Women and depression

Statistics show that women are twice as likely to be diagnosed with depression than men. This could be that women discuss depression more readily than men or that women are seen as being more ‘prone’ to depression and as such are readily diagnosed with it. Physical and hormonal differences can be important factors. Women have a higher level of the hormones Oestrogen and progesterone during their period, during pregnancy and childbirth and also with menopause.

PERIODS / PMS

The reduced level of progesterone around ten days prior to a period can be responsible for symptoms of PMS. Those can be symptoms such as tender breasts, anxiety, irritability or depression – in some cases, severe depression.

DEPRESSION AND MOTHERHOOD

During pregnancy, levels of Oestrogen and Progesterone can be very high and then will drop dramatically after the baby is born. This can trigger depression. This is something known as ‘Maternity Blues’ which can be experienced by many new mothers in the week after the birth. This can result in feelings of depression and anxiety but tend to disappear shortly afterwards.

Long term depression is not uncommon after childbirth however. This can start from two weeks after the birth and can even start up to one year later.

A woman can begin to feel anxious and guilty for no specific reason, as well as being more tired than usual. Irritability and self criticism can also be a problem and negative thoughts can begin to surface about levels of care etc. This type of Post Natal Depression can be caused in part by hormonal changes but can also be affected by a difficult pregnancy or birth. The impact of having a new baby can be a shock and not always as expected. Being at home all day can affect women significantly, particularly if a busy career has been put to one side. This is usually related however to the change in social situation and the feeling of isolation that this can cause.

The menopause can cause depression and this is generally thought to be linked to changes to hormone levels but can also be linked to changes such as relationship changes, illness or perhaps children leaving home for example. Hysterectomies and Sterilisation can also lead to depression in some cases but it is thought that this is more likely if depression has already been suffered previously in life, prior to this event.

Whatever has caused the depression, again it is important to remember that it is not at all uncommon and it can be treated. Different types of help are available (see ‘Treatment of Depression’ for details) and you are not to blame for your depression.