The common portrayal of pregnancy can be very misleading.
Having a baby is an exciting time, a time of change, but not a time that’s easy for every mum-to-be.
Pressures from family, friends, the media and elsewhere, not to mention all the worries that come with becoming a parent or growing your family, mean many women struggle with their mental health while pregnant.
A UK study has found that 11 per cent of women felt depressed during their pregnancy.
Up to 15 per cent suffered with anxiety, while two per cent had eating disorders and another two per cent had obsessive-compulsive tendencies.
A number of others experienced a combination of these.
Overall, one in four of the study’s participants had mental health issues while expecting a baby.
The researchers from King’s College London looked at 545 women between November 2014 and June 2016.
Their conclusions were arrived at based on interviews between midwives and expectant mums.
The report’s aim, according to its author Louise Howard, is to encourage conversation about mental health during pregnancy.
“Women should be asked, by a non-judgemental and supportive health professional, at all contacts in pregnancy and after birth about their emotional wellbeing.
“Mental disorders during pregnancy are associated with adverse outcomes for women, pregnancy, the fetus, infant, childhood, and adolescence.”
