Postpartum Depression vs Baby Blues: How to Spot the Difference

Postpartum depression (also known as PPD) is actually a common experience many new moms go through. The research shows that as many as 30% of new moms are diagnosed with PPD. The tricky part about this statistic is that many moms don’t report to their doctors about experiencing postpartum depression, which leads us to conclude about half of mothers with PPD aren’t being diagnosed.

This is important to keep in mind because as lonely as you might be feeling right now going through this journey, you are absolutely not the only one. Many moms suffer in silence or don’t understand that what they are experiencing is actually postpartum depression. There is a significant difference between postpartum depression vs baby blues that you can understand below.

What is Baby Blues?

Baby blues are highly common in mothers who have just given birth. It is a sudden rush of emotions you feel immediately following the withdrawal of hormones your body goes through as soon as you deliver the placenta. It can take a couple of weeks for this withdrawal to be less of a shock to your body, which will be when the baby blues period ends. You can expect baby blues to peak around day 4 postpartum and resolve around day 14 with minimal-to-know professional assistance.

With baby blues, there is no major impairment in functioning (i.e. mom is still taking showers, engaged with baby, doing daily activities, or living without much prompting or assistance). You can expect to feel a variety of strong emotions in a matter of minutes. Your body is without its emotional regulation hormones. This means your body isn’t capable of regulating your emotions just yet. With time, you will begin to feel in control again.

What is Postpartum Depression?

Postpartum depression is a mood disorder that impacts a mother’s mental health. It is different from a general depression diagnosis. The onset of diagnosis is the determining factor: if symptoms appear and are diagnosed within pregnancy or the first 12 months postpartum, then we add the “postpartum” qualifier. If the symptoms are exactly the same, but appear after 12 months postpartum, we would diagnose major depressive disorder. 

With PPD, moms are suffering from many changes all at once such as the absence of hormones, psychological changes, overwhelm, and sleep deprivation. All of these factors combined may lead to feelings of depression no matter how much a mother loves her new baby. 

Postpartum depression is treatable. It is imperative to get help sooner rather than later. It has been proven that the longer a mother goes without getting help, the more impact it will have on her mental health as well as the development of the baby.

6 Postpartum Depression Symptoms

If you think you might be suffering from postpartum depression or the baby blues, use the following information to help understand what might be going on.

Mood Changes

The most common symptom of postpartum depression can be the mood changes. Mothers can feel euphoric, sad, happy, and depressed in a matter of minutes. This is a sign that there could be an underlying issue going on. These are known as mood swings.

You will also want to be aware of feelings of anger, guilt, panic attacks, or loss of interest in things that were usually enjoyable, especially if this change is completely new or “out of character”.

Unrecognized Behavior

Mothers can experience behaviors that they don’t recognize in themselves. Being restless, irritable, or crying for unexplained reasons could be a sign of an underlying issue. This could be difficult to determine as a new mother is faced with overwhelm right after birth. It is important to keep this in mind while a mother is experiencing several changes all at once.

Whole Body Changes

Fatigue and loss of appetite can be a sign of postpartum depression. Although it seems obvious that a new mom would be fatigued given her new little human who likely isn’t sleeping through the night immediately following birth, inability to fall asleep or waking frequently throughout a sleep cycle are things to look out for. 

Cognition Differences

Cognition differences include intrusive or recurring unwanted thoughts. It could also include a lack of concentration. As a new mom, it could be difficult to concentrate on anything given the sleep deprivation and/or the constant needs of a baby. But if these unwelcome, maybe scary thoughts are causing you to change your normal pattern or behavior, it could be a sign of postpartum depression or it could be a sign that you need help from your support system to give you a break.

Psychological Changes

Fear and depression can creep in unexpectedly, stemming from psychological changes following birth. For some mothers, it happens suddenly while for others, it could happen slowly over time. The brain is in a state of evolution while it adjusts to learning this new baby. It can be difficult to accept that bonding to this new person takes time. This is overwhelming and difficult to accept. This is where fear begins to set in and depression could be a culprit as well.

Trouble Sleeping

Mothers who are sleep deprived and exhausted generally would give anything for a few hours of uninterrupted sleep. But if you are a mom who has consistent trouble sleeping (falling asleep should not take longer than 30 minutes, or staying asleep) no matter how well the baby is sleeping, this is a sign of a deeper issue.

Keep in mind, the mental health field considered something a disorder if it negatively impacts your daily life for two or more weeks.

Postpartum Depression Doesn’t Mean Failure

The most important part to understand about the symptoms of postpartum depression is that you don’t have to be experiencing all of these symptoms in order to be diagnosed. Also, you don’t have to be formally diagnosed to benefit from help as you go through the postpartum or even pregnancy stage.  You could experience one or a few of the symptoms. It is like a spectrum where there can be mild forms or severe forms of PPD.

To help you understand if you are experiencing postpartum depression, it is a good idea to keep a journal and log how you are feeling each day. Ideas include logging if you are having trouble sleeping, if you cried that day for no obvious reason, and how you felt emotionally overall.

Postpartum depression isn’t something to be afraid of. And it doesn’t mean you are failing as a mom. Many moms go through this experience and come out on the other side of it once they’ve gotten help and found coping mechanisms. You can do it, too. If you are in a space of trying to comprehend if you are struggling with PPD, then let’s chat over a FREE 15 minute consultation. You aren’t meant to do motherhood alone and that starts with the postpartum experience.