New moms at risk for range of mental problems

Via NOR

New moms at risk for range of mental problems
Major study finds issues go beyond postpartum depression

CHICAGO - New moms face increased risks for a variety of mental problems, not just postpartum depression, according to one of the largest studies of psychiatric illness after childbirth.

and

Beyond postpartum depression
Mental problems included postpartum depression, but also bipolar disorder, with altering periods of depression and mania; schizophrenia and similar disorders; and adjustment disorders, which can include debilitating anxiety.

The study underscores a need for psychiatric screening of all new mothers and treatment for those affected, according to an editorial accompanying the study in Wednesday’s Journal of the American Medical Association.

Excuse me if I'm a little bit doubtful--unfortunately the original write-up is not available online. Might pregnancy and childbirth exacerbate some of these conditions? Yes. But lead to "inreased risk"? Just a statistical correlation without looking for the actual causes, it seems. Can there be mood swings associated with changes in the body? Sure. And is it possible that those who are not emotionally prepared to be responsible will have fears and other feelings associated with anxiety? Yes. But turning what might be "normal" into something pathological... only psychiatrists could do something like that, based on some notion of what it means to be "functional." Where does the organic end and the spiritual begin? Sometimes it can be difficult to tell, but the assumption that there is no spiritual but only the organic blocks the understanding of many working in psychiatry and psychology.