Postpartum Progress

Online Petition Keeps Spreading for MOTHERS Act

We're up to 13,000 signers now for the Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance's online petition supporting the Melanie Blocker Stokes Mothers Act for postpartum depression.  Here are some more bloggers who have supported the cause, and believe in more funding for research into the causes and treatments of PPD ...

• Not That I Don't Love My Kids
• Fertility Stories
• Coping With Life
• Scobberlotch

Here's my question ... where the heck is everybody else?  How many millions of you out there have suffered depression and know how horrible it is?  How many of you wish there was more clarity around these illnesses?  Please join us in supporting the Melanie Blocker Stokes MOTHERS Act.

PPD Warrior Chicks Rock!

Postpartum Depression Warrior Chicks (and the supportive "roosters" out there), you rock!  The Depression & Bipolar Support Alliance's online petition to support the Melanie Blocker Stokes MOTHERS Act has now reached nearly 12,000 signatures in a week and a half.  I'm so excited for you and all of the other concerned people around the country who are taking action to show they care for new mothers.

Do we need more signatures?  ABSOLUTELY!!  Those U.S. Senators need to hear completely loud and clear that we believe the women of America deserve more research into the cause of postpartum mood disorders, better trained healthcare providers and greater awareness to reduce the stigma.  Keep pressing on your friends, and loved ones, and church members, and neighbors, and pets with opposable thumbs to sign, sign, SIGN!  Let's get 100,000 signatures -- don't forget, 800,000 women in America suffer from postpartum mood disorders each year. 

Here is the link again to the DBSA online petition, which is supported fully by Postpartum Support International (and Postpartum Progress, of course!): http://www.capwiz.com/ndmda/issues/alert/?alertid=11246546

We especially need to hear from people in the following states:  Massachusetts, North Carolina, Maine, Minnesota, Tennessee, Colorado, Mississippi, Utah, Connecticut, Alaska, Iowa, Nebraska, Arkansas, West Virginia, Kansas, Delaware, Hawaii, New Mexico, New Hampshire, Idaho, DC, Alabama, South Dakota, Montana, Louisiana, Oklahoma and Wyoming.  If you know people who live there, give them a shout out and see how they feel about the MOTHERS Act.  Bloggers in those areas, please help us out.  I hope more people from those states will be able to join us in supporting this bill, which is about taking positive action against a devastating illness.  I've got a Mississippi family contingent that I'm going to start calling as soon as I'm done with this post!! 

Supporting Mothers Everywhere

Have you signed the petition yet?

http://capwiz.com/ndmda/issues/alert/?alertid=11246546

Here are some other women who are speaking up in support of the Melanie Blocker Stokes MOTHERS Act:

• Mental Health Notes
• Healthy Concerns
• Out of the Valley
• Postpartum Perspective
• Giggles and Gulps
• Dig Your Toes In

MOTHERS Act Losing Momentum -- Online Petition Needs Your Signature

It's time to talk about the Melanie Blocker Stokes (MBS) MOTHERS Act again.  I know, I know.  We've heard this all before, you're thinking.  I already called my Senator, you're thinking.  I already wrote about this on my blog, you're thinking.  Sheesh!, you may even be thinking.  Well, apparently everything you and I have done so far in support of this bill hasn't been enough. 

As you may know, there are some people who are completely convinced that the MBS MOTHERS Act is a conspiratorial plot by the government to drug pregnant and postpartum women, and it must be STOPPED AT ALL COSTS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  You and I know that's not true.  So we've kind of ignored the negative campaign -- been slightly pissed and sometimes even truly annoyed but gone on with our day because it's silly and we have lots of more important things to worry about than some misguided folks.  But the U.S. Senate can't ignore it when lots and lots and lots of people speak out.  That's how they work, right?  Polls.  When they hear from lots of people on a certain issue, they tend to go in that direction.  Right now our Senators are hearing from a whole host of people who think it's a really bad idea to pass this bill -- a bill that provides funding for increased research into the cause and treatments of postpartum mood disorders, provides better training for healthcare providers and provides for an awareness campaign so that more women will know about these illnesses and realize that they can get help. Those people, bless their hearts, are very vocal and have every right to say what they think. (Tom Cruise must be very pleased.) 

Conversely, those who believe in the MBS MOTHERS Act are not being anywhere near vocal enough. Our Senators are NOT HEARING from enough of those of us who support it.  If this trend continues, this bill will not pass.  What happened to us, and to hundreds of thousands like us, and to our friends and sisters and mothers and girlfriends will keep happening.  Women will continue to think they've gone crazy, never to return to their old selves.  They will continue to live in fear of speaking up and telling someone about it.  They will continue to be afraid to lose their children.  They will continue to suffer, hurting both their health and the health of their children, because they won't get treatment.  Some might even kill themselves, or become so ill they harm their children.  That is unacceptable to me.  Is it acceptable to you?  I started this blog because I was damn well not going to let anybody go through the isolation and terror and ineffective treatment from an untrained doctor that I received.  Don't you feel the same? 

Postpartum Progress readers, and anyone who cares about postpartum mood disorders, I very humbly beg you to complete two very easy assignments:

1.  Click this link and sign this petition to support passage of the MBS MOTHERS Act.  It is as easy as pie.  Thanks to the Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance for getting the petition going.  All you have to do is fill out your name and address and click send, and it will be sent all the proper places.   The petition is also supported by Postpartum Support International.

2.  Forward the petition link to everyone you know and tell them to sign their name to it as well.

We need thousands of people to do this.  Not just a few hundred.  Seriously, thousands.  Please get clicking. And if you have a website, or an organization of proactive women and moms, or a blog, please get your readers/members involved ASAP.

P.S.  In case you're wondering, here is a list of the respected organizations that endorse the Melanie Blocker Stokes MOTHERS Act:

• Postpartum Support International
• Association of Women's Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses
• American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists
• Children's Defense Fund
• March of Dimes
• American College of Nurse Midwives
• Suicide Prevention Action Network USA
• Mental Health America
• Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance
• National Alliance on Mental Illness
• National Women's Law Center
• National Partnership for Women & Families
• National Council for Community Behavioral Healthcare
• Association of Maternal and Child Health Programs
• American Psychological Association
• American Psychiatric Association
• Postpartum Resource Center of New York

If you would like to add your organization to this illustrious list, please let me know at stonecallis@msn.com.  (They can't all be part of the conspiracy to drug America's moms, can they???)
 

House Passes Paul Wellstone Mental Health and Addiction Parity Act

Last week, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Paul Wellstone Mental Health and Addiction Parity Act.  This bill, which has now moved on to the Senate, requires insurers and health plans to end the imposition of treatment limitations or financial limitations when they offer mental health benefits that are more restrictive than those applied to medical and surgical services.  (It does not require insurers to offer mental health coverage, but first things first I guess.)  Following is an overview of some of the bill's key provisions, as taken from Speaker Nancy Pelosi's website:

Requires equity in financial requirements. Under the bill, an insurer or group health plan must ensure that any financial requirements – such as deductibles, copayments, coinsurance, and out-of-pocket expenses – applied to mental health and addiction benefits are no more restrictive or costly than the financial requirements applied to comparable medical and surgical benefits that the plan covers.

Requires equity in treatment limits. Under the bill, a group health plan must ensure that the treatment limitations – such as frequency of treatment, number of visits, and days of coverage – applied to mental health and addiction benefits are no more restrictive than the treatment limitations applied to comparable medical and surgical benefits that the plan covers.

Does not mandate mental health benefits. The bill does not mandate insurers or group health plans to provide any mental health coverage. The bill’s provisions only apply to plans that choose to offer mental health coverage. 

Exempts certain businesses. The bill exempts small businesses with 50 or fewer employees. It also exempts those businesses that experience an overall premium increase of 2 percent or more in the first year and 1 percent in subsequent years.

Covers same mental illnesses and addiction disorders as FEHBP. The bill ensures that group health plans cover the same range of mental illnesses and addiction disorders covered by the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program – i.e., the mental illnesses and addiction disorders included in the mental health practitioner’s guide, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM).

Does not mandate out-of-network benefits. The bill simply states that if a plan already offers out-ofnetwork benefits, it must offer out-of-network benefits on the same terms for mental health services as it does for medical and surgical services.

Does not pre-empt stronger state parity laws. The bill establishes a federal standard, a floor of protections that would apply to job-based health coverage, but allows states to be more protective of their residents with stronger parity laws.

Explicitly permits medical management of health benefits. The bill allows the use of medical management tools that are based on valid medical evidence and pertinent to the patient’s medical condition so that specific coverage is not arbitrary in its application and more transparent to the patient.

Provides for enforcement. The bill provides remedies to protect beneficiaries’ rights and permits enforcement of the bill’s equity requirements by the Internal Revenue Service, the Department of Health and Human Services, and the Department of Labor.

Postpartum Perspective & Unexpected Blessing Blog On MOTHERS Act

Here's a great post on the new blog Postpartum Perspective about the MOTHERS Act opposition.  Check it out! One highlight:

"We have ended up debating whether or not postpartum mental health problems should be treated with medication, whether breastfeeding while taking meds is good or bad, whether health care providers should be more or less intrusive in mother's women's lives. Why aren't we debating about whether or not the fact that women are dying due to lack of support is a problem?"

And another great piece on Unexpected Blessing from Lauren Hale, as she openly shares what she went through and why the MOTHERS Act is so crucial.  A highlight:

"I believe in this bill because I have lived through the very depths of the condition it is fighting to uncover and remove the stigma of so that the next mother who suffers will not have to suffer in silence, will not have to go to her doctor and be rejected and told to “suck it up” and that this is a normal part of motherhood, something that she should get over, something that shouldn’t be happening because she is more than 6wks postpartum and therefore all her hormones should be back to normal by now."

Postpartum Progress Speaks Out in Full Support of MOTHERS Act

I said I would speak out on the ridiculous campaign being waged through petitions and blogs right now to block passage of the Melanie Blocker Stokes MOTHERS Act ... so here goes (hold on to your hats, folks):

I am truly peeved and disappointed at the breathless, hysterical ranting going on about the MOTHERS Act.  Many of those who oppose it seem to have done LITTLE to NOTHING to inform themselves about the actual bill and the organizations that support it.  Falsehoods are being spread.  Here are some examples:

"A federal bill that is dangerous to mothers and their newborns but being promoted under the guise of ensuring that 'new mothers and their families are educated about postpartum depression, screened for symptoms, and provided with essential services ...'  This is quite simply false ... it will push more mothers onto dangerous antidepressant drugs ..."

"If this bill is passed, any money spent on screening will be a complete waste of tax dollars.  The results will be an INCREASE in the severity and frequency of postpartum depression and an increase in violence and suicide."

"This legislation will ensure that new mothers and their families are also subjected to such treatment as they are screened for symptoms and provided so called 'help' that pushes these new mothers over the edge."

"The bill was originally proposed in response to the death by suicide of Melanie Stokes, a pharmaceutical rep. who took her own life by leaping from a balcony several stories off of the ground. Contrary to popular understanding it was not post-partum depression that killed Melanie, but the numerous antidepressant drugs she was taking ..." 

I'm not sure what algorithm they're using that would indicate that doing more to identify and treat these illnesses would lead to more PPD -- is this the new math they're teaching in schools?  And I have no idea how in good conscience they could spread lies about Melanie Blocker Stokes when her fearless and amazing mother Carol has worked so hard to get legislation like this passed so that other mothers can avoid the pain she has had to endure in losing her daughter. 

Now I know standards dictate that I don't share with you what these people are saying because it somehow gives them a voice.  But I'm blowing up the standards today, because I think my readers need to know exactly what is being said, so that you can be moved to speak up about it and defend the importance of the MOTHERS Act.  (One of the organizations behind this push is CCHR.  CCHR is the Church of Scientology.  Need I say more?)

The Melanie Blocker Stokes MOTHERS Act does NOT recommend drugs or require drugs or endorse drugs.  What is does is the following:

• Encourage the Department of Health and Human Services to coordinate and continue research to expand the understanding of the causes of, and find treatments for, postpartum conditions. 
• Encourage a national public awareness campaign to be administered by HHS to increase awareness and knowledge of postpartum depression and psychosis.
• Encourage HHS to make grants available for projects for the establishment, operation and coordination of systems for the delivery of essential services to individuals with postpartum depression.

There is no nefarious undercurrent, no plot by "the man."  The simple point is to continue to look into the causes of postpartum mood disorders, to let people know they exist and to provide better support services for the women who have them and their families.   Period, the end.  Every woman has the choice to decline participation in a screening, and every woman has the choice to look at all of the various treatment options available to her and choose the best one for her, whether it includes medication, therapy, alternative treatments, support groups or some combination thereof. 

Do I agree that we must be careful to only treat those who are ill?  Of course.  Do I agree that we must be careful in the types of treatments that are used, and must recognize the risks of taking certain treatments as well as the risks of not taking them?  Of course.  But I will not allow fearful conspiracy theorists to derail what is most important, which is getting our country's healthcare system to eliminate the stigma of mental illness, recognize the prevalence of postpartum mood disorders, learn more about their cause, allow new mothers who are suffering to feel safe in getting professional help and identify the best and safest treatments possible.

Please add your thoughts.  Scroll to the bottom of this post and look for the comments link to speak out.  C'mon girls - USE YOUR VOICE.

Here are links to other great comments about the opposition and the importance of supporting the MOTHERS Act.  If I've missed your response, let me know and I'll add it to this list.

• Susan Stone, President of PSI - this is so beautifully written - you MUST read it
• Spin Me I Pulsate
• Buoy for Perinatal Blues & Beyond
• Postpartum Perspective
• Unexpected Blessing/Sharing the Journey
• Depression Introspection

PSI Responds to False Rumors About MOTHERS Act

Stories have been circulating on the web and elsewhere disseminating falsehoods about the Melanie Blocker Stokes MOTHERS Act.  Postpartum Support International has shared a response to those falsehoods that is very important for everyone to read.  I'll offer my response separately.

It has come to the attention of PSI that misinformation about the Melanie Blocker Stokes MOTHERS Act and its lead sponsor, Postpartum Support International (PSI), is being aggressively circulated on the web.  This bulletin suggests protest against the bill's adoption on false belief, and implies that PSI's interest in the legislation emanates from its funding by pharmaceutical companies.  These assertions indicate the bulletin's authors have neither read nor understood the legislation nor sought verification of PSI's funding sources, which are available to the public.  The following is true:

1.  PSI is not, nor has it ever been, funded by pharmaceuticals.  Our funding comes from private donations, memberships and our own fundraising efforts.  It appears our fine organization was mischaracterized without any attempt to verify this false assertion.

2.  The Melanie Blocker Stokes MOTHERS Act does not mandate screening, the use of medications, or any other form of involuntary or coercive engagement in unwanted services for perinatal mood disorders.

3.  Melanie Blocker Stokes leapt to her death as a result of postpartum psychosis which was not promptly diagnosed and treated.  Her mother, Carol Blocker, has devoted her life to the passage of this protective legislation named for her daughter.  Her death was not the result of medication misuse.

4.  To further clarify and summarize, the Melanie Blocker Stokes MOTHERS Act encourages the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) to coordinate and continue research to expand the understanding of the causes of, and find treatments for, postpartum conditions.  It also encourages a national public awareness campaign, to be administered by HHS to increase awareness and knowledge of postpartum depression and psychosis.  It encourages HHS to make grants available for projects for the establishment, operation and coordination of systems for the delivery of essential services to individuals with postpartum depression.

It is most unfortunate that any organization would attempt to dissuade public support of critical legislation by circulating erroneous information about the bill's contents and intent.  Please call or visit PSI's website to read the legislation or submit any questions.

National Center for Children in Poverty Releases New Policy Brief on Maternal Depression

Project THRIVE a the National Center for Children in Poverty at Columbia University has just released a new policy brief on maternal depression: Reducing Maternal Depression and Its Impact on Young Children: Toward a Responsive Early Childhood Policy Framework.  The policy brief provides an overview of why it is so important to address maternal depression as a central part of the effort to ensure that all young children enter school ready to succeed. It highlights:

• what research says about the impact of maternal depression on young children, particularly infants and toddlers, and how prevalent maternal depression is;
• examples of community and programmatic strategies to reduce maternal depression and prevent negative cognitive, social emotional and behavioral impacts on young children;
• key barriers to focusing more attention to maternal depression in policies to promote healthy early child development and school readiness;
• state efforts to address policy barriers and craft more appropriate policy responses; and
• recommendations

You can download the PDF and read the executive summary here.

Project THRIVE is a public policy analysis and education initiative at the National Center for Children in Poverty to promote healthy child development and to provide policy support to the State Early Childhood Comprehensive Systems (ECCS) initiatives funded by the Maternal and Child Health Bureau.

Part of NCCP’s longstanding commitment to promote improved state early childhood policies and practices, the goal of Project THRIVE is to help states strengthen and expand their early childhood systems, paying particular attention to strategies that improve services for those at highest risk and that help reduce disparities in access and quality of care to early childhood health and mental health.

Perinatal Mood Disorders Prevention Act Now Law In Illinois

I heard from Mary Howorth that Illinois Senate Bill 15 became Public Act 095-0469 which means that the Perinatal Mood Disorders Prevention Act is law as of January 1, 2008 in Illinois!!  She says she is thrilled and is working to get some more money behind it.  Mary says a lot of good things have come out of the process of getting the bill passed.  The Voices for Illinois Children and Illinois Ounce of Prevention hosted a summit on perinatal depression and are really behind some huge changes that are on the horizon for women, children and families here.  She's going to keep us updated ...

Menendez & Rush Say MOTHERS Act Legislation Nearly Complete

This week, the offices of Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ) and Congressman Bobby L. Rush (D-IL) announced they are finalizing the new federal postpartum depression legislation for its anticipated victory in the U.S. Congress.  The legislation, which was called the MOTHERS Act, has been slightly renamed as the Melanie Blocker Stokes MOTHERS Act.  This is in order to honor the mother whose name served as the title of the House bill that passed this fall.  Melanie was a beautiful and successful new mother who committed suicide in 2001 while suffering from postpartum depression. 

Many bloggers took part in a big legislative push this October by participating in Blog Day for the MOTHERS Act, hosted by BlogHer, Postpartum Support International and my blog Postpartum Progress.  I believe the action many of you took through your blogs and your phone calls to speak out about the need for more education and better treatment had a huge influence on legislators moving forward so quickly.  I hope we will continue to make our voices heard as we get closer to bill passage.  It is expected that the Melanie Blocker Stokes MOTHERS Act may be passed in early spring or possibly sooner once America's legislative bodies reconvene.  It appears that Democratic support is substantial, but some Republicans still need convincing.  Postpartum Support International president Susan Stone has been informed that she and others will be contacted when the timing is right for renewed advocacy supportive of the bill's passage.

As many of you know, the 2007-2008 BlogHers Act has been focused on harnessing the power of women online and their blogs to address maternal health.  This issue includes postpartum depression and related mood disorders, which can have a devastating effect on new mothers and their families.   

 

Star-Ledger Story Says New Jersey's "Speak Up" Program Has Problems

The Newark Star-Ledger has just done a report on the status of New Jersey's "Speak Up When You're Down" program that I think everyone should read.  Click here for the full story, written by Susan K. Livio. 

Here is the headline:

"Since Gov. Jon Corzine signed the landmark postpartum depression law 20 months ago, [New Jersey] has spent $9 million on the program: half on TV and radio ads and brochures encouraging women to ask for help, and half on training more than 6,000 medical professionals in how to identify the illness.

But health experts and women using the hotline say the law has fallen short: Women are seeking help, but when they do, state and medical professionals often are not prepared to assist them.

Many women found a state hotline staffed by people who were inexperienced at helping those in a mental health crisis. Obstetricians, gynecologists and other doctors often are afraid to get involved, they say, because of their lack of psychiatric knowledge. And there is a shortage of mental health professionals skilled in treating the illness."

"The people who did speak up were greatly disappointed," said Joyce Venis, a Princeton psychiatric nurse who treats women with perinatal mood disorders and served on the state advisory group that assembled the public awareness campaign. "How could this happen? I believed this was going to be a good program..."

The story goes on to share stories of women who definitely did not receive the type of treatment we would want them to receive when suffering from a postpartum mood disorder.  How could this happen? 

It happened because what New Jersey is trying to do, and what all other states should do, is hard.  VERY HARD.  We can make laws and create nice advertisements and set up toll-free hotlines and have the best intentions, but what needs to change is a lot of processes and attitudes that have been around for a very long time.  As I wrote in a post a little over a week ago, if we don't make it clear exactly who is responsible for caring for the mental health of postpartum women, and if we don't have buy-in from those people, and if we don't have well-trained mental health professionals available everywhere, then we don't have what we need.

These projects are the kinds of projects that take years to implement fully and properly.  Sure, it would seem from the article that there are certain things New Jersey could have done better from the outset, like staffing the hotline with better trained workers.  But at the same time the state can't help the fact that there aren't enough psychiatric professionals who really know how to treat women with PPD and related disorders.  (In the article, one woman was told by her doctor that PPD is a made-up illness for goodness sakes!) Additionally, as some of you have experienced, there are doctors who will say they know how to treat women with PPD and then it turns out they really have no experience in this area and we have to start over and find someone else, having wasted weeks or months continuing to suffer.  It's not New Jersey's fault if doctors like that self-select to be on the referral list -- the state has no way of really knowing who is good at this and who isn't. 

I just want to thank New Jersey for trying.  I hope they take a look at where they've gone wrong and try to do better.  More importantly, I hope that the various constituencies who are key to the success of the process -- OB/GYNs, hospitals, child welfare workers, psychiatric professionals, med schools and law enforcement -- do the same.  I just really believe that New Jersey will get there.  It may be painful for those of us who don't get the best care when it's our turn, but down the road hundreds of thousands of women will benefit.  I look forward to that day.

Study Suggests New Moms' Mental & Physical Health Be Monitored Past 6 Weeks, But Who Will Do It?

A new study in the November/December 2007 issue of the Annals of Family Medicine takes a much-needed look at the postpartum health of working mothers.  The study looked at moms who return to the workplace 11 weeks after childbirth and found that they continue to need evaluation of their fatigue levels and mental and physical symptoms beyond the normal 6-week postpartum checkup.

"At 11 weeks postpartum these employed mothers continued to experience several childbirth-related symptoms, indicating a need for ongoing rest and recovery. Postpartum evaluations should include screening for anxiety and depression and evaluation of fatigue and other physical symptoms, including those related to job stress."

The study recommended that women showing continued symptoms should receive counsel on strategies to decrease job stress and increase social support at work and home, and that physicians should talk with them about the possible need for intermittent leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act to help them manage symptoms.

One of the most fascinating comments was this, from Pat McGovern, PhD, MPH at the School of Public Health at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, and her colleagues who wrote the study:

"The traditional medical perspective of the postpartum period refers to the time after childbirth that is required for the reproductive organs to return to their nonpregnant state, a process that takes approximately 6 weeks. Many physicians perceive this time as one requiring little assistance other than the recommended single postpartum visit ..."

All new mothers know this is true but I don't think I've ever seen it stated so plainly.  Our healthcare professionals are essentially focused on making sure our uteruses (or is it "uteri"?) are in working order ... but the rest of us?  Not so much. 

Dr. Laurie Barclay writes on Medscape.com:

"Because of the increased prevalence in the workplace of mothers with infants, greater understanding of factors that could improve postpartum health and facilitate return to work is greatly needed. Recovery from childbirth and successful return to work may be affected by personal factors such as preexisting health status, parity, breast-feeding, and social support from family and friends; as well as work-related factors including the timing of return to work, job stress, and support in the workplace."

Honestly, I think the results of this study apply equally to women who don't go back to work.  All new mothers suffer a compounding list of stresses that make it difficult to cope with daily responsibilities, and there is no specific group of healthcare professionals who has taken on the task of monitoring our whole health.   

Which group of clinicians will make sure women are properly evaluated and counseled?  The study specifically cites the need for screening new moms for anxiety and depression, but who will do it?  At the moment, no group of doctors taken on the job of providing that safety net.  I sometimes wonder whether they're all hoping someone else will step up to the plate so they can be relieved of the duty.  Sure, there are pockets of doctors and nurses in different places throughout the country who have recognized the importance of paying more attention to the health of new moms over a more extended period of time, but as a general rule many ignore it, and I wonder if some of the larger physicians' groups aren't actually against it.

The OB/GYNs are concerned with taking responsibility for the process of pregnancy and childbirth.  The pediatricians are primarily focused on the health of the baby.  Your primary care physician may not see you for months unless you come down with the flu, so they may never know if you're having problems.  They all say they don't have time, they don't have the proper training, they aren't reimbursed for it, they worry about the legal ramifications, etc.  And they're right on all those points.  Yet mental health screenings and treatment remain completely necessary if we care about having healthy mothers in this country. 

New moms are just not very likely to wander by the office of a mental health professional and drop in to say hello.  These people are specialists, for whom you generally need a referral.  We need a comprehensive nationwide process to get mothers mental healthcare if they need it, where the doctors responsible for screening and referral have buy-in and there is a clear line of sight.  Somebody is going to HAVE to take responsibility for this, so we need to work together to begin developing workable solutions.  Hopefully the MOTHERS Act will help to address this when it is passed, and it becomes federal law that all women are screened for postpartum depression and anxiety.  Notice I sad when, not if.

(crossposted at BlogHer.com)

Help Mothers Everywhere: Join Blog Day for the MOTHERS Act on October 24th

(crossposted at BlogHer and Postpartum Progress)

A beautiful young mother of two has been missing in Rhode Island now for more than a month.

Her name is Katie Corcoran and she is suffering from postpartum psychosis.  She was supposed to be released from the hospital to her family, but on September 5th, in some kind of mix-up, she was sent off in a taxi instead.  Her husband, small children, family and friends haven't seen or heard from her since.  This week, a friend of the family emailed me the following letter from Katie's mother, Nancy, to publish on my blog Postpartum Progress:

Katie,

This is your mom - please call home.  I want to know if you are safe.  I think about you all the time.  I worry about you.  I want to take care of you - with love and understanding.  You have always been my pride and joy.

Please.  Please call.

This story and so many others like it fill me with deep sadness and regret.  Women who commit suicide.  Women, like my mother, who don't know what's wrong with them, don't get treated and become alcoholics to escape the pain.  Women who reach out for help but are ignored or stigmatized and feel that hurt for the rest of their lives.  I regret that in this day and age we still don't know enough about dealing with postpartum mood disorders that something like Katie's disappearance could happen.  She is out there somewhere, hopefully alive, most likely delusional and alone.  And it's not her fault.  Before this she was a perfectly normal person.  She just happened to draw the short straw for postpartum mood disorders, and now she's lost. 

You and I can do something about this.  Maybe we can't just drop everything, go off in a plane to parts unknown with a picture of Katie in hand and search for her, but we CAN do something ... for Katie and for all the other mothers past and present and future who have suffered or will suffer from these illnesses.

On Wednesday October 24th, BlogHer, Postpartum Support International and Postpartum Progress are joining together to host Blog Day for the MOTHERS Act.  We're asking bloggers from around the country to write about the MOTHERS Act for postpartum depression on the 24th and to encourage their readers to pick up the phone that day, call their Senators and urge them to endorse this critical legislation.  I hope you will join us in this effort, which is part of the overall BlogHers Act 2007-2008 initiative to improve maternal health.

What is the MOTHERS Act?  The Moms Opportunity to Access Help, Education, Research and Support for Postpartum Depression Act, or MOTHERS Act (S. 1375), will ensure that new mothers and their families are educated about postpartum depression, screened for symptoms and provided with essential services.  In addition, it will increase research into the causes, diagnoses and treatments for postpartum depression.  The bill is sponsored by Senators Menendez and Durbin.

Postpartum depression is a serious and disabling condition that affects up to 20 percent of new mothers -- as much as 800,000 American women each year.  Yet only 15 percent of these women will receive any assessment or treatment.  Let me repeat.  With all we know and as smart as we are, only 15% of 800,000 women will get diagnosed and treated.  That is so wrong on so many levels.  Women are not being diagnosed because they're not being educated and they're not being screened.  Untreated, the consequences of maternal mood disorders range from chronic, disabling depression to death.  The impact of untreated maternal depression on infants/children ranges from behavioral and learning disabilities to depression and, in the worst case scenarios, death from infanticide.

Specifically, the MOTHERS Act will help new moms by:

• Providing important education and screening on postpartum depression (PPD) that can lead to early identification and treatment.  The legislation includes two grants to help healthcare providers educate, identify and treat PPD.
• Expanding important research to improve and discover new treatments, diagnostic tools and educational materials for providers.  Since the exact cause of PPD isn't known, research continues to be the key to unlocking the mystery of this condition.

The bill is currently with the Health, Education, Labor & Pensions (HELP) Committee of the Senate.  If the majority of the HELP Committee members endorse the MOTHERS Act, the bill will move forward for consideration by the Senate.  Without Senate sponsors, the bill could languish in committee and await reintroduction at a future date.  The moms of America can't wait for that.

Most Senators rarely hear from mothers (and others!), and phone calls from you and your readers will cause them to sit up and take notice on a specific issue.  Writing or sending emails has much less impact.  With your support, Blog Day for the MOTHERS Act can truly have a measurable impact.

Here's what to do on October 24th: 

• Grab a Blog Day for the MOTHERS Act button from BlogHer here and display it on your blog now.
• Tell your fellow bloggers about Blog Day for the MOTHERS Act so they can participate too.
• Visit the Postpartum Support International website and click the Welcome Bloggers button at the top to get all the information you need about the bill, how your readers can call their Senators, what to say, etc.
• Publish your post on postpartum depression and the MOTHERS Act on Wednesday, October 24th and don't forget to tag your post with: Blog Day for the MOTHERS Act, BlogHers Act, BlogHer, Postpartum Progress, Postpartum Support International, postpartum depression
• MAKE THOSE CALLS!!
• Once you've blogged, be sure to go back to the BlogHer page and leave your URL so others can link to you.
• I also welcome you to visit me at Postpartum Progress and leave a link to your blog or a message to my readers, most of whom are sufferers and the people who care for them.  If you have a question, email me at stonecallis@msn.com.

By the way, if you're not a blogger, I still encourage you to participate by calling and asking those around you to call their Senators to galvanize support for passage of the MOTHERS Act.  The more calls the better!!!

Postpartum mood disorders are a disease of motherhood -- they can affect any woman who becomes a mother, regardless of who she is.  If we don't do something to better educate and treat the mothers who may suffer, we are doing a disservice to all mothers, children and families everywhere.  All it takes is a phone call to let the Senate know that the women of America want the MOTHERS Act to pass.    

Nebraska Launches PPD Awareness Campaign

The Nebraska Department of Health & Human Services has launched a postpartum depression awareness campaign called Moms Reach Out.  The campaign features a website, a toll-free "Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies" helpline, and downloadable posters and brochures in English and in Spanish.  Kudos, Nebraska!

Gov. Blagojevich Needs to Sign PPD Legislation in Illinois

Here's a link to a story about Mary Howorth, who was instrumental in getting legislation passed in Illinois calling for screening of women for postpartum mood disorders.  The legislation is awaiting signature from the governor of Illinois, Rod Blagojevich.  Here's hoping the governor gets with it, and soon!  The women of Illinois need him to put pen to paper!

PPMD Deserves Attention No Matter Who Gets It

This is a link to a story from United Press International, from the annual meeting of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists that was held earlier this month.  (Sorry it took me this long to get to it!)  Here's what I loved about it:

"'Unfortunately, it seems that pre-natal and post-natal depression only gets attention in tragedies or when celebrities are involved," said Stanley Zinberg, vice president for practice activities for the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.

"We screen for many diseases that occur far less often than peri-partum depression," Sharon Phelan, professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque, told United Press International."

I noticed this recently with the hearings on Capitol Hill about the Mothers' Act and the Melanie Blocker Stokes Act.  News outlets from as far as away as the Middle East wrote about Brooke Shields testifying at the recent hearing.  Everyone wants to talk about it because Brooke Shields was there. No offense to Brooke, who I'm so pleased was willing to testify along with others, but why the frenzy over her appearance and not over the HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS of women and children who suffer yearly from postpartum mood disorders.  Why not a frenzy over the children who've been killed or the women who've committed suicide?   Can we really not get excited about doing something about this issue unless Brooke Shields shows up??! And I would bet Brooke would agree with me.  I would imagine she doesn't want this to be about her, but about helping women get better treatment.  Congress needs to do something, regardless of who shows up to tell their story.  There are countless stories, and every one of them is heartbreaking.

Illinois State Senate Passes Perinatal Mental Health Legislation

Postpartum Progress reader Mary Howorth has been keeping me up to date on the llegislative happenings in the state of Illinois, and she tells me that the Illinois Senate passed Senate Bill 15 - "The Perinatal Mental Health Disorders Treatment & Prevention Act" by a vote of 55-0 at the end of last week.  Congratulations!  I think that it now has to pass in the state's House and they'll be good to go in Illinois!

Shields, Menendez, Rush & Codey to Introduce MOTHERS Act in Senate Friday

This just in from Senator Menendez' office!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:

On Friday morning, leading into Mothers’ Day weekend, actress Brooke Shields will join U.S. Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ), Rep. Bobby Rush (D-IL) and Mary Jo Codey, wife of former New Jersey Governor Richard Codey, and others to announce the introduction of The MOTHERS Act in the Senate.  The legislation would initiate new federal investment in postpartum depression education, detection and treatment programs for new mothers. Similar legislation – the Melanie Stokes Postpartum Depression Act – has been introduced in the House by Rep. Rush.

WHAT: In lead up to Mother’s Day, introduction of anti-postpartum depression legislation in Senate

WHO:   Brooke Shields; Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ); Rep. Bobby Rush (D-IL); Mary Jo Codey, longtime postpartum depression awareness advocate, wife of former New Jersey Governor Richard Codey; and Carol Blocker, whose daughter, Melanie Blocker Stokes, took her own life after battling postpartum depression

OTHER SENATORS/SPEAKERS TBA

WHEN: FRIDAY, May 11, 10am

WHERE: 538 Dirksen Senate Office Building (Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee Hearing Room), Washington, DC

Great Commentary on May 1 Hearing

Read this post from the Perinatal Project -- click here!  It's right on about the May 1 Congressional hearing about the Melanie Blocker-Stokes Act.  Rep. Nathan Deal (who is from my state, no less) is a JACKASS.

Update on May 1 Congressional Hearing

Here's information from Congressman Bobby Rush's office:

The Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health will conduct a hearing entitled "H.R. 20-The Melanie Blocker Stokes Postpartum Depression Act", aimed at curbing postpartum depression, an illness that affects new mothers. With an estimated 400,000 new cases by the end of this year, postpartum depression is the single most frequent serious complication of pregnancy. Unfortunately, research and treatment for women of color remains disproportionately ignored.

Who:  Carol Blocker, founder of the Melanie Blocker-Stokes Foundation, Dr. Nada Stotland MD of the American Psychiatric Association; former New Jersey first lady Mary Jo Codey

What:  Subcommittee hearing on postpartum depression

When: Tuesday, May at noon

Where: 2123 Rayburn House Office Bldg.

Hearing on Melanie Blocker Stokes Act To Be Held May 1st

PSI President Susan Dowd-Stone informs me that there will be a hearing on the Melanie Blocker Stokes Act on May 1st. 

In addition, The MOTHER's  Act is scheduled to be reintroduced in the Senate soon.  Senator Olympia Snowe (R-ME) has now signed on as the lead Republi