Why the New Postpartum Depression Drug is a BIG Deal

Hey guys, this is Sarah of Previous Alliance and Previous Alliance Podcast and I'm coming to you today for a special quick, you know conversation that we have been hearing on the news. You've seen it on New York Times Honestly, every channel you've turned on you have seen about the new postpartum depression drug. So I went to my go-to, so, dr Claire Smith. You guys are going to actually get to learn more about her and hear her in a Halloween episode. She is a reproductive psychiatrist, so she is all about moms, pregnancy, postpartum, our hormones. There is a feel for this, so she is our go-to, claire. Welcome, thank you. We have to have this conversation because I've just had so many people coming at me. I'm sure your phone blew up when this great PR marketing occurred of the new postpartum depression kill. So let's just talk about your hope with this, yeah.

Well, I think a lot of my hope stems from the fact that we already use this medication in an IV infusion form, which some of your listeners may have heard before or aware of, called Zoresso, and so this is the oral formulation of this. It has been in the works for years, a long time. We were waiting and waiting, knowing that this FDA decision was coming in August. So that was all very, very exciting, and so, again, my hope stems from the fact that Zoresso works really well and we see the benefits and the really significant changes it can have on a postpartum depression, and so the fact that this will at some point be available, and so much more accessible in a pill form, I'm really excited about it and does give me a lot of hope, because that could reach so many more women than an IV infusion can, which is a specialized service that requires a specialized center.

Totally, and I have heard a theme I'm sure you have. It must be real. There's a drug for it.

Right, exactly, you know. It legitimizes this very real illness that we know about postpartum depression that there's still a lot of not just people but even doctors and other types of providers out there that are not quite convinced that it's a real illness. I've certainly heard from the older generations that post-partum depression wasn't around when we were having kids, it wasn't a thing when we were moms and had little babies, and we all know that's not true. But this just takes that even more in the right direction of confirming this is a very real illness, a very real disorder that has can have catastrophic impact, and there are people out there that are dedicated to the treatment of it.

I love that. And speaking of that, it is maternal suicide awareness week. We know that the leading cause of death is suicide and overdose in the first year of childbirth and we also know that it tends to happen between six and 12 months postpartum. So to the moms who are hearing this information, they're like that's not me, that's great, but what message do we want to get to them? Just about their mental health? To speak up, to talk about it, to share, be educated.

Yeah, absolutely, and there is really no postpartum issue too small to speak up about, because they just tend to get compounded upon and compounded upon. Part of the reason why that six, 12 months, that late postpartum period, can be so challenging it's also the highest risk time for overdose is because you are as difficult and challenging as that first initial newborn period is and you don't know what's going on, especially if you're a first time mom and you're not sure what to expect and you feel like you're not doing it right. Breastfeeding for a lot of people is so hard and there's so many. I could go on and on, but the support fades around. That time you are kind of regular. Life is coming back at you. If you work outside the home, you're returning to work and trying to juggle that. If it's not your first child, you're juggling, not only returning to work but having multiple small kids, and that's when you kind of get out of the newborn haze and newborn bubble and, like I said, life comes back at you.

So the message would be again that there's no problem too small, that these are very real, very serious issues that need treatment, but that there is treatment available. So there are specific treatments and there are specific doctors like myself who do just this. Our clinic between the doctors and therapists, we had over a thousand appointments last month. That's how many women were seen and treating and that's how prevalent a problem it is. It's nothing to be ashamed about. It's incredibly common but it's incredibly treatable. And I think that last point is oftentimes missed.

I love that. So if you listeners, no problems, too small. This is coming from someone I respected, or personally. But professionally, you are on the top of the game when it comes to this subject. So if this is resonant with you, speak up, talk to your partner, talk to your OB. If you are lucky enough to be in the state of South Carolina, you can go to where Claire is at, and Charleston has a great academic center that is devoted to this, and if you're not, you can research on post-partum support international. But, claire, thank you so much.

And again, listeners, we don't know a lot about this drug. We will learn more, but there are treatments in place now, therapy, medication, talking about it. So this is our hope that you know it's real, that your feelings matter and we will get you more information, as we know. But, claire, again thank you so much for taking the time just to give us a quick talk about it and I'll include in this post just some facts that we know.

It's a medication we take by mouth. I believe correct me or wrong it's a shorter period of time Is it two weeks, two weeks, two weeks and it is something that you can do at home versus going in and getting an IV and again. With any medication there's things to be aware of. But the more we learn, we'll talk about side effects and other key concepts of how you can get it, how much it would cost and what insurance. So we'll tackle all that in the later date. But again, listen to what Claire said. It is real, you deserve treatment. You will be okay. That's a great message for this week. So thank you so much, claire.

Yeah, you're very welcome. I hope we'll have a lot more information over the next few months.

All right, thank you. All right, and guys, tune in October Halloween episode. You get more of Claire, so it's coming. We'll let you know. All right, guys, thank you.

Returnal. Mental health is as important as physical health. The Previous Alliance podcast was created for and by moms dealing with post-partum depression in all its variables, like anxiety, anger and even athlete. Hosted by CEO founder Sarah Parkhurst and licensed clinical social worker Whitney Gay, each episode focused on specific issues relevant to pregnancy and postpartum. Join us and hear how other moms have overcome mental health challenges, as well as access tips and suggestions on dealing with your own challenges as moms. You can also browse our podcast library and listen to previous episodes at any time. Please know you're not alone on this journey. We're here to help.