Junior Leagues of California are celebrating the fact that May will be permanently designated “Perinatal Depression Awareness Month” in California. It was because of their hard work, led by the State Public Affairs Committee (SPAC) of the Junior Leagues of California, and that of California Assembly Member Pedro Nava (D-Santa Barbara), that ACR105 was passed with unanimous bipartisan support in both the Assembly and Senate.
SPAC will kick off the month with a Perinatal Depression awareness campaign entitled “Speak Up When You’re Down”, California’s pregnant and new mothers can only benefit from the increased attention on this common illness.
Additionally, an article in the Nursing for Women’s Health Journal listed several important points:
- One of the most devastating effects of Perinatal depression is that it occurs at a time when most women feel they should be experiencing joy
- Mothers experiencing depression need to know that what they are feeling has a name and that symptoms can be treated
- A health marketing campaign to improve screening used the tag line- ‘You can’t tell by looking’ and listed the following criteria: If you are worried, sad, nervous, irritable, or not sure, tell your provider about how you’re feeling. A healthy pregnancy and postpartum period include mental health.
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