What is Postpartum Psychosis: This is What You Need to Know
Because postpartum psychosis is a relatively rare event, we do not have as much information on this illness as we have on postpartum depression. In addition, most of the literature we have on postpartum psychosis is not new. A few years back, the American Journal of Psychiatry published an excellent review. Another useful resource was published in the Obstetric Clinics of North America. Both citations are at the end of this post. Both of those...
Online Course on Women’s Mental Health – Final Week
ONLINE REGISTRATION IS STILL OPEN We are currently offering an online course on women’s mental health. This online course focuses on the diagnosis and treatment of psychiatric disorders in women across the reproductive lifespan. Specialized knowledge is necessary to tailor treatments to reproductive events such as pregnancy and pregnancy planning, the postpartum, breastfeeding, the menopausal transition, and menstrual cycle related mood dysregulation. The course runs from November 4 – December 16. In addition to the...
Maternal Anxiety and Adverse Perinatal Outcomes: Why We Need to Screen Women for Anxiety During Pregnancy
When providing information to patients regarding the use of medications during pregnancy, one key element of the decision-making process is an appraisal of the risks associated with untreated psychiatric illness in the mother. While there are risks associated with taking medications during pregnancy, untreated illness in the mother also carries some degree of risk. There is evidence to indicate that mothers with untreated psychiatric illness are more likely to have worse pregnancy outcomes and are...
Weekly Roundup for NOVEMBER 8, 2019: Recent Publications in Women’s Mental Health
In a large study published in the American Journal of Psychiatry, researchers observed higher rates of depressive symptoms in adolescents treated with oral contraceptives. However, this study did not show any increase in risk for depression in older women taking oral contraceptives. These findings are similar to those reported in an earlier study from Denmark. In that study, the risk of depressive symptoms generally decreased with increasing age. Adolescents (15-19 years) using oral contraceptives had...
Online Course on Women’s Mental Health Is Live!
ONLINE REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN We are currently offering an online course on women’s mental health. This online course focuses on the diagnosis and treatment of psychiatric disorders in women across the reproductive lifespan. Specialized knowledge is necessary to tailor treatments to reproductive events such as pregnancy and pregnancy planning, the postpartum, breastfeeding, the menopausal transition, and menstrual cycle related mood dysregulation. The course runs from November 4 – December 16. In addition to the...
Clinical Update 2019: Tamoxifen and Antidepressants
Women receiving tamoxifen for the treatment or prevention of breast cancer should be aware of possible drug-drug interactions between tamoxifen and specific antidepressant medications. Antidepressants are used widely to treat depression and anxiety disorders in midlife women. In addition, multiple studies have shown that SSRI and SNRI antidepressants are an effective non-hormonal treatment for hot flashes; over 25% of women who are experiencing hot flashes related to tamoxifen therapy are now prescribed antidepressants to manage...