Are antidepressants hazardous to a neonate’s health? The FDA implied as much this past summer, when they issued a new precaution and required all antidepressant makers to include something like this text (for Effexor) in their package inserts …

What is postpartum depression (PPD), and why does it occur? PPD is generally defined as major depressive symptoms occurring within three months of childbirth. Don’t confuse PPD with the very common postpartum blues, a phenomenon that occurs in over half of women who give birth, peaks about four days after delivery, and fully remits by 10 days postpartum (N Engl J Med 2002; 347:194-199).

Dr. Hendrick, thanks for your return visit to the pages of TCR! I’m wondering whether, as a specialist in the psychiatric treatment of women, you can tell us about particular drug interactions that you feel we should be more aware of in treating women.

“You can use vitamins to help a woman through those things,” said Tom Cruise, denigrating Brooke Shields’s use of an SSRI to treat her postpartum depression, which she detailed in her recent book Down Came The Rain: My Journey Through Postpartum Depression.