Parenting is both an emotionally and physically draining process and for new parents, the struggle may be too tough to handle. Caring for a newborn is never easy. Going through sleepless nights and anxiety, parents can sometimes find themselves at the threshold of depression.

Parental depression, medically known as postpartum depression, is notorious for exposing the parent to worse ideations, including harming the infant. Since most parents shy away from seeking medical help, many such cases of depression go unrecorded. Parents are most likely to face depression yet again during the child's teenage years when the latter grows emotionally distant, exhibiting brooding and sullen behavior, which can bring parents to question their parental competency.

If such situations unfold, experts always advise parents to approach a specialist, just so that they can make sense of the strong emotions. Experts believe that women who have a family history of depression are more at risk of developing postpartum depression which can lead to serious anxiety during pregnancy and medical issues after giving birth. Lack of support at home and people considering the mental health condition unworthy of discussion only worsen the scenario.

A new mom who feels mixed emotions of fear and anxiety has likely developed postpartum depression and is in need of immediate counseling, improved self-care and medication to overcome the condition and bond with the newborn.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the dominant signs of postpartum depression include a lasting "empty" mood, the feeling of pessimism, feelings of guilt, loss of energy, withdrawal from loved ones, thoughts of suicide and suicide attempts.

The CDC says that postpartum depression is curable. "Depression is treatable and most people get better with treatment. If you think you may be depressed, the first step to seeking treatment is to talk to your health care provider," according to the CDC.

On the bigger picture, parental depression can impact many aspects of parenting, and ignoring the signs only exacerbates the damage.

Depression adversely affects a parent's mood, sleep, appetite, and energy levels, which in turn brings damaging consequences to a child's perception of the world, slowing down his/her emotional growth.

Depression is likely to interfere with the parent's bonding with the child, which means parents won't be capable of providing the necessary care for their children. A 2018 study published in Science Direct reaffirms the claim that young children face the onset of depression, both short and long-term, due to a depressed parent.

The study, which outlines the strategies to analyze and cure depression in parents and children, concludes that "intervention will show fewer depressive (and internalizing) symptoms and be less likely to have a diagnosis of depression afterward."

Traci Pirri, a trauma counselor in Texas, told Huffington Post that addressing mental health is crucial to being a good parent. “We have extremely limited time, spend all our money and resources on the kids, and feel selfish (or weak) about needing a reboot,” Pirri told the outlet.

Parental depression or parental burnout has intensified during the coronavirus situation. The pandemic has forced parents to stay at home with their children at all times, even when they're working. Parents opened up about the pressure and stress of trying to be productive at work while managing family matters.

"These findings build on others that suggested that parents were particularly vulnerable to distress during the lockdown. Our data highlight the particular strains felt by parents during lockdown when many feel that they have been spread too thin by the demands of meeting their children’s needs during the pandemic, along with home-schooling and work commitments. We are particularly concerned about the level of strain felt by parents in low-income families, those in single-parent families, and those supporting children with special educational needs," Cathy Creswell, Professor of Clinical Developmental Psychology at the University of Oxford, said in a study published by Oxford University.

It's perhaps the hardest step for older adults to seek help for depression but reaching out to a therapist proves to be life-saving for those who have reached the saturation point. In order to keep depression at arm's length, experts have long urged parents to indulge in activities like meditation or exercise to nurture mental health and prevent harmful thoughts from blossoming.

mental health, depression
Representation. Engin Akyurt / Pixabay
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