Symptoms of antenatal anxiety or depression can feel confusing and overwhelming.
You might be feeling surprised at the intensity of feelings and thoughts you’re having. It might also feel tricky to talk to anyone else about what you’re experiencing.
To deepen your own understanding and help you communicate your experience to other people, we’ve put together a guide to some of the factors that can contribute to changes in your mental health during pregnancy.
Please keep in mind that even though we’ve used the words woman and mum here, the contributing factors listed below can apply to both birthing women and non-birth parents.
You may experience uncertainty and low mood during pregnancy because:
- You’re concerned you’ll experience postnatal depression or anxiety after your baby is born. This is common for pregnant women and their partners.
- You may have experienced a previous traumatic birth, miscarriage or stillbirth which can increase fears for your unborn baby’s health.
- You mightbe feeling worried or uncertain about your own physical health during pregnancy.
- You mayhave concerns about childbirth, including the labour and delivery process.
- You might feel guilt and/or shame about being unhappy, especially if others expect you to be overjoyed and excited about the pregnancy.
- Maybe you feel unsure and fearful about your new role as a parent.
- You may be experiencing changes in your relationship. For instance, you may feel your partner is less involved or interested in pregnancy care, or frustrated and sad that their life seems less impacted by lifestyle changes as your pregnancy progresses.
- You might worry that the timing is wrong, for financial reasons or concerns about delays in career or long-term goals.
- You may be feeling stressed about having a baby during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“ felt sick quite early on during my pregnancy and was overcome with anxiety about the future. I would lie awake with anxiety and think, how am I going to cope with two children? I thought these feelings were normal for all mums and tried to ignore them, but it progressively got worse.”
“When I first found out I was pregnant, I had already been diagnosed with general anxiety for a little over a year.”
factors that may contribute to antenatal anxiety and depression:
1
Family or personal history of anxiety or depression
2
Pregnancy complications
3
Fertility issues or previous pregnancy loss
4
Stressful life events
5
Relationship difficulties
6
Family violence and controlling behaviour
7
History of abuse and trauma
8
Difficult childhood experiences
9
Financial difficulties
10
Limited social support
“Motherhood is often isolating and lonely. Taking the smallest of steps, to reach out and start talking. You won’t regret it.”
Stories
PANDA National Helpline
Find someone to talk to, Monday to Saturday.
1300 726 306
Call 000 for police and ambulance if you or someone else are in immediate danger
Talk with friends or family
Consider talking about how you are feeling with someone you trust. This might be a friend or family member. Once you starting talking you might be surprised at how many others have had similar experiences and the support they can provide you.
Talk with your doctor
Talking with your doctor can be an important step to getting the help you need. They should be able to give you non-judgemental support, assessment, diagnosis, and ongoing care and treatment. They can also refer you to specialists such as a counsellor, psychologist or psychiatrist.
Get help now
If you are having suicidal thoughts or are feeling disorientated it’s important to get help immediately. PANDA is not a crisis service, if you need immediate support call Lifeline 13 11 14 (24/7).