Postpartum Depression: A Comprehensive Approach for Nurses

by Kathleen A. Kendall-Tackett, Glenda Kaufman Kantor

This book integrates recent research on postpartum depression (PPD), organizing it into a conceptual model and providing specific steps that can help professionals identify mothers who might be suffering from postpartum depression. The author proposes a model based on five independent risk factors that combine biological and psychosocial views: hormonal factors, other biological factors, traumatic birth experiences, infant factors and psychosocial factors. Attention is paid to how it can be used to develop individual treatment plans and how nurses can build a resource network to help the new mother find community-based resources.

166 pages, Hardcover

First published December 1, 1992

About the author

Dr. Kendall-Tackett is a health psychologist and International Board Certified Lactation Consultant. She is a Research Associate, and Affiliate Research Associate Professor of Psychology, specializing in women’s health at the Family Research Lab, University of New Hampshire. She is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association in Health Psychology and Trauma Psychology, editor of the Family & Intimate Partner Violence Quarterly, and is on the editorial boards of Journal of Human Lactation, Child Abuse & Neglect, Journal of Child Sexual Abuse, and Journal of Interpersonal Violence. Dr. Kendall-Tackett is a La Leche League leader, chair of the New Hampshire Breastfeeding Taskforce, and the Area Coordinator of Leaders for La Leche League of Maine and New Hampshire. Dr. Kendall-Tackett specializes in synthesizing current research on breastfeeding and related fields, facilitating the provision of evidence-based care. She is an academic researcher who also works clinically with mothers as a Lactation Consultant/LLL Leader. Dr. Kendall-Tackett has a long-standing interest in maternal depression, the lifetime health effects of childhood abuse, the link between trauma and chronic pain, and the psychological aspects of breastfeeding. Her current work examines the relationship between stress, depression and inflammation, and how this combination increases the risk of depression in new mothers. Breastfeeding, with its stress-lowering effects, is protective of maternal mood. She is also interested in psychological trauma related to difficult birth experiences and the long-term impact of childhood abuse on women's experiences of mothering and breastfeeding. Dr. Kendall-Tackett has authored more than 170 articles or chapters and is the author or editor of 17 books on maternal depression, family violence and breastfeeding. Her most recent books include: Non-Pharmacologic Treatments for Depression in New Mothers (2008, Hale Publishing), The Psychoneuroimmunology of Chronic Disease (2008, American Psychological Association),Writing for a General Audience (2007, American Psychological Assn), Intimate Partner Violence (2007, Civic Research Institute), and Breastfeeding Made Simple (co-authored with Nancy Mohrbacher, 2005, New Harbinger). A full listing of her books is available at www.GraniteScientific.com or www.BreastfeedingMadeSimple.com.