What has bothered me most about Tom Cruise’s comments about taking vitamins for post-partum depression and depression in general is that I think he just doesn’t know… well, anything, but especially the potential impact of his words. My aunt killed herself after she gave birth to her third baby. She was deep in post-partum depression, and while her sisters thought she was homesick, they had no idea how bad this was.
I know people who are alive today because they got drug treatment for depression. At one time I considered putting one of my sons on anti-depressants when he was 15 and very depressed. We waited and watched, and he did get better, but I can see that having gone another way entirely.
My question to Tom Cruise: If one person didn’t go see their doctor about their depression or post-partum depression or didn’t take their kid based on what you said and then went on and killed themselves or their child, how would you feel about your words?
From Brooke Shields in today’sNew York Times
And comments like those made by Tom Cruise are a disservice to mothers everywhere. To suggest that I was wrong to take drugs to deal with my depression, and that instead I should have taken vitamins and exercised shows an utter lack of understanding about postpartum depression and childbirth in general.
If any good can come of Mr. Cruise’s ridiculous rant, let’s hope that it gives much-needed attention to a serious disease. Perhaps now is the time to call on doctors, particularly obstetricians and pediatricians, to screen for postpartum depression. After all, during the first three months after childbirth, you see a pediatrician at least three times. While pediatricians are trained to take care of children, it would make sense for them to talk with new mothers, ask questions and inform them of the symptoms and treatment should they show signs of postpartum depression.
In a strange way, it was comforting to me when my obstetrician told me that my feelings of extreme despair and my suicidal thoughts were directly tied to a biochemical shift in my body. Once we admit that postpartum is a serious medical condition, then the treatment becomes more available and socially acceptable. With a doctor’s care, I have since tapered off the medication, but without it, I wouldn’t have become the loving parent I am today.
So, there you h
