Not Just Moms: Dads suffer from postpartum depression, too!

It's true that postpartum depression or PPD is something that is still mostly associated with mothers and their state of mental well-being after a new baby arrives home.

- Soumik Ghosh

Research indicates that 1 in 5 new mothers suffer from severe depression or anxiety right after giving birth. And they're significantly more likely to suffer from these conditions during their first year as a mother, in comparison to any other time of her life. However, sadly, even after all these, postpartum anxiety disorder is something that is still woefully under-recognized and under-researched, as well. But what gets even more unnoticed and unacknowledged is the fact that daily more and more dads are experiencing postpartum depression too. Multiple studies have surfaced showing that postpartum depression has impacted 10 percent of new fathers and another 25 percent during the first year of their baby's life. Not grave enough? Well, you should know that these numbers doubled when respective partners were also prey to postpartum depression. Yes, it's much much more common than you even think!

The definition

It's an irony how there's still a major gap in the understanding of PPD. And that exists because there are no common diagnostic criteria for paternal PPD. Sadly, the mostly used diagnostic definition has been cribbed from the definition that identifies postpartum depression in women. It is diagnosed as one of the major depressive episodes with an onset in the first month after birth.

Causes PPD?