My friend and editor from Literary Mama, Rebecca Kaminsky, is the guest blogger today over at Leslie Morgan Steiner's Washington Post blog On Balance.

Rebecca's post is about balancing work and postpartum depression, or--in her case--how her PPD affected not only how she felt about her child but also how she felt about being away from him and pursuing a career. It wasn't until he was in preschool and she sought therapy and medication that she was able to find a "way to combine work and motherhood."

In her post, she writes about why she didn't seek treatment for her PPD earlier:

"I certainly didn't deserve treatment. This was my fault. I blamed myself for not being a happier, more confident mother. For not knowing what I wanted out of motherhood and out of life."

That was six years ago. Recent media coverage and legislation proves that postpartum depression now is being recognized more and more on personal, state, and national levels as a very real threat to the well-being and mental health of 10 - 15% of new mothers and their families.

On the personal level, Melonie Murray from Workette gives a list of warning signs of PPD:

• Sleep problems (too little or too much sleeping)
• Fatigue, lack of energy
• Sad mood
• Loss of interest/pleasure in day-to-day activities or those you once enjoyed
• Excessive anxiety/worry
• Feeling overwhelmed/inability to make decisions
• Short temper/irritability
• Feeling of hopelessness
• Changes in appetite leading to significant weight gain/loss
• Feeling agitated
• Lack of feeling toward your child
• Feeling your child would be better off without you
• Physical symptoms such as headaches, chest pains, rapid breathing
• Fears of harming your child
• Suicidal thoughts

On the state level, Katherine Stone from Postpartum Progress writes about Washington state's "Speak Up When You're Down" campaign:

[The campaign] focuses on providing basic information about the signs and symptoms of postpartum mood disorders, offering a toll-free phone number (1-888-404-7763) and a website (www.speakup.wa.gov) for more information. The phone line is handled by Postpartum Support International of Washington.

And Sue Pelletier from Capsules writes that "new legislation in New Jersey now requires physicians and other healthcare workers to inform pregnant women about postpartum depression, and to screen new mothers for the condition." New Jersey has determined that 1 in 8 women who give birth in the state suffers from postpartum depression.

On the national level, Belly Tales explains about the MOTHERS Act bill:

"New legislation introduced last Friday by Senators Menendez (D-NJ) and Durbin (D-IL) which promotes increased research, education and access to screenings for postpartum depression for new mothers. The bill, known as The Mom’s Opportunity To Access Help, Education, Research, and Support for Postpartum Depression (MOTHERS) Act, also proposes grants to health care providers in order to better facilitate the delivery of healthcare to those suffering from postpartum depression."

As BlogHer Jenn Satterwhite explained in her post about Dawn from I am Doing The Best I Can: "Dawn shared an experience that many new moms go through. An experience that many are afraid to speak out loud about. An experience that many moms would never dream of admitting to."

Fortunately, because of the work of advocacy groups, women like Rebecca and Dawn (not to mention celebrities like Brooke Shields) telling their stories, and media coverage of mothers whose PPD was the reason they took their own life--or the lives of their children--more recognition is being paid to the fact that the "baby blues" is sometimes something more than the blues. It's something that is real, that can be life-threatening, and that needs educated understanding, attention, and treatment.

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BlogHer Contributing Editor Mary Tsao also blogs at Mom Writes.

Photo credit: News in Health