Most Women Are Unaware of Hormonal Influences and Depression

Is it safe to take medicine to treat depression when you're pregnant? Are women at risk of depression during menopause, before it, or after? Are there risks of depression in puberty? What are the symptoms of depression?

In a recent press release, the Society for Women's Health Research released details of recent studies that they had conducted. They found a large discrepancy between women's knowledge of depression, and doctor's beliefs about depression.

While women acknowledge emotional symptoms of depression, few are aware that there can also be physical symptoms that can indicate depression. Physical symptoms include changes in appetite, fatigue, trouble sleeping, or pain. Most doctors, 86.4 percent, were aware that these physical changes could indicate depression, yet only 38.2 percent of women knew of these symptoms.

Even fewer women realized that if there was a family history of depression, they were at a greater risk for becoming depressed, while over half of doctors, 53.8 percent, were aware of this relationship.

Most women underestimate the risks of becoming depressed at various stages in their lives when their hormones are undergoing transitions. On the other hand, physician's beliefs are significantly different regarding the risks of depression during hormonal transitions.

Should you take medication to treat depression while you're pregnant? While only 10 percent of women believe it's safe, a whopping 68 percent of physicians think that taking medicine for depression is safe while a woman is pregnant.

After delivery, nearly all physicians, 97 percent, think that depression medications are safe. The vast majority of women believe that many of the symptoms of depression, or even clinical depression, are just a normal part of pregnancy or postpartum "blues."

Too many women believe that these symptoms will resolve on their own and simply go away, says Kimberly Yonkers, M.D. and an associate professor of psychiatry, obstetrics and gynecology at the Yale University School of Medicine.

Is there a risk for depression during perimenopause or menopause? Even though these are well known times for hormonal transitions, nearly half of women surveyed, 47.5 percent, realized that perimenopause carried with it a higher risk for depression, and less than half, 39.5 percent, realized that menopause posed a higher risk for depression.

"This survey shows a tremendous disconnect between doctors' beliefs about managing depression and the perceptions held by women. The health care community needs to do a better job communicating with women about depression. We need to carefully explain the full range of treatment options for mood disorders and the pros and cons of taking medications during pregnancy and after pregnancy so that women can make better informed choices," said Sherry Marts, Ph.D., vice president of scientific affairs for the Society for Women's Health Research.

It is important for women to become more educated regarding their risks of depression during times when their hormones are changing.

This study was conducted in October 2007. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percent for the women who were surveyed, and plus or minus 4.4 percent for the doctors who were surveyed.

Source:
http://www.newswise.com/p/articles/view/535343/