Depression after birth is no crime, but crime can be avoided with greater compassion and understanding.
FuturePundit noticed: “The interleukin-1 beta that is used to stimulate serotonin in the uterus also travels to the brain and as a side effect causes neurons all over the brain to make too many serotonin transporters.”
When the fetus and placenta are gone, blood continues flowing from the mother’s uterine artery until platelets move in to stop it, Dr. Prasad explains. Serotonin levels begin to rise and interact with receptors on the smooth muscle of the uterus. This stimulates production of interleukin-1 beta which the MCG researchers found regulates expression of serotonin-hoarding transporters. Interleukin-1 beta gets in the mother’s bloodstream, crosses the blood brain barrier and creates more serotonin transporters on the neurons when they are not needed.
There’s so much we don’t know. British researchers have discovered a mental bonus — children who are breast-fed seem to cope with stress and anxiety more effectively when they reach school age. Perhaps the mother’s serotonin transmitters are shared or regulated while breast feeding….