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faq
 
For reasons still not certain, women are twice as    likely as men to experience major depression     during their lifetime. Anxiety disorders including       generalized anxiety disorder, panic attacks       and agoraphobia, as well as obsessive-               compulsive disorder, are also far  more         common in women than in men. In part,              the increased female susceptibility to mood        disorders may be explained by the effect        female hormones can have on brain       chemistry. Certainly, women are at higher risk     to develop depressive symptoms when   hormones are in a state of flux - especially   
 when they are low. The period leading up to and beyond the cessation of a woman's reproductive cycle, when hormone levels cease to be produced, for example, is associated with an increased incidence of mood fluctuations compared to women of other ages.

Many women experience negative changes in mood premenstrually when hormone levels are similarly low. Following the birth of child, hormone levels also dip precipitously and it's felt that postpartum depression may be linked to rapidly shifting hormones. Women who are prone to depression are more likely to experience premenstrual symptoms as well, and women who have been either depressed or psychotic prior to pregnancy run the very distinct risk of developing similar symptoms after the birth of the child.


Pregnancy
Postpartum Depression
Medication in Pregnancy & Breastfeeding
Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder or Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS)

 
 
Between 45 to 80% of women experience "postpartum" blues - crying, feeling irritable and hostile - starting about the third day after a child's birth, and resolving within a week or two.