postpartum depression

noun

: a mood disorder involving intense psychological depression that typically occurs within one month after giving birth, lasts more than two weeks, and is accompanied by other symptoms (such as social withdrawal, difficulty in bonding with the baby, and feelings of worthlessness or guilt)

Strictly defined, postpartum depression is diagnosed by the criteria for major depression—overwhelming feelings of sadness, guilt or worthlessness for at least two weeks—beginning sometime in the month after the baby is born.

—Jill U. Adams

… 10 to 20 percent of new mothers in the United States feel so depressed within six months of childbirth that they have trouble with normal functioning. This is postpartum depression … and it can occur after the birth of any child.

—Andrew Weil

… it turns out that men can also have postpartum depression, and its effects can be every bit as disruptive—not just on the father but on mother and child.

—Richard A. Friedman

—abbreviation PPD compare postpartum blues

Examples of postpartum depression in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Although less talked about, postpartum anxiety is equally if not more prevalent than postpartum depression. —Kaitlyn May, Hartford Courant, 3 Apr. 2025

Another mother, plagued by postpartum depression, leaps out of the building with her infant. —Yiyun Li, The New Yorker, 23 Mar. 2025

While not as common as postpartum depression, postpartum anxiety can affect as many as 14% of people.2 What Causes Postpartum Anxiety? —Angelica Bottaro, Verywell Health, 12 Mar. 2025

Globally, 10-15% of women experience postpartum depression within the first 4-6 weeks after delivery, but one in seven women in the U.S. experience postpartum depression. —Kaitlyn May, Hartford Courant, 3 Apr. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1929, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for postpartum depression

• immunosuppression
• myelosuppression
• accession
• aggression
• compression
• concession
• confession
• digression
• discretion
• expression
• impression
• obsession

Medical Definition

postpartum depression

noun

: a mood disorder involving intense psychological depression that typically occurs within one month after giving birth, lasts more than two weeks, and is accompanied by other symptoms (such as social withdrawal, difficulty in bonding with the baby, and feelings of worthlessness or guilt)

Strictly defined, postpartum depression is diagnosed by the criteria for major depression—overwhelming feelings of sadness, guilt or worthlessness for at least two weeks—beginning sometime in the month after the baby is born.

—Jill U. Adams, Los Angeles Times

Most new mothers feel a little down after their baby is born. For one in ten, however, postpartum depression … can last up to a year and even leave a woman unable to care for her infant.

—Ellen Rapp, Parenting

Doctors typically treat postpartum depression with medication, talk therapy or both.

—Susan H. Greenberg and Karen Springen, Newsweek

Note: Postpartum depression may initially be misdiagnosed as postpartum blues but the symptoms of postpartum depression are more intense and debilitating and last longer than two weeks. While typically affecting mothers, there is evidence that fathers may also experience postpartum depression.

—abbreviation PPD compare postpartum blues