Mental illness during pregnancy

It is possible for a woman living with mental illness to get pregnant and it is possible for a woman who did not have any mental health challenges to breakdown for one reason or the other during pregnancy. However there is no need to panic because just like any other situation there are treatment and therapy protocols for the mentally ill whether pregnant or not.

So if you or your loved ones find yourselves with this challenge, these are the steps to take:

1. Seek professional help immediately. Talk to a psychiatrist or ask your gynecologist to recommend one. Do not be tempted to ignore the signs and imagine they will go away after a trimester or after pregnancy.  A mental breakdown is best nipped in the bud like all illnesses; early detection and management can save both mother, baby and loved ones. Please note that the mental illness does not automatically become a threat to the baby except the presentation of the breakdown or illness manifests as the mother wanting to harm her baby within her. However depending on the situation, if not properly managed, one cannot determine how the illness may progress so urgent help from professional experts is critical once the signs are there.
2. Take the medication prescribed for the mental illness but make sure your gynecologist is aware. It is important to be open and ensure full disclosure with your team of experts at this point so therapies, medications and all other protocols on the journey are collaboratively documented, monitored, tracked and coordinated for your progress. Please note that the use of antipsychotics during pregnancy and breastfeeding is largely safe. Though the data on the safety of the use of antipsychotic drugs in pregnancy and breastfeeding are limited, reports of harm to baby from the use of these drugs are very uncommon. However these reactions to drugs differ from person to person, new medication and treatment protocols emerge everyday due to the evolution and improvements on science so discussing openly with your doctors will even be of more benefit to you and your baby so any abnormalities or challenges can be picked up quickly and corrected if at all and all positive developments can be tracked for your own encouragement, confidence and monitoring of your baby. For example, some antipsychotics drugs  can be sedating therefore when the baby is born, if you have been open and accountable with your records, the medical personnel, midwives or  pediatrician who do a first assessment of your new born baby will proactively  look out for lethargy, sedation and appropriate developmental milestones in your baby and address such quickly if detected so work closely with your doctors and medical team during this period and resist the urge to be secretive.
3. Take advantage of Psychotherapy sessions. The nine months regular pregnancy journey can be confusing and  complicated with a myriad of physical, emotional and mental changes occuring in the body of a woman. A lot of women seek and find solace and comfort with a support group at this time either online with platforms such as Baby Center or offline with their extended families, religious groups, community groups, office groups or some other social group. Now a pregnant woman coping with mental illness or a mental breakdown at the same time might experience even more changes and confusing experiences both for her and the people around her. So she might benefit from psychotherapy and counselling sessions for even her partner and her larger family as a group if so required so they can understand, support and help her better through the journey which might be very stressful without being armed with the right understanding and coping techniques to manage the situation.
4. Be positive minded and refuse the urge to panic over the baby. Many pregnant women have combated various illnesses such as Diabetes, Hypertension and others alongside pregnancy with mother and  child coming through safe and healthy. With proper and timely professional intervention and management, mother and child will be just fine. Mental illness is not a death sentence, neither is it the end of a normal life. It is a breakdown of the mind just as physical illnesses are a breakdown of various parts of the body. There is help and resolution though in some cases it could become chronic and medication might be required for life just like some cases of diabetes and hypertension which in some cases go away after the mother has been delivered of her baby.

At ‘The Gracehill Hospital’ we have managed several cases of  pregnant and breastfeeding mothers going through a breakdown and we can confidently tell you they get better and go on to lead normal lives with their partners and their babies so we are sure you will be just fine if you seek help especially on time.