Another depressing study about working moms and … depression. Wheeeee! Here’s the scoop from HealthDay News:
The analysis of national data on 2,130 mothers with depression also found that working mothers were less likely to receive adequate treatment, possibly because long work hours make it difficult for them to find time to seek treatment.
Why am I not surprised? We usually put ourselves last, whether it’s regarding our physical or mental health. When a busy working mom is feeling depressed, she’s more likely to brush it off because she simply has too much else going on to deal with it.
Well, I’m here to tell you: If your own happiness isn’t worth the time and money for treatment, do it for your family. They need you to be in a good place mentally:
Depression in mothers can have a major impact on the entire family, especially on the health and well-being of their children, the researchers noted. Treating depression in mothers can improve the long-term health of their families.
If you know you’re depressed, please get some help — you can start with an appointment with your regular doctor. If you think you might be depressed but aren’t sure, take this depression health check from WebMD. Even if you’re uninsured, there are options, including generic antidepressants (for as little as $4 a month) and public health clinics with free or sliding scale fees for therapy sessions.
Take care of yourselves, mamas! You deserve to be happy — or at the very least, not depressed.
You may also like
3 thoughts on “Working Moms Don’t Have Time to Be Depressed”
Leave a Reply
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
Treating depression in mothers benefits the long-term health of families. And yet, as I found when I filled out an application for private health insurance recently, if your record shows you've been treated for depression it can affect your ability to get coverage. (I personally don't have it on my record, but I was appalled at the things they wanted to know – such as whether you've ever had hemmorhoids and basically every little thing you've sought treatment for in the past however many years.)
I don't know what the answer is to our nation's healthcare problems, but having to wonder whether you'll be able to get health insurance should you lose your job and have *anything* other than the common cold on your record doesn't help working moms feel any safer – or more inclined to seek treatment or be honest with their doctors if they are suffering from something like depression.
And yet the irony is that treating it can potentially reduce the healthcare costs incurred by the rest of the family. I don't see a lot of rational thinking in penalizing someone for taking prescription anti-depressants if it helps keep the rest of the family healthy.
Obviously, I need to write a longer blog post on this topic…
Coming from a working mom who has been fighting depression for years (pre-kids, even), I couldn't agree more with the statements in this article. It definitely affects my kids when I'm hiding out in my room or yelling at them because I can't handle things. I've realized more recently that taking time for myself & getting treatment is the best thing. If not for myself but for my kids. It is getting better and my kids seem more relaxed than they used to be.
I don’t have a computer or a phone and because of that I used to have problems communicating with virtual psychotherapy. I was totally desperate, but I found a solution. After reading the regain reviews I came to the conclusion that they offer the best online therapy. First I had to find out what is psychotherapy? I contacted the therapist and he was happy to explain the entire session to me. The sessions are long and very inexpensive. I was more than satisfied and I have been here for three months. I would recommend it to anyone!