A few
weeks ago, the health care liaison from Senator Dick Durbin's office called me
indicating they were having a hard time making headway with a bill called "The MOTHER's
Act." It had been introduced in 2007 on Mother's Day, in honor of a woman named
Melanie Blocker-Stokes, to create more funding for reach on postpartum
depression (PPD) and make more
money available for treatment.
Here is the mind-blowing part: other senators had been getting
letters opposed to the bill because some groups are claiming it's just a
conspiracy to push new mothers into taking medication. Some members of this
quasi-religious group (Who in the world
would join a religion created by a science-fiction writer? But hey, that's just
me) are even saying that Melanie Blocker-Stokes, who took her own life
after suffering with this illness, was simply "just sad." Tell that to the more than 800,000 women who will develop a diagnosable
postpartum mood disorder this year! And this number doesn't include the 7.5% of
women who will develop major depression during pregnancy.
Oh yeah...just sad. This
is stigma pure and simple. And we need to act.
So far, over 16,000 people have clicked into DBSA's
Legislative Action Center to send letters to their Senators and Representatives
about the Senate postpartum bill and its House version. I urge you to take 30
seconds and send
a letter now.
Concurrent with this initiative—it is the month of
Mother's Day, after all—DBSA has posted a Women's Health page on our website, with tools and information for women and their families
and loved ones. Visit our page to
find ways to empower
the women you know who might be facing postpartum depression, depression or
bipolar disorder. Your mother would be proud.
