Mental Well-Being

Hello all! Coming back after a days break. 

I needed to take care of my health:

- Get the pap smear test

- Get an appointment for a screening mamogram because I have been a breast feeding mother in the past 4 years, back to back. 

Speaking of health, we often neglect our mental health. Moms are expected to do it all, and in some cultures are shamed upon if they ask for help. In all cases, you need a support system, whether be it in the house, your social circle, or a complete outsider. 

If you have read any of my previous blogs, you know that I take care of a lot of things in my home, and I just don't mean furniture, but more importantly, my kids. If you are new, go on and read my previous blogs to get a sense of how I would need to remain calm and mom on, to keep my life together. 

While my physical health gets taken care of in many ways, for my mental health, I rely on the Calm app, and on my therapist. If anybody you know has given birth to a child, you should acknowledge the mental stress they have gone through while labor, and the stress they keep going thorugh as they feed the baby, and take care of it. Postpartum depression, a term that is becoming more popular with society, has gained serious medical traction, with pharmaceutical companies providing funds to understand the mecahnisms beind the syndrome, and academic scholars writing grants to study the intricate biomedical reactions involved in the signaling pathways that lead up to the syndrome. As a neuroscientist, and a recent mom, you can be rest assured that I follow this research carefully, and pay close attention to any drugs that the FDA has approved or drugs that are in clinical trials for treating symptoms of postpartum depression. 

If you are interested in learning and understanding why women behave so "weirdly" after birth, or understand the shaming behind the phrase "pregnancy brain", you can read on this topic on several websites, but I recommend starting with Cleveland Clinic, and then moving to the Sage Therapeutics website to learn about how the pharmaceutical industry is addressing this. You will often hear the words GABA and NMDA when doctors or psychiatrists talk about depression and excitement, whether it is depression they are talking about primarily, or alcohol abuse or other drug abuse such opiod abuse as part of the pain management system. I got my PhD in understanding the role of NMDA receptors in the development of the human brain. So, I know first hand, how GABA and NMDA work hand-in-hand to break the ever-so-delicately balanced suppression and excitation cycles within the human brain. Most SSRIs out there, ultimately target the NMDA or GABA receptors. Most pain management drugs out there, eventually, manipulate the excitation-inhibition balance maintianed by the NMDA-GABA duo. 

As I was talking about taking care of your mental health, I would like to remind everyone that speaking to a therapist should not be a stigma in society. I received some of the best advise on how to deal with it all with the postpartum support group that my hospital provided me with, as a free of cost benefit.

I met other moms who were either struggling with the same things as me, or who had it worse than me, or who had developed creative ways to manage their stress loads. The negative and depressive thoughts that come to a new mothers mind, are not openly spoken about, and they may not be as bad with every mother. It depends on many factors - what kind of support, especially mental support, did you have from your spouse? how did your employer help you manage with the uneasiness of pregnancy? who was giving you a hard time during your hard time? These things are not easily forgotten by most, and a mother who has given birth, will never forget these things for the rest of her life. 

I used to be the one scolding my mom, when she would bring up her past on the difficult time she had during her second child birth. I would be the one to tell her, "get over it already! it's been 20 years now". What a jerk I had been to my own mother! Little did I know, that as a new mother, you remmeber the details of the pregnancy journey, and who stood by you and who gave you a hard time, like it happened yesterday! It is so hard to forget. Through therapy and the postpartum support group, it has been easier to forgive the wrong happenings in my life, because you meet people who have undergone the same traumatic experiences as you, and your feelings get validated instead of being rejected, as they would be at home otherwise. 

Let me share with you that postpartum support groups also exist for men, and for entire families, who may have gone through a traumatic experience together. Few men do take postpartum depression seriously, and embrance this journey of self-improvement through empathy and validation. 

So, young mamas and old ones too, share with me what your postpartum journey was like, and what kind of support system did you build around you to get you through those tought times. For the moms who did not get that support, I am truly sorry that you had to go through this traumatic experience in a solo mode, and I wish you seek validation of your feelings of the past today. You can always embark upon a new journey. Be kind to yourself. Love yourself and Mom on!

I know I promised to talk to you about how I plan out my weekend activities, and my weeknight tasks, and my version of the meal prep guide. I will talk about those in my upcoming blogs. Until then, do not forget to subscribe to my blog here, and leave your comments/thoughts, agreements/disagreements with my opinions! Talk to everyone soon 💗