As we continue our conversation for Mental Health Awareness Month on mental health and motherhood, it’s important we bring our attention to a major mental health concern for new mothers: postpartum depression.

Once a stigma, more and more mothers are opening up about the severe depression they have experienced after giving birth. This is a good thing. Because the more we know about postpartum depression, the more we can work to prevent and treat it.

Whenever I see a new mother at her baby’s one-, two-, four- and six-month visit, I ask about her moods. Most mothers are honest, but occasionally they feel ashamed for feeling depressed and hide it. The problem with postpartum depression is that many women who experience it don’t know they have it. All they know is that they feel down, tired and hopeless. That’s why I always ask a family member (husband, mother, father) to watch the mother closely. Often, a close loved one can recognize depression before the mother can. That’s why it is really important to listen to what loved ones tell you.

There is a lot of information out there. If you’re unsure what postpartum depression is, if you’re wondering if you have…