When it comes to new moms and mental health, much isn’t discussed, but should be. False perceptions, misinformation, and stigma bar us from the truth, which often provides solace in the sensitive first days of motherhood. What is talked about after a woman has a baby skews ridiculous. Mainstream media, for example, focuses on how fast new moms, especially celebrities, lose their “baby weight.” Instead, how about pointing out that every year, about 1 million women in the United States face a perinatal mood and anxiety disorder?
Recurring nightmares are one of many under-covered topics in the postpartum world. I didn’t write about them in my debut book, When Postpartum Packs a Punch: Fighting Back and Finding Joy, because I wasn’t familiar with them. But I did do in-depth coverage on intrusive images and thoughts, which are similar.
Dr. Wendy Davis, a personal hero of mine and a brilliant leader in the postpartum world, is quoted in a recent Glamour article that sheds light on postpartum nightmares.
“What new parents don’t realize is how many of these difficult, scary images happen because you’re attached and bonding with your baby,” she says.
Amen, and thank you, Wendy, and Glamour for covering this issue.
With Wendy at the 2017 Postpartum Support International Conference in Philadelphia
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