(VIRGINIA MERCURY) – Virginia state health agencies are raising awareness about postpartum depression, a mental health disorder that can affect some parents after giving birth, through a new campaign called “Beyond the Blues.”
“Many new parents feel isolated when they are struggling with mood and mental health,” said VCU Health Nurse Practitioner Robin Lawson. “There remains a great deal of stigma around mental health that prevents people from talking about it.”
Postpartum depression symptoms can range from severe mood swings and difficulty bonding with the baby, to extreme fatigue, seclusion from loved ones and occasional thoughts of self-harm or harm to the newborn.
Lawson, who runs a support group through VCU Health, called the disorder an “insidious way of tricking our brains.”
It’s why she’s grateful that the new campaign from the state’s Department of Health and Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services can help spread the word of available resources.
Last year the state legislature allocated over $553,000 dollars for the campaign and to develop an online resource hub. Secretary of the Commonwealth Candi Mundon King, then a state delegate, previously carried the legislation that former Gov. Glenn Youngkin signed into law as part of a broad package of bills to bolster maternal health.
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