The article I chose was “Dissociative experience during childbirth.” This experiment was assessing whether or not labor pain, traumatic childbirth, obstetrical variables, and previous trauma were part of causing a dissociative experience during childbirth.
The method used to study the hypothesis was by having 328 women completed five surveys up to 72 hours postpartum. They were between the ages of 18-42. Out of the group 68.6% were married or living with a partner and 43.3% had a job. The average number of years the women spent in school was 8.8yrs. More than half (59.2%), did not complete high school and only 2% (6) completed higher education. From the group, 19.2% of them had a miscarriage before. More than half (51.5%) had already had a baby before, and 22.1% had a high risk pregnancy. These surveys included the peritraumatic dissociative experience questionnaire (PDEQ), the socio-demographic and obstetrical questionnaire, the pain numeric rating scale, the Trauma History Questionnaire, and the SCID-I for traumatic events. The female participants were recruited from two maternity facilities which were located in Recife, Brazil. Participation for this experiment was voluntary and the participants were informed that if they did not wish to take part in the experiment their future care would not be affected. Out of the women asked to participated 30 refused and 328 took part in the examination. The requirements for women to participate were: 18yrs or older, up to 72 hours postpartum, and the baby was alive at the time of the interview. Women who were under treatment for a psychiatric disorder were excluded. Between July 2010 and November 2010, data was collected.
The Socio-demographic and obstetrical characteristics questi...
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...nfirm the implications of the results and to provide more research into dissociative experiences during childbirth. The author feels that good support during labor is necessary, and medical staff who provide good pain relief and information during delivery may reduce perinatal dissociation. The author feels that support should be improved for patients that have a fear of losing their baby or their own death and for women who have had trauma in their lives.
Works Cited
Zambaldi C., Cantilino A., Albuquerque Farias J., Paranhos Morales G., Botelho Sougey E., Dissociative experience during childbirth, Journal of Psychosomatic Obstetrics & Gynecology, Vol. 32, 204-209 http://web.b.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.occlib.nocccd.edu/ehost/detail?vid=5&sid=b5b55813-2105-403a-9d40-77106d50c8b8%40sessionmgr115&hid=127&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=pbh&AN=67058653, 3/12/2014
Today postpartum psychosis is known to be a serious psychiatric crisis that affects one to two women per thousand in the first few weeks following childbirth. Women tend to experience visual, aural, and olfactory delusions and hallucinations that enables a risk of self-harm,
Susie’s mother opened the door to let Molly, Susie’s babysitter, inside. Ten-month old Susie seemed happy to see Molly. Susie then observed her mother put her jacket on and Susie’s face turned from smiling to sad as she realized that her mother was going out. Molly had sat for Susie many times in the past month, and Susie had never reacted like this before. When Susie’s mother returned home, the sitter told her that Susie had cried until she knew that her mother had left and then they had a nice time playing with toys until she heard her mother’s key in the door. Then Susie began crying once again.
Dissociation can occur any time in our life and there is two kinds of dissociation, childhood and adulthood. Child dissociation is different from adult dissociation. Child dissociation occurs when the child is actually experiencing some sort of trauma, like abuse. Adult dissociation happens in situations like stress or family related issues. Another difference is that child dissociation does not last very long (usually a hour), but adult dissociation lasts for a longer period of time. Dissociation occurs when something so painful is happening that the mind leaves the body to go elsewhere. In Martha Stout’s essay “When I Woke up On Tuesday, It Was Friday,” she defines dissociation as the mind leaving the body and transporting our awareness to a place so far away, it feels like the person is watching from outside their body. In her essay, she tells her audience about the dangers of dissociation, such as blackout, unable to relate to others, a sense of not knowing who one is, and the sense of lost time. She also includes some of her patient’s stories and experiences with dissociation, how they struggle for sanity and how she helps them see a new meaning of life. She tells her audience that often when patients or people dissociate they have lack of self-control and self-awareness. Dissociation can happen to anybody in a dire situation, for instance a child getting abused or some other traumatic event. Martha Stout has her audience/reader rethink about dissociation particularly the harmful side of it. She has help me see that although dissociation is helpful, it could lead to suicide thought, accidents, loss of identity and sanity.
Having a child can be the happiest moment of a person’s life. A sweet little baby usually gives new parents tremendous joy. That joy can be accompanied with anxiety about the baby and the responsibility the new parents are faced with. The anxiety, in most cases, fades and joy is what remains. For some new mothers, however, the joy is replaced with a condition known as postpartum depression. “Postpartum depression is a serious disorder that until recently was not discussed in public…Women did not recognize their symptoms as those of depression, nor did they discuss their thoughts and fears regarding their symptoms” (Wolf, 2010). As such, postpartum depression is now recognized as a disorder harmful to both mother and infant, but, with early detection, is highly treatable with the use of psychotherapy, antidepressants, breastfeeding, and other natural remedies, including exercise.
Lange, A. (2011). Prenatal maternal stress and the developing fetus and infant: A review of animal models as related to human research. Journal of Infant, Child, and Adolescent Psychotherapy, 10, 326-340.
The article “Abortion Harms Women” suggests supporters of legalized abortion downplay the health and mental risks associated with abortion. Research has indicated there is short and long-term physical and mental harm related to abortion (“Abortion Harms Women”). Abortion can cause many physical complications for the women, such as infections, excessive bleeding, and blood clots. They can even be life-threatening in some cases. In the article “Abortion Harms Women” the writer points out abortion is surprisingly the fifth leading cause of death maternally in the United States. There are certain complications, including infection, hemorrhage, pulmonary embolism (blood clot), and complications from anesthetics that are responsible for a woman’s death (“Abortion Harms Women”). Also, there is a greater risk of mortality the further along a woman is when she has an abortion. Along with the physical risks associated with abortion, there are the psychological risks. Abortion can cause women to feel ashamed or guilty, resulting in an increase in emotional pain. In the article “Abortion Harms Women” the writer explains many emotional problems that can affect women after an abortion. Some women experience an increase in the use of alcohol and drugs. Studies have shown that 34% of women are at a greater risk for anxiety and depression. Also, there is a 60% increase for women to
Stone, Katherine. "Postpartum Psychosis in the Early 1900s." Postpartum Depression. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Apr. 2014. .
Kihlstrom, J.F., Barnhardt, T.M. & Tataryn, D.J. (1992). The psychological unconscious: Found, lost, and regained. American Psychologist, 47(6), 788-791.
Dissociative identity disorder, a condition that has plagued and altered the minds of those who were diagnosed for many years, represents the condition in which an individual displays multiple personalities that overpower his or her behavior around others and even alone. Such personalities or identities can have staggering differences between them even being characterized by a disparate gender, race, or age. One of the sides of them can even be animal-like and display feral qualities. Also, the disorder severs the connection between the victim’s sense of identity, emotions, actions, and even memories from their own consciousness. The cause for this is known to be a very traumatic experience that the person had gone through previously and fails to cope with it, thus they dissociate themselves from the memory in order to keep their mental state in one piece. All these results from the disorder do not begin to tell of the rest of the horrors that gnaw away at the affected human.
Babbel, Susan, Ph.D. “Post Abortion Stress Syndrome (PASS) - Does It Exist?” Psychology Today. N.p., 25 Oct. 2010. Web. 14 Mar. 2012. .
After giving birth, women will have hormonal oscillations (Rosequist). In the meanwhile, their bodies are getting back to their normal state, however if that “blues” does not go away, it can evolve in a deep depression. As she recalls, saying: “And yet I cannot be with him, it make me so nervous”(Gilman), it is obvious that Post-Partum depression is the cause of her poor attachment with the child; the mother can be hazardous to the baby; mood swing occur, and in extremes circumstances, about 1 in 1,000, it can bring psychotic indications (Hilts). If this condition if left untreated, it can cause serious psychological and physical damages. Treatment would include anti-depressants and therapy. This can also trigger other types of mental
...er, E., Ang, A., Nevarez, F., & Mangione, C. M. (2008). Intimate partner violence, depression, and PTSD among pregnant Latina women. Annals of Family Medicine, 6(1), 44-52. doi:10.1370/afm.743
Emotional along with physical domain in prenatal stage is necessary for the growth of the baby (Watson & McDonald, 2007). Pregnancy is the time from contraception prior to after birth, is established to be a major part of a person’s life which will carry a great deal of challenges not just for ...
Spiegel, D., Loewenstein, R. J., Lewis-Fernández, R., Sar, V., Simeon, D., Vermetten, E., & ... Dell, P. F. (2011). Dissociative disorders in DSM-5. Depression & Anxiety (1091-4269), 28(9), 824-852. doi:10.1002/da.20874
Poster, E. (1984). Human Responses to Child Bearing. Western Journal of Nursing Research, 6(3), 99. Retrieved from Academic Search Premier database.