Transcript

POSTPARTUM DEPRESSION, SPECIAL REPORT----NEWS LAST WEEK THAT ANDREA YATES WILL BE GETTING A NEW TRIAL HAS ONCE AGAIN RAISED THE ISSUE OF POSTPARTUM DEPRESSION. SO, THE WB'S DENNIS SPELLMAN TAKES A LOOK AT THIS ILLNESS AND FOUND, IT IS A BIGGER PROBLEM THAN MOST PEOPLE THINK. ----- ANDREA YATES BLAMES POSTPARTUM PSYCHOSIS FOR DROWNING HER FIVE CHILDREN. PSYCHOTHERAPIST SHERRY DUSON SAYS YATES' CONDITION IS RARE. THERE ARE OTHER FORMS OF POSTPARTUM ILLNESS THAT ARE NOT. ((SHERRY DUSON/PSYCHOTHERAPIST: "It's much more common to develop a postpartum depression or postpartum anxiety disorder."))

TONI CARTER SUFFERED FROM POSTPARTUM DEPRESSION TWICE. THE LOW POINT CAME WHEN SHE IMAGINED HER INFANT WAS TALKING TO HER, CRITICIZING HER MOTHERING SKILLS. ((TONI CARTER/MOTHER OF TWO: "Dennis: And you knew it wasn't real. Carter: I thought it was real, but I knew it wasn't real. I can't quite describe it.")) ((DENNIS SPELLMAN/REPORTING: "It's believed that one in 10 women in Houston and one in 10 women across the nation suffer from Postpartum Depression, but doctors often don't pick up on the signs, but women who suffer from this problem say the signs are definitely recognizable.")) ((STACEY GLAESMANN/MOTHER: "I wasn't sleeping, ok, there's one, wasn't eating. I wasn't able to function around the house."))

WHEN STACEY GLAESMANN GAVE BIRTH TO HER DAUGHTER ALEXA SHE FELT THE CHANGE THE VERY NEXT DAY WHEN THE PANIC ATTACKS AND THOUGHT OF SUICIDE CAME. OTHER SYMPTOMS CAN INCLUDE CONFUSION/INABILITY TO CONCENTRATE, FEARS THE BABY WILL BE HARMED BY YOU OR SOMEONE ELSE, FEELING DISCONNECTED FROM REALITY AND WANTING TO BE ALONE. STACEY SAYS IT GOT SO BAD SHE COULDN'T EVEN FEEL LOVE FOR LITTLE ALEXA. ((STACEY GLAESMANN/MOTHER: "I didn't love her or hate her. It was just a complete apathy.")) ((SHERRY DUSON/PSYCHOTHERAPIST: "We do believe it's linked to hormonal drop after pregnancy."))

ANXIETY WAS PART OF STACEY'S HISTORY BEFORE GIVING BIRTH. POSTPARTUM ILLNESS IS NOT UNUSUAL IF YOU OR FAMILY MEMBERS HAVE A HISTORY OF DEPRESSION OR ANXIETY. SHE'S NOW BEATEN THE ILLNESS, EARNED A MASTERS DEGREE AND COUNSELS OTHER WOMEN WHO SUFFER FROM POSTPARTUM ILLNESS. TONI CARTER HAS ALSO OVERCOME POSTPARTUM DEPRESSION AND STILL TAKES PART IN GROUP THERAPY. BOTH WOMEN SAY THEY HAVE SUPPORTIVE HUSBANDS WHO RECOGNIZED THE PROBLEMS.

IN DEATH, THE YATES CHILDREN ARE ALSO HELPING OUT TOO. THE YATES CHILDREN'S MEMORIAL FUND IS USED TO MAKE POSTPARTUM ILLNESS BETTER UNDERSTOOD BY EVERYONE, INCLUDING THE MEDICAL COMMUNITY. DENNIS SPELLMAN, HOUSTON 'S WB NEWS AT 9. TAG--ANDREA YATES' CONVICTION WAS OVERTURNED BECAUSE THE STATE'S STAR WITNESS MADE A FALSE CLAIM ABOUT HER MOTIVE FOR THE CRIME. NO DATE HAS BEEN SET FOR HER NEW TRIAL.

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