Today is World Mental Health Day. I’ve written extensively on the topic of depression and anxiety in the past. Today I want to focus on a mental health concern many mothers are facing today: postpartum depression.

It’s estimated that up to 80 percent of women experience what is commonly called the post-baby blues—feelings of fatigue and worry after having a child. The post-baby blues can last for a few or several weeks. Postpartum depression is much more severe than the post-baby blues and lasts for a prolonged period of time.

Postpartum depression is much more severe than the post-baby blues and lasts for a prolonged period of time.

Symptoms of postpartum depression include:

• Feeling sad, hopeless, empty, or overwhelmed
• Crying more often than usual or for no apparent reason
• Oversleeping, or being unable to sleep even when her baby is asleep
• Experiencing anger or rage
• Losing interest in activities that are usually enjoyable
• Eating too little or too much
• Having trouble bonding or forming an emotional attachment with her baby
• Persistently doubting her ability to care for her baby
• Thinking about harming herself or her baby.

(You can read the full list of symptoms at the National Institute of Mental Health…