My guest today is Dr. Samantha Shaw, a psychiatrist specializing in women’s health, with an emphasis on perinatal health. She drops by the podcast today to talk about women’s experiences and safe treatment options. Dr. Shaw shares information about helpful resources and virtual support groups and encourages clinicians to screen, identify and refer early.
[00:01] Dr. Samantha Shaw Shares Her Story With Us
- How Dr. Shaw became a psychiatrist specializing in women’s and perinatal health
- We talk about obstetricians and using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale
[04:36] A Baby’s Mental and Emotional Well-Being
- When to prescribe Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) to women
- Are they safe during pregnancy?
- The impact of a mother’s feeling and emotions to her baby
- We have an interesting exchange about postpartum depression and anxiety
- What could’ve been their evolutionary causes?
- Don’t leave depression and anxiety during pregnancy untreated
- Dr. Shaw tells us why
- 30% of babies goes through this kind of experience
[14:24] Mental Health of Mothers
- Dr Shaw breaks down what is called the Poor Neonatal Adaptation Syndrome
- She gives important pieces of information about breastfeeding
- Don’t let the name “antidepressant” fool you
- Dr. Shaw explains
- Dr. Shaw shares her experience on mothers with more complex mental health situations
- Controlling ADHD among women
- How to find someone like Dr. Shaw
- Common questions you should ask to Dr. Shaw
[24:01] Responsibility of Pediatricians
- Don’t believe sensationalized news about mothers
- Many mothers struggle with “intrusive thoughts”
- Dr. Shaw’s Public Service Announcement about mothers you should hear now
- The important clue for providers on how to manage a mother’s intrusive thoughts
- How providers should handle mothers with suicidal thoughts
- Pediatricians and their responsibility in taking care of mothers
[34:54] Dads Experiencing Postpartum Depression and Anxiety
- Virtual support groups that mothers can participate in
- There are groups even for dads!
- We talk about dads going through postpartum depression and anxiety
- Normalizing shame and eliminating stigma among mothers
- Dr. Shaw shares her message for her resident self
- The beautiful thing about motherhood
[42:25] Closing Segment
- Final takeaways:
- Mothers with PMAD may have difficulty bonding with their babies
- Are medications safe?
- SSRIs are safe to use
- Atypical antipsychotics can be used during pregnancy and postpartum period
- Lithium does pose some cardiovascular risk
- Depakote and Tegretol are big no no’s during pregnancy
- Teaming with psychiatry is essential for complex drug regimens
- Psychiatric programs can be pediatric and perinatal
- Dealing with a mother’s intrusive thoughts
- Think twice about contacting CPS or referring families to the emergency room
- One in 10 dads may experience PMAD
- Suicide risk is real
- It is our job as champions for babies to care about and protect our mamas.
Key Quotes:
“Whether you’re depressed, whether you’re anxious has no bearing on how good of a mother you are.” – Dr. Samantha Shaw
“There’s no shame in struggling.” – Dr. Samantha Shaw
“It’s been lovely to see how many different niches there are, I guess, in medicine. It’s so broad, and there’s so many incredible things that you can do with so many different patient populations.” – Dr. Samantha Shaw
Email [email protected] to connect with Dr. Shaw or check out https://medicine.umich.edu/dept/psychiatry/samantha-shaw-md to know more about her work.
Resources Mentioned:
- Child Psychiatry Access Programs by state
- Toolkit for primary providers treating women with perinatal mood and anxiety disorders
- Free resource for information about safety of medications in breastfeeding
- LactApp for information on breastfeeding and medication safety
- Michigan Child Collaborative Care
- Postpartum Support International
- Pediatric Meltdown previous episodes
- Screening Youth For Suicide Risk: Using the Ask Suicide Screening Questions Tool
- Suicide Prevention in Primary Care: Save a Life!
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