Postpartum Depression essays

Postpartum Depression essays Postpartum depression is a disorder that occurs in women after giving birth to a child. Symptoms of the disorder may include: sluggishness, fatigue, exhaustion, sadness, depression, hopelessness, appetite and sleep disturbances, memory loss, over concern for the baby, uncontrollable crying, lack of interest in the baby, fears of harming the baby or self, and decreased libido. These symptoms can range from mild to severe and often leave the women feeling bewildered. Some women may feel very anxious and show symptoms such as: intense anxiety and/or feat, rapid breathing, fast heart rates, a sense of doom, hot or cold flashes, chest pain, shaking and dizziness.(www.counciling.org) It is important to get a complete medical evaluation, including a thyroid screening to rule out any physical causes if you are having a number of these symptoms because these symptoms can imitate a physical ailment as well. The word postpartum means after birth, and postpartum illnesses are those conditions that can cause changes in the mood of the mother after the birth of a child. There are several factors that can contribute to the horde of new feelings the mother will be encountering after the birth of her new child: reduced sleep, having to care for the baby twenty-four hours a day, fluctuating hormone levels, loss of freedom, an unpredictable schedule, physical pain that comes with giving birth, increased work load, and increased responsibility.(www.chss.iup.edu) These stresses can contribute to postpartum illness which is made up of three different categories: postpartum blues, postpartum depression, and postpartum psychoses. Postpartum blues occur in anywhere from 60 percent to 80 percent of women who give birth. Postpartum blues are usually detected within the first three days after the birth of the child and only last for the first few days to the first few weeks. Women who experience this for of postpartum illness may experience:...

Overcoming Writers Block With Freewriting

Overcoming Writer's Block With Freewriting Heres how writing without rules can help us overcome writers block. If the prospect of having to write makes you uneasy, consider how one student has learned to cope with the problem: When I hear the word compose, I go berserk. How can I make something out of nothing? Thats not to imply that I have nothing upstairs, just no special talent for organizing thoughts and putting them down on paper. So instead of composing, I simply jot, jot, jot and scribble, scribble, scribble. Then I try to make sense of it all. This practice of jotting and scribbling is called freewriting- that is, writing without rules. If you find yourself searching for a writing topic, start by jotting down the first thoughts that come to mind, no matter how trivial or disconnected they may appear. If you already have at least a general idea of what you will be writing about, put down your first thoughts on that subject. How to Freewrite For five minutes, write non-stop: dont lift your fingers from the keyboard or your pen from the page. Just keep writing. Dont stop to ponder or make corrections or look up a words meaning in the dictionary. Just keep writing. While you are freewriting, forget the rules of formal English. Because you are writing only for yourself at this point, you dont have to worry about sentence structures, spelling or punctuation, organization or clear connections. (All those things will come later.) If you find yourself stuck for something to say, just keep repeating the last word you have written, or write, Im stuck, Im stuck until a fresh thought emerges. After a few minutes, the results may not look pretty, but you will have started writing. Using Your Freewriting What should you do with your freewriting? Well, eventually youll delete it or toss it away. But first, read it over carefully to see if you can find a keyword or phrase or maybe even a sentence or two that can be developed into a longer piece of writing. Freewriting may not always give you specific material for a future essay, but it will help you get into the right frame of mind for writing. Practicing Freewriting Most people need to practice freewriting several times before theyre able to make it work for them effectively. So be patient. Try freewriting as a regular exercise, perhaps three or four times a week, until you find that you can write without rules comfortably and productively.