnia, Depression, palpitations, tension in the body, tearfullness. Other symptoms can include low energy, sadness,inability to cope, sense of guilt etc. Treatment is generally based on nourishing the heart and rebuilding the strength for you to initially cope and eventually get on with your life.
I will complete Acugraph assessments every visit, this will show where you are and where you need to be.
Case
Ellen came to me after the birth of her first child, it was clear from the outset that she was struggling with everything, ‘she felt that she was constantly running up a hill but got so tired that she needed to rest’. She also felt guilty as she felt she was missing out with her daughter. Ellen gave me a detailed history of herself and details of her pregnancy and the birth. She struggled with fatigue and nausea throughout her pregnancy, she also lost a lot of blood in childbirth and continued to bleed for a few weeks after. Since then she felt ‘disconnected’ , after several treatments, there was a noticeable improvement and a decrease in guilt that she was feeling. After 2 months, she felt her physical, mental and emotional health was much better and was returning to her old self again. For her second child, Ellen came in for an appointment once a month. There was no complications or repeat of her first birth.