pregnancy - MGH Center for Women's Mental Health

Preliminary Study: Exercise in Pregnancy Appears to Lessen Depressive Symptoms

A recent study suggests that physical exercise during pregnancy may reduce depressive symptoms. This study from Spain included 184 healthy pregnant women (31.37 ± 3.62 years). Women randomized to the exercise group (EG) participated in a supervised exercise program consisting of three, 55- to 60-min sessions per week throughout pregnancy. A total of 167 pregnant women were analyzed; 90 in the exercise group and 77 in the control group. Significant differences were found between the two groups at the end of the study in terms of level of depressive symptoms as measured by the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D): 7.67 ± 6.30 in the exercise group vs. 11.34 ± 9.74 in the control group (p = .005). The percentage of women who were depressed was also lower in the exercise group (12.2%) as compared to the control group (24.7%).

By MGH Center for Women's Mental Health|2016-07-21T11:26:32-04:00June 9th, 2014|Alternative & Complementary, Depressive Disorders, Psychiatric Disorders During Pregnancy, Treatment|Comments Off

Pregnancy and Marijuana: How Much Do We Really Know?

With many states now considering the legalization of medical marijuana, there seems to be a growing sense that marijuana is relatively safe and may, in some cases, be more attractive or effective than traditional pharmacologic interventions. We have witnessed this shift in attitude in our clinic, where many of our clinicians have been surprised to hear women ask questions about the dangers of using antidepressants and other medications during pregnancy while at the same time feeling relatively comfortable with their use of marijuana in the same setting.

By MGH Center for Women's Mental Health|2014-05-15T17:09:26-04:00May 15th, 2014|Cannabis, Outcomes, Perinatal Substance Use|Comments Off

Latest News From the National Pregnancy Registry

We would like to thank you for your continuing support of the National Pregnancy Registry for Atypical Antipsychotics (NPRAA) at the Center for Women’s Mental Health at Massachusetts General Hospital. We are grateful for all the referrals made to the Registry as our numbers continue to grow every day. Given the Registry’s successful enrollment, we are pleased to announce our plan to release preliminary data at an upcoming conference in June, the American Society of Clinical Psychopharmacology (ASCP) Annual Meeting.

By MGH Center for Women's Mental Health|2014-05-09T21:28:52-04:00May 5th, 2014|Outcomes, Pregnancy & Medications, Risk of Malformations|Comments Off

Can the EPDS Be Used During Pregnancy to Predict PPD?

Various instruments have been used to detect postpartum depression (PPD). However, rather than waiting for depression to occur, can we possibly identify women during pregnancy who will go on to develop postpartum illness? If we [...]

By MGH Center for Women's Mental Health|2014-04-17T10:54:34-04:00April 28th, 2014|Diagnosis & Screening, Postpartum Depression, Postpartum Psychiatric Disorders|Comments Off

Antidepressant Use Associated with Longer Duration of Breastfeeding

Data was presented at the 18th Perinatal Society of Australia and New Zealand (PSANZ) Annual Conference in Perth regarding the use of antidepressants among breastfeeding women. Analyzing the data from the Danish National Birth Cohort [...]

By MGH Center for Women's Mental Health|2015-07-09T11:39:07-04:00April 18th, 2014|Antidepressants, Breastfeeding & Medications, Outcomes, Postpartum Psychiatric Disorders|Comments Off

Sleep Interventions During Pregnancy Reduce the Risk of Postpartum Depression

It should be no surprise that many women complain of disrupted sleep during pregnancy. According to a recent study, approximately 28%-38% of women meet criteria for sleep deficiency during early pregnancy. (Sleep deficiency is defined as short sleep duration, insufficient sleep, [...]

By MGH Center for Women's Mental Health|2014-04-14T15:13:44-04:00April 16th, 2014|Postpartum Depression, Postpartum Psychiatric Disorders, Sleep Disorders, Treatment|Comments Off

A New Questionnaire for Diagnosing Perinatal Anxiety Disorders

By MGH Center for Women's Mental Health|2015-07-16T15:18:43-04:00April 9th, 2014|Anxiety Disorders, Diagnosis & Screening, Postpartum Psychiatric Disorders, Psychiatric Disorders During Pregnancy|Comments Off

Clinical Update 2014: Use of Methylphenidate During Pregnancy

For women with mild to moderate attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms, we frequently recommend discontinuing medication and switching to a non-pharmacologic intervention. Although these women might experience some decrease in their level of functioning, they typically [...]

By MGH Center for Women's Mental Health|2017-12-22T14:40:20-04:00March 19th, 2014|ADHD Medications, Outcomes, Pregnancy & Medications, Risk of Malformations|Comments Off

Understanding the Link Between Maternal Diet, Depression and Child Development

While the human brain continues develop throughout the first twenty or so years of life, the most vulnerable periods of brain development occur during pregnancy and the first 2 to 3 years of the child’s [...]

By MGH Center for Women's Mental Health|2014-03-13T09:26:59-04:00March 17th, 2014|Child Outcomes, Outcomes, Psychiatric Disorders During Pregnancy|Comments Off

Pregnancy and the Postpartum Period: A Time of Vulnerability for Women with OCD

While we have now a fair amount of information regarding the course of major depression and bipolar disorder during pregnancy and the postpartum period, we have much less information on the course obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). [...]

By MGH Center for Women's Mental Health|2014-03-07T13:56:28-04:00March 10th, 2014|Anxiety Disorders, Postpartum Psychiatric Disorders, Prevalence & Risk Factors, Psychiatric Disorders During Pregnancy|Comments Off