Conception, Pregnancy, and Childbirth

This section is mostly about teen pregnancy and single motherhood.

Postpartum Issues

      - Baby blues

             - Period of tearfulness and sadness

             - 70% of mothers experience this

      - Postpartum depression (PPD)

             - Within 4 weeks of childbirth

             - This can stay for weeks to months

             - Moment of transition from one thing to another, changes in life lead to stress which in the case of childbirth leads to PPD

             - Concerns of whether or not the mother will be a good mother

             - Can be worse if there are marital problems

             - Can be worse if the child was not wanted or unplanned

             - Women all across the country experience this, the chemicals in their body change and they end up getting drug therapy.

Narcotics, Alcohol, Cigarettes can all be passed onto the fetus

F.A.S.

      - Developmental lags

      - Underdeveloped upper jaw

      - Flat nose

      - Wider spaced eyes

      - A smaller person

      - Smaller brain size

Smoking

       - Effects of smoking can pass onto fetus

       - There is a full range of complications

                - Miscarriage

                - Pregnancy complications

                - S.I.D.S. - (sudden infant death syndrome)

                -More chance of illness - vulnerability

                - Learning troubles