Photo Credit: Picture Citation: Erin McPhee from https://www.todaysparent.
“So much
shame, fear, and secrecy surrounds mental illness in South Asian communities!
I've heard the word "psychiatrist" uttered in hushed tones and death
by suicide straight-up lied about. On top of that, new South Asian mothers are
made to feel that a child is the pinnacle of achievement, and the only
appropriate feeling on the birth of a child is joy. We’re expected to perform a
certain femininity: to nurture and transmit traditions, to uphold honor. And in
Hinduism, our goddesses are often worshipped for their unwavering devotion to
their husbands and children. I thought I was a feminist, but this sort of
socialization runs deep, and it absolutely affected me.”
-Pooja
Makhijani
Isolation.
Stigma. Hopelessness. Identity loss. These are just a few of the words that can
be used to describe the plight of new mothers who experience post-partum
depression. Postpartum depression (PPD) occurs any time between two weeks to months
after childbirth and symptoms can include tearfulness, anxiety, depression,
loneliness, fatigue, and in more severe cases, psychosis (National Institute of
Mental Health). While there is ample stigma tacked on to mental health issues,
post-partum depression carries an overwhelming amount of guilt and shame for
the mother because she is often isolated due to her own struggle and by being
misunderstood by family members and friends.
While the
struggle of tackling postpartum depression is universal, there is a great need
for PPD to be examined within the South Asian population. The rate of
postpartum depression is estimated to be anywhere between 9-13% for Western and
European contexts, but studies have shown that it can be up to 36% within the
South Asian population (Jones & Coast, 2013). It is important to be mindful
that this is only the reported amount based on these who seek healthcare
services as the stigma of mental health issues in the South Asian population is
a significant deterrent in speaking about taboo topics such as depression. Risk
factors for postpartum depression in South Asian women can include low
socioeconomic status, lower rates of education, marital discord, and commonly-
the gender of the child. Female infants are still largely considered “economic
burdens” in South Asia and in the South Asian diaspora and this bias and the
stress of having a female baby can have a severe mental impact on the mother. Many
women in the South Asian diaspora have higher rates of isolation when
experiencing postpartum depression due to a lack of support and understanding
from their parents, in-laws, and their significant other (Upadhyay et al.,
2017).
The generational divide also
plays a role in this dynamic as most mothers and mothers-in-law dismiss the new
mother’s mood and grievances as the result of modern mentality or attempt to
engage her in various religious practices, such as pujas, to ward off
the potential evil eye. In all this misunderstanding and misattribution, the
attention is shifted from the root of the issue to external and potentially
unrelated factors (Goyal, Murphy & Cohen, 2005). Cultural values, social
isolation, racial and economic disparities, and perception of depression (or
any mental health issues) are all factors which intersect to make post-partum
depression a growing concern within the South Asian population.
Postpartum
depression affects the mother, child, family and in a larger context- the
entire community. It is essential that those affected seek out help, raise
their voices about their concerns about being isolated, and speak out to
normalize the reality of postpartum depression. As clinicians, when
encountering South Asian women with symptoms of postpartum depression, we must
strive emphasize psychoeducation & validation of their experience. As
individuals, we must look and listen. Look for symptoms in the women around us
and listen to the stories of the women who are currently struggling or have
struggled in the past in order to create a safe space for conversations that so
desperately need to be had to support and empower women.
Written by Heer Panchal, MS, MA
References
Goyal,
D., Murphy, S. O., & Cohen, J. (2006). Immigrant Asian Indian women and
postpartum depression. Journal of Obstetric, Gynecologic & Neonatal Nursing,
35(1), 98-104.
Jones, E. and Coast, E.
(2013) Social relationships and postpartum depression in South Asia: a
systematic review. International Journal of Social Psychiatry, 59 (7). pp.
690-700.
Upadhyay,
R. P., Chowdhury, R., Salehi, A., Sarkar, K., Singh, S. K., Sinha, B., &
Kumar, A. (2017). Postpartum depression in India: a systematic review and
meta-analysis. Bulletin of the World Health Organization, 95(10), 706.
No comments:
Post a Comment