The evolving illness

For years, it was called the baby blues. The sadness and illnesses felt by women after giving birth was not even officially listed as an illness.

To this day, no one really knows what postpartum depression is all about.

Yes, advances have been made in the diagnosing of the illness. Yes, the symptoms of depression and psychosis are much more evident than they ever were.

But what can in trigger? The practice of diagnosing some mental illnesses is changing by the year. Schizophrenia, for example, is no longer thought of only something that's inherited.

Illnesses like schizophrenia, however, at least have had the backing of researchers and even some politicians. Now postpartum depression has taken that step with the passage of the MOTHERS act, which will help those diagnosed with the illness to achieve insurance parity.

It will also encourage further research into an illness that had long been ignored until several high profile public figures began to talk about it.

It will encourage people to study cases that are similar to what my mother experienced when she suffered from the symptoms of it in 1967 and 1968.

She refused to leave the house for days, and she went into panic attacks whenever she would attempt to do the normal routine chores of her life.

From there, her mental state evolved, and she developed the full-blown symptoms of obsessive compulsive disorder that ultimately led to her 2003 death.

To this day, we still don't know if there was a postpartum connection to the OCD. Maybe someday we will.

War goes on, and the soldiers go home; but the suicides keep going up

The war at home can be worse than it is in the battlefield.

As the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan rage on, tens of thousands of soldiers are still struggling to find their way once their duty is done.

In April, there there were ten potential suicides in the Army: one has been confirmed as suicide, and nine remain under investigation.

For March, the Army reported 13 potential suicides among active-duty soldiers. Since the release of the report, four have been confirmed as suicides and nine remain under investigation.

During April 2010 - among reserve soldiers who were not on active duty - there were five potential suicides. For March, among that same group, there were nine total suicides. Of those, three were confirmed as suicides and seven are pending determination of the manner of death.

"So far for 2010 we are noticing an upward trend in the number of non-active duty suicides. There are some indications that our reservists are being doubly affected with additional stress by the challenging job market, recovering economy and uncertainty" said Col. Chris Philbrick, director, Army Suicide Prevention Task Force.

Philbrick said the Army is continuing "engagement efforts" with many veteran and military service organizations, government agencies and concerned citizens "to develop innovative and comprehensive strategies to help both our active and non-active duty soldiers."

"Given the complex nature of suicide, and the different environments our soldiers serve in, and are returning to, we welcome the opportunity to develop relationships and common approaches to this national challenge. Our soldiers are representatives of our nation." he said.

Soldiers and families in need of crisis assistance can contact Military OneSource or the Defense Center of Excellence (DCoE) for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury Outreach Center. Trained consultants are available from both organizations 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and 365 days a year.

The Military OneSource toll-free number for those residing in the continental U.S. is 1-800-342-9647; the website address is http://www.militaryonesource.com. Overseas personnel should refer to the Military OneSource Web site for dialing instructions for their specific location.

The Army's comprehensive list of Suicide Prevention Program information is located at http://www.armyg1.army.mil/hr/suicide/default.asp.

Suicide prevention training resources for Army Families can be accessed at http://www.armyg1.army.mil/hr/suicide/training_sub.asp?sub_cat=20 (requires Army Knowledge Online access to download materials).

The DCoE Outreach Center can be contacted at 1-866-966-1020, via electronic mail at http://Resources@DCoEOutreach.org and at http://www.dcoe.health.

Information about the Army's Comprehensive Soldier Fitness Program is located at http://www.army.mil/csf.

The address for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention is: http://www.afsp.org. The Suicide Prevention Resource Council is at: http://www.sprc.org/index.asp.

Mother's Day, uninterrupted

Just after Mother's Day, we get another day to celebrate motherhood, the most underpaid job in the world.

Leaders in the fight against postpartum depression are now celebrating the passage of the The Melanie Blocker Stokes MOTHERS Act – a long-overdue move piece of health-care legislation that was on life-support just two years ago.

The law, sponsored by U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez, was signed into law as part of landmark health insurance reform that passed Congress in March.

The legislation will establish a comprehensive federal commitment to combating postpartum depression through new research, education initiatives and voluntarily support service programs.

Menendez joined actress Brooke Shields and former New Jersey First Lady Mary Jo Codey Monday to celebrate the groundbreaking legislation.

“Today we celebrate a victory for women everywhere – a gift for Mother’s Day for all new mothers who suffer the agony of postpartum depression," he said.

Postpartum depression is serious and disabling, and the support structure has been woefully insufficient," Menendez said.

"We will attack postpartum depression on multiple fronts – with education, support, and research – so that new moms can feel supported and safe rather than scared and alone. I applaud the incredible group of advocates and inspirational women who helped this become a reality – I am absolutely thrilled that this is the law of the land."

“There’s a lot of shame and there’s a lot of guilt associated with postpartum depression, it is so prevalent and yet nobody discusses it,” said Brooke Shields, actress and author of Down Came the Rain, a book on postpartum depression. “I am happy that mothers in America will now be able to benefit from support services that will not only serve as comfort for her and her family, it will help to create awareness and lead the way out of this potentially devastating condition.”

“Finally, women all over the county are going to have access to the kinds of support services and information that women in New Jersey have had for a number of years,” said Mary Jo Codey, former First Lady of New Jersey and leading advocate in the fight against postpartum depression. And we're going to get more research into these insidious illnesses. This is what I'd worked and hoped for over a long period of time. I almost can't believe it finally happened!"

Brooke Shields, Sen. Menendez herald arrival of new era in maternal mental health

By SUSAN DOWD STONE
Featured Blogger

The lovely and gracious Brooke Shields thrilled the participants at this press conference as she took the stage with U.S. Senator Robert Menendez and other NJ advocates to proclaim victory for America’s mothers yesterday morning.

To see pictures from yesterday’s event, click here.

Just back from a European tour, starring in a Broadway play and releasing a new movie, “Furry Vengeance” Ms. Shields took time from her packed schedule to demonstrate her commitment to the issue she has long championed – maternal mental health.

Standing among the participants of mothers and their babies, advocates and healthcare professionals, Ms. Shields declared the role closest to her heart would always be that of mother. She became emotional when thanking Senator Menendez and the group of advocates for this “best Mother’s Day gift ever”.

Senator Menendez, who has tirelessly worked to include this bill in the recently passed healthcare reform legislation, spoke about the many benefits this legislation will bring to maternal mental health including further research, public awareness campaigns and grants for programs supportive to new and pregnant women struggling with these disorders.

He recognized the efforts of Former N.J. First Lady Mary Jo Codey and her husband Governor Richard Codey in having initiated the nation’s first state based law requiring attention to these illnesses, screening and education of healthcare professionals. Mary Jo’s program “Speak Up When You’re Down”, has saved lives and brought awareness to New Jersey families and is now a template for other state based programs across the country. Senator Menendez speaking to Mary Jo stated, “Without your efforts, we would not be here today”.

Senator Menendez also noted the considerable contributions of author Sylvia Lasalandra, whose book “A Daughter’s Touch” has indeed touched so many hearts and lives with its riveting account of her experiences with postpartum depression and the message of hope and family support it conveys. Sylvia thanked her daughter Melina Lasalandra Frodella, who she stated lives in her heart and is her daily inspiration in continuing the fight to help mothers.

I was humbled that Senator Menendez thanked me, representing Postpartum Support International and The Healthy Mothers Healthy Babies Coalition for my “influencial and powerful voice in garnering support for the legislation.” Perinatal Pro hosted a national petition in support of the bill and will continue to expand it in support of the bill’s funding! My own inspiration, in addition to the advocates present at yesterday’s function, is my daughter Julia who has always supported her mother’s efforts, joining with us to end this public health crisis.

In my comments, I noted that not once over the last seven years of advocacy, had I ever been approached by a pharmaceutical company to subsidize my advocacy, pay me consulting fees to promote their products, introduce forced medication into this legislation or advertise on my website (which is free from all commercial endorsements).

Indeed the bill does NOT subsidize medication or encourage its usage. What it DOES do is promote more research, public awareness, education and services for pregnant and new mom’s struggling from these disorders. The minority who characterized the bill as a diabolical attempt to medicate America’s mothers, did not succeed in discouraging support with these misrepresentations, but instead stimulated the debate that further clarified the legislation’s true purpose and garnered more support from mothers, legislators and those from organizational and professional communities dedicated to helping them.

Each woman’s recovery plan will be as unique as her experience and if medication is needed to end the agony of her symptoms, she should be supported and encouraged, with her healthcare professional always weighing the risk/benefits. The life-saving benefits of medication for any illness is a decision made between client and clinician.

Nonetheless, the bill does NOT subsidize medication and instead looks to fund a wide spectrum of programs and services to fulfill its noble mission. Examples of existing programs which demonstrate alignment with the bill’s initiatives are:

CBS Cares public service announcements on postpartum depression. The first national network to address this need, CBS donated millions of dollars in primetime airspace to deliver these life saving messages.

Postpartum Support International’s FREE weekly Chat with the Expert Sessions

TEXT4BABY, a FREE program launched through Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies which advantages text messaging by sending health reminders to pregnant and postpartum mothers.

MEDEDPPD.org’s - MediSpin’s educational programs, initially funded by NIMH which offered FREE CEU courses for healthcare professionals.
stressors.

Another highlight from yesterday’s event for me was Senator Menendez’s recognition of the contributions of Emma Palmer, women’s health legislative assistant. Emma has coordinated the efforts among all the bill’s supporters for years. We all relied on her feedback and direction when attempting to galvanize support or organize rallies during pivotal moments in the legislation’s progress. THANK YOU Emma!!

Express your support for the bill’s funding by sending an email to me at susanstonelcsw@aol.com indicating your name, any affiliation and state, and it will be added to the national petition which will be sent to the appropriations committee.

Seventy-one soldiers and counting

Seventy-one soldiers died by their own hands through March of this year, not in the the line of duty

The number was a small decline from last year, a fact that's being trumpeted by the U.S. military as a success. But it's significantly higher than the suicide rates during times of peace.

Even the military is recognizing there are nearly as many soldiers are taking their own lives as those having theirs taken away.

The Army is preparing to launch several large representative surveys of soldiers as a way of tracking and, ultimately, dealing with the indirect casualties of war, said Col. Chris Philbrick, director, Army Suicide Prevention Task Force.

The goal of the study, he said, is to provide the tools and information that will not only help the Army mitigate suicides and suicidal behavior, but will help our country address the problem of suicide among all Americans.

“The Army Suicide Prevention Task Force is completing a review of more than 600 programs related to health promotion, risk reduction and suicide prevention,” Philbrick said. "The Army intends to refine programs and focus on those that provide commanders the best tools to address the key issues that cause behavioral health concerns.”

To help commanders with local concerns regarding suicides, the Army recently established a Specialized Suicide Augmentation Response Team, Philbrick said. “This is a team of experts that can be dispatched to augment local command response to an increase, identify gaps in policies and procedures, and offer recommendations for improvement.”

Soldiers and families in need of crisis assistance can contact Military OneSource or the Defense Center of Excellence (DCoE) for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury Outreach Center. Trained consultants are available from both organizations 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and 365 days a year.

The Military OneSource toll-free number for those residing in the continental U.S. is 1-800-342-9647; their Web site address is http://www.militaryonesource.com. Overseas personnel should refer to the Military OneSource Web site for dialing instructions for their specific location.

The DCoE Outreach Center can be contacted at 1-866-966-1020, via electronic mail at Resources@DCoEOutreach.Org and at http://www.dcoe.health.mil.

Information about the Army’s Comprehensive Soldier Fitness Program is located at http://www.army.mil/csf.