Postpartum Depression and the Baby Blues: What's Normal, What's Not, and When It's Urgent

Answer first: The baby blues usually begin a few days after birth and improve within days or by two weeks. Postpartum depression lasts longer, may start later, and interferes with daily life. Severe confusion, hallucinations, delusions, extreme agitation, or a rapid loss of contact with reality may signal postpartum psychosis, which is a medical emergency. Unwanted intrusive thoughts are not the same as wanting or planning to act, but every disclosure deserves calm, direct safety assessment.

Educational disclaimer: This article provides general information. It cannot diagnose the cause of your symptoms or replace individual assessment by a qualified healthcare professional. Dr. Dina Rezk Clinic provides gynaecology and women's-health consultation. It does not provide psychiatry, psychology, therapy, counselling, mental-health medication management, perinatal mental-health services, or emergency care.

If this may be an emergency, act now

Postpartum psychosis can worsen very quickly. Do not leave a mother alone with the baby if she is severely confused, disconnected from reality, hearing or seeing things others do not, expressing unusual fixed beliefs, extremely agitated, behaving recklessly, or unable to stay safe. Thoughts of harming herself or the baby with intent, a plan, or a sense that she may act also require emergency help. The NHS describes postpartum psychosis as a medical emergency. NICE says sudden symptoms suggesting it require immediate specialist mental-health assessment within four hours of referral, not a routine appointment and not simply an appointment within four hours of symptom onset (NICE CG192).

While help is being arranged, a trusted adult should stay with the mother and baby if it is safe to do so. Do not argue with unusual beliefs, ask her to drive, or wait for a clinic message.

If you are in immediate danger or someone's life is at risk in Saudi Arabia, call 997 for an ambulance, or go to the nearest hospital emergency department. Saudi official sources list 997 for ambulance emergencies (GOV.SA Emergency Contact Numbers; Saudi Red Crescent Authority).

Key takeaways

• Baby blues are common, start soon after birth, and should improve within two weeks. Symptoms that last beyond two weeks, begin later, intensify, or impair function need assessment (Saudi MOH; NHS).
• Postpartum depression can begin at any time in the first year after birth. It may involve sadness, loss of interest, guilt, anxiety, irritability, sleep or appetite change, poor concentration, hopelessness, and difficulty functioning (NHS).
• Frightening, unwanted intrusive thoughts are not the same as intent. The urgent questions are whether the thought is wanted or believed, whether insight is intact, and whether there is any urge, plan, preparation, command, or loss of control.
• Postpartum anxiety and perinatal obsessive-compulsive disorder can be severe even when sadness is not the main symptom. Repeated checking, avoidance, rituals, panic, and inability to sleep deserve assessment.
• Postpartum psychosis is uncommon, often begins suddenly in the first two weeks, and is an emergency. NICE calls for specialist assessment within four hours of referral when symptoms suggest it (NHS; NICE).
• Effective care may include practical support, psychological treatment, and medication chosen by a qualified prescriber. Breastfeeding is one part of an individualized risk-benefit decision, not a reason to hide symptoms or avoid care (ACOG).

Baby blues, depression, anxiety, OCD, or psychosis?

These conditions can overlap, but they are not interchangeable. The table is an orientation tool, not a way to diagnose yourself.

The Saudi Ministry of Health says baby blues often begin two to three days after birth and improve within days or one to two weeks. The NHS says postnatal depression may begin at any time in the first year.

The NHS reports that postpartum depression affects more than 1 in 10 women within a year of birth, while up to 1 in 10 new fathers may also be affected (NHS). These figures do not diagnose an individual.

Saudi research also needs careful interpretation. A 2025 Saudi meta-analysis combined 32 studies involving 10,975 women and found that estimated screening prevalence changed materially with the threshold used (Saudi meta-analysis). Screening estimates are not rates of confirmed diagnosis, which is why a questionnaire cannot diagnose postpartum depression.

A practical timeline for the first six weeks

There is no single “correct” emotional recovery. This timeline shows when patterns deserve closer attention.

Birth to day 2

Relief, shock, pain, alertness, exhaustion, or numbness may occur. Severe confusion, hallucinations, unusual beliefs, dangerous agitation, or complete inability to sleep despite opportunity are not ordinary adjustment. Use emergency care.

Days 2 to 5

This is a common window for baby blues to begin. Tears may come suddenly. Small decisions feel enormous. You may love the baby and still want someone else to hold them while you breathe. Symptoms should remain compatible with basic safety and should not involve loss of reality.

Days 5 to 14

Baby blues should be moving toward improvement, even if sleep and recovery are still difficult. If sadness, dread, panic, guilt, or detachment is intensifying, if you cannot function, or if family members say you seem unlike yourself, contact a healthcare professional. Postpartum psychosis most often starts suddenly in this early period, sometimes within hours or days (NHS).

Weeks 2 to 3

Symptoms continuing beyond two weeks should not be dismissed as baby blues. Postpartum depression often begins around one to three weeks after childbirth according to Saudi MOH, although onset can be earlier or later. Assessment should look at depression, anxiety, OCD, trauma symptoms, bipolar-spectrum symptoms, sleep, physical recovery, and safety.

Weeks 3 to 6

Families may assume the difficult part is over, yet depression or anxiety may be becoming clearer. Watch for withdrawal, persistent irritability, hopelessness, repeated checking, avoidance of the baby, inability to rest, or functioning that depends on constant supervision. A routine postnatal check is not a reason to wait if symptoms are worsening now.

After six weeks

Postpartum depression can still begin later in the first year (NHS). Reduced help, work, feeding changes, pain, or accumulated sleep loss may expose symptoms that were previously hidden.

When ordinary distress becomes a clinical problem

A hard postpartum day is not automatically depression. The picture becomes more concerning when symptoms persist, intensify, feel difficult to control, interfere with function, or create a safety risk. You do not need to wait two weeks when symptoms are severe.

Ordinary distress usually shifts with sleep, reassurance, food, pain relief, or practical help. The person remains oriented and can accept support.

A clinical assessment becomes more important when:

• low mood, emptiness, fear, irritability, or numbness dominates most days;
• things that normally matter bring little pleasure or connection;
• guilt sounds absolute, such as “my family would be better without me”;
• the mother cannot sleep even when another trusted adult cares for the baby;
• eating, washing, taking essential medicine, feeding the baby, or leaving bed becomes difficult;
• worry produces repeated checking, avoidance, rituals, or constant reassurance-seeking;
• she feels detached from the baby, frightened to be alone with the baby, or unable to perform basic care;
• symptoms last beyond two weeks or begin later and continue;
• there are thoughts of death, self-harm, or harm to the baby;
• reality testing, judgement, or behaviour changes abruptly.

NICE advises clinicians not to rely on symptom count alone when assessing depression. Severity, previous history, duration, course, functional impairment, and the person's circumstances all matter (NICE NG222). The same principle is especially important after birth, when interrupted sleep and appetite are common but their meaning varies.

What postpartum depression can look like

Postpartum depression is a depressive illness occurring around pregnancy or after childbirth. The FDA notes that an episode may begin after childbirth or during later pregnancy (FDA). It is not weakness or proof that you did not want your baby.

Possible symptoms include:

• persistent sadness, emptiness, numbness, or frequent crying;
• loss of interest or pleasure;
• hopelessness or feeling trapped;
• excessive guilt, worthlessness, or certainty that you are a bad mother;
• marked irritability, anger, or feeling constantly on edge;
• poor concentration, indecision, or feeling mentally slowed;
• sleep disturbance that is not explained only by the baby's waking;
• appetite change or difficulty eating;
• exhaustion beyond what would be expected from the sleep available;
• withdrawing from family, friends, appointments, or the baby;
• feeling disconnected from the baby or unable to enjoy contact;
• anxiety, panic, frightening images, or a constant sense that disaster is imminent;
• thoughts of death, self-harm, disappearance, or harm to the baby.

Bonding is not a test you pass in the delivery room. Some parents feel immediate closeness; others build it gradually. Delayed warm feelings alone do not diagnose depression.

Intrusive thoughts, intent, and psychosis

This is the distinction many frightened mothers need someone to explain without flinching.

An intrusive thought is an unwanted thought, image, or urge that appears without invitation. It may be graphic. A mother might suddenly picture the baby falling, suffocating, being contaminated, or being harmed by her own hand. She may feel horrified and ashamed, then start hiding knives, avoiding baths, checking breathing repeatedly, or refusing to be alone.

Research reviewed in a peer-reviewed study protocol reported that unwanted infant-harm thoughts are common and that about half of new mothers had reported an unwanted thought of intentionally harming the infant. The authors said such thoughts do not reflect actual wishes or intentions; preliminary evidence suggested they did not predict harmful behaviour (Fairbrother and colleagues, BMC Psychiatry). As this is a protocol summarizing prior evidence, reassurance should be careful rather than absolute.

Having a thought is not the same as wanting it, believing it, or planning to act. A person with an intrusive thought usually recognizes it as unwanted, feels distress because it conflicts with her values, and wants to prevent harm. In perinatal OCD, the thought may trigger compulsions such as checking, avoiding, counting, mentally reviewing, confessing, or repeatedly asking for reassurance.

The assessment must still ask direct questions. It is unsafe to assume every harm thought is “just OCD,” just as it is harmful to assume every intrusive thought makes someone dangerous.

Features more consistent with an unwanted intrusive thought

• “I hate that this thought came into my head.”
• The thought feels alien, frightening, or inconsistent with the person's values.
• Insight is intact: she knows the image is a thought, not an instruction or external message.
• She has no wish, plan, preparation, or intention to act.
• She tries to avoid danger and may overprotect, check, or seek reassurance.
• Distress comes from fear of what the thought might mean.

Features that require emergency action

• wanting to die or harm the baby;
• feeling likely to act, forming a plan, preparing, or losing control;
• hearing a voice commanding harm;
• believing the baby is possessed, evil, specially chosen, already dead, or must be harmed or “saved”;
• severe confusion, disorientation, or rapidly changing behaviour;
• markedly reduced need for sleep with unusual energy, agitation, grandiosity, recklessness, or incoherent speech;
• no recognition that beliefs or experiences may be symptoms;
• family members cannot keep the mother or baby safe.

Postpartum psychosis affects around 1 in 1,000 mothers and usually starts suddenly within the first two weeks, often within hours or days, according to the NHS. It can include mania, depression, hallucinations, delusions, confusion, and rapidly changing mood. It is not the same as postpartum depression, anxiety, OCD, or baby blues.

Risk is higher in some people, including those with a personal history of bipolar disorder, postpartum psychosis, or another severe mental illness, and those with a first-degree family history of severe perinatal mental illness. NICE asks clinicians to be particularly alert in the first two weeks in this context (NICE). Risk factors call for planning and vigilance, not stigma or certainty that illness will occur.

Medical conditions that can look like depression or anxiety

Low mood and anxiety after birth deserve a mental-health assessment, but they should not erase physical medicine. Several postpartum problems can cause fatigue, poor concentration, palpitations, sleep disruption, weakness, or emotional change.

Thyroid dysfunction

Postpartum thyroid disease may first resemble anxiety or later resemble depression. Symptoms can include palpitations, heat or cold intolerance, tremor, weight change, fatigue, low mood, irritability, and sleep difficulty. A thyroid blood test may be appropriate when the history points that way. Testing is not a substitute for assessing safety or mental health.

Anaemia and blood loss

Iron deficiency anaemia may cause tiredness, breathlessness, palpitations, pallor, and headaches (NHS). Heavy bleeding, significant blood loss at birth, poor intake, or persistent dizziness may make a blood count and iron assessment relevant. Severe bleeding, chest pain, fainting, or breathlessness needs urgent medical care.

Infection, pain, blood pressure, and other postpartum complications

Fever, worsening pelvic or wound pain, offensive discharge, severe headache, visual changes, upper abdominal pain, swelling, chest pain, or breathlessness may signal a physical postpartum complication. These symptoms need medical assessment rather than being attributed to anxiety.

Sleep deprivation, medicines, and substances

Normal infant waking can produce fatigue and tearfulness. Near-total sleep loss, especially when the mother cannot sleep despite having the chance, can also be a warning sign of mania or psychosis. Pain medicines, stimulants, decongestants, thyroid medicine, corticosteroids, substances, withdrawal, or abrupt changes to prescribed psychiatric medicine may affect mood or alertness. Do not change a prescription based on an article.

ACOG's perinatal assessment materials include thyroid-stimulating hormone, haemoglobin or haematocrit, and vitamin B12 among possible assessment considerations (ACOG). Tests should be chosen from the history and examination. There is no single blood test for postpartum depression.

What a proper assessment should cover

A useful assessment is more than “Are you sad?” It should establish the timeline, degree of impairment, immediate safety, possible diagnosis, physical contributors, and what support is available today.

Expect questions about:

1. Onset and course. Did symptoms begin in pregnancy, immediately after birth, after a brief well period, or several weeks later? Are they improving, stable, or changing rapidly?
2. Mood and pleasure. Is the main experience sadness, numbness, irritability, anxiety, loss of interest, or rapid mood change?
3. Sleep. Can you sleep when the baby is safely cared for? Have you gone with almost no sleep while feeling activated rather than tired?
4. Function. Can you eat, wash, take medicines, feed the baby, attend appointments, communicate, and accept help?
5. Thoughts and perception. Are thoughts unwanted or desired? Are there urges, plans, commands, unusual beliefs, hallucinations, or confusion?
6. Mental-health history. Previous depression, anxiety, OCD, bipolar disorder, psychosis, trauma symptoms, eating disorders, treatment response, hospital care, and family history.
7. Physical recovery. Bleeding, pain, fever, wound symptoms, headaches, blood pressure concerns, thyroid symptoms, anaemia symptoms, feeding difficulties, and other medical problems.
8. Medicines and feeding. Current prescriptions, recent changes, non-prescription products, substances, breastfeeding or formula feeding, infant age, prematurity, and infant health where relevant to medication decisions.
9. Home context. Who is present, whether practical help is reliable, whether the mother can speak privately, and whether there is violence, coercion, or fear at home.

A clinician may use the EPDS as one part of screening. This page does not reproduce its items, scoring bands, or instructions. ACOG says perinatal screening must sit within systems that allow prompt assessment, diagnosis, treatment, and follow-up, and that a positive safety response needs immediate suicide-risk assessment (ACOG Patient Screening). The USPSTF recommends depression screening for adults, including pregnant and postpartum people, when adequate systems for diagnosis, treatment, and follow-up are in place.

A score is not a diagnosis, and a low score does not cancel a concerning clinical story. Language, fear of disclosure, family presence, stigma, exhaustion, and misunderstanding a question can all affect answers. The assessor still needs to listen.

What treatment can involve

Treatment is matched to diagnosis, severity, safety, previous response, preference, physical health, feeding plans, and access. Mild depression may improve with structured psychological care and practical support. Moderate or severe illness may require medication as well. Psychosis, mania, or immediate danger needs emergency specialist care.

The NHS lists self-help, talking therapies such as CBT, and antidepressants among treatment options, with medication considered when depression is more severe or other care has not helped. Psychological treatment should be more than being told to rest, think positively, or be grateful.

Practical care matters because treatment is hard to use when the mother cannot eat, attend appointments, or sleep for any protected period. A useful plan assigns tasks instead of saying, “Tell us if you need anything.”

Improvement may first appear as being able to eat, accept help, rest, or feel less frightened before joy returns. Follow-up should review symptoms, function, safety, adverse effects, infant and feeding considerations, and whether the diagnosis still fits.

Medication and breastfeeding

Breastfeeding does not make treatment impossible, and formula feeding does not make medication decisions simple. The prescriber weighs the severity of the illness and the risks of leaving it undertreated against the known and uncertain effects of a specific medicine for the mother and infant.

The discussion may include:

• the diagnosis and urgency;
• what has worked or caused problems before;
• risk of relapse if an effective medicine is stopped or changed;
• the medicine's transfer into milk and the quality of the evidence;
• infant age, prematurity, health, feeding pattern, and ability to monitor;
• maternal sedation, driving, falls, and safe infant care;
• other medicines or substances;
• the mother's feeding goals and preferences;
• what symptoms or adverse effects should trigger review.

ACOG's guideline covers the safety and efficacy of psychiatric medicines during pregnancy and lactation and supports individualized treatment decisions (ACOG). This article does not name a preferred antidepressant for lactation, recommend a dose, or tell anyone to start, stop, or switch treatment. Contact the prescriber who owns the plan before making a change.

Zuranolone and brexanolone

Zuranolone and brexanolone are neuroactive steroids that modulate GABA-A receptors. They are not treatments based on replacing reproductive hormones. Their routes, warnings, and delivery requirements differ.

Oral zuranolone

The FDA approved zuranolone, sold in the United States as Zurzuvae, as the first oral treatment specifically indicated for postpartum depression in adults. The labelled course is 14 days (FDA).

Its FDA label carries a boxed warning for impaired ability to drive or perform other potentially hazardous activities. Patients are instructed not to drive or do hazardous work until at least 12 hours after each dose throughout the 14-day course, and the label warns that a person may not be able to judge her own driving impairment (FDA label). The label also covers central nervous system depression, interactions, pregnancy risk, and lactation data. Those details require prescriber review, not self-selection from an article.

Intravenous brexanolone

Brexanolone, sold in the United States as Zulresso, is an intravenous treatment delivered in a monitored healthcare setting. Its FDA boxed warning concerns excessive sedation and sudden loss of consciousness. The label requires continuous pulse-oximetry monitoring, on-site monitoring by a healthcare provider, and accompaniment during interactions with children while the infusion is running. It is restricted through the ZULRESSO Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy, or REMS (FDA label).

Neither drug should be read as an automatic or universally available option. Saudi registration or availability of either product is not confirmed here. The Saudi Food and Drug Authority regulates medicines in the Kingdom. Dr. Dina Rezk Clinic does not claim to prescribe, supply, or arrange these treatments.

A partner and family action plan

Postpartum illness often affects the person's ability to explain what she needs. Family help works better when it is specific.

If symptoms are concerning but there is no immediate danger

1. Name what you have noticed without judgement. “You have seemed frightened and unable to sleep for four nights. I am concerned, and I want us to get help today.”
2. Ask directly about safety. “Are you thinking about dying, hurting yourself, or hurting the baby?” “Do you feel you might act?” “Are you hearing or seeing anything unusual?” Direct questions do not create suicidal or harmful ideas.
3. Offer one concrete next step. Make the call together, arrange transport, or stay with the baby while she attends an assessment.
4. Take over visible tasks. Food, bottles or feeding support, laundry, messages, other children, and visitors can be assigned rather than discussed repeatedly.
5. Protect sleep without isolating her. Arrange a safe adult handover when possible. If she cannot sleep despite the chance, or becomes activated or confused, escalate urgently.
6. Follow through. Write down the plan, who will stay, which clinician will assess, and what change means emergency care.

If there may be psychosis, mania, intent, or immediate danger

Stay calm. Do not debate delusions or demand that she “snap out of it.” Keep the baby with a safe adult, remove immediate means of harm only if you can do so safely, and use the emergency instructions at the top of this page. Do not leave her alone and do not drive her yourself if behaviour is unpredictable or anyone may be unsafe.

A sentence for relatives who minimize symptoms

“This is not a judgement about her love for the baby. A rapid postpartum mental change can be a medical emergency, and we are following the emergency guidance now.”

What to say when you need help today

You do not need polished words. Use a direct script.

For a non-emergency call:
Start with the date you gave birth. Then describe the main symptoms, how much you are sleeping when given the chance, whether you can manage feeding and basic care, any frightening thoughts, and whether you feel any wish or intention to act. End with a direct request for a postpartum mental-health assessment.

For an emergency call:
Tell the dispatcher this is a postpartum mental-health emergency, when she gave birth, which urgent signs are present, where the mother and baby are, whether a trusted adult is with them, and that an ambulance is needed.

Give the real birth date, address, symptoms, medicines if known, and immediate risk. If you cannot speak freely, tell the responder that privacy or safety at home is a concern.

Saudi and Riyadh context

Privacy, family help, feeding expectations, prayer, work leave, and transport can affect how a woman seeks care. No single family pattern should be assumed. Ask who can help without silencing her or delaying assessment.

The Saudi meta-analysis found that limited family support and poor spouse support were associated with higher postpartum-depression screening results (Saudi meta-analysis). Association does not prove that one family factor caused one woman's illness. It does support asking about practical and emotional support rather than treating recovery as an individual test of resilience.

For non-emergency medical advice in Saudi Arabia, MOH describes 937 as a 24/7 medical-consultation and reports line (MOH). MOH lists 920033360 for psychological consultation and describes Qareboon as supervised text counselling; the fetched page does not state hours for that phone line (MOH). In immediate danger, use 997 or the nearest hospital emergency department.

If violence or coercive control is part of the home situation, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development describes 1919 as the Domestic Violence Reporting Center, available 24 hours a day with confidential handling of reports (HRSD). If someone else can see this device, you may prefer to read this page on a private device or close the tab when you finish.

When a gynaecology consultation is, and is not, enough

A gynaecology or women's-health consultation can help when mood or anxiety symptoms occur alongside postpartum bleeding, pain, infection symptoms, feeding-related physical concerns, contraception questions, thyroid symptoms, possible anaemia, medication questions within gynaecological care, or other aspects of physical recovery. It can organize the obstetric and medical history and determine whether targeted examination or tests are indicated.

It is not a substitute for psychiatric diagnosis, psychological treatment, mental-health medication management, or emergency care. If persistent depression, disabling anxiety, OCD symptoms, bipolar symptoms, psychosis, or safety concerns are central, an appropriately qualified mental-health professional must assess that part of the picture. Both medical and mental-health pathways may be needed at the same time.

At Dr. Dina Rezk Clinic, an appointment related to postpartum symptoms should be understood only as a gynaecology or women's-health consultation to review possible physical or reproductive contributors and discuss next steps. It is not an offer of crisis response, perinatal psychiatry, therapy, psychotropic prescribing, or an assured referral pathway.

For wider context on reproductive transitions, see hormones and mood. For broader orientation, see the women's mental-health guide. If anxiety is the main ongoing pattern outside the postpartum differential, see anxiety in women.

Frequently asked questions

The bottom line

The baby blues are brief and begin soon after birth. Postpartum depression is more persistent, can start later, and changes how a person feels or functions. Postpartum anxiety and OCD may be dominated by fear and unwanted thoughts rather than sadness. Postpartum psychosis is different again: it can progress quickly and needs emergency care.

The safest response to frightening thoughts is neither panic nor dismissal. Ask whether they are unwanted, whether insight is intact, and whether there is any urge, plan, preparation, command, or loss of control. If there is immediate danger, psychosis, or inability to stay safe, call 997 or go to the nearest hospital emergency department in Saudi Arabia. If there is no immediate danger but symptoms persist or impair daily life, arrange a qualified mental-health assessment. A gynaecology or women's-health consultation can run alongside it when physical postpartum contributors need evaluation.

References

1. Saudi Ministry of Health. Postpartum Depression. 7 June 2023. https://www.moh.gov.sa/en/healthawareness/educationalcontent/wh/pages/postpartum-depression.aspx
2. NHS. Postnatal depression. 15 February 2021. https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/conditions/post-natal-depression/overview/
3. NHS. Postpartum psychosis. 11 February 2021. https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/conditions/post-partum-psychosis/
4. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. Antenatal and postnatal mental health: clinical management and service guidance. NICE guideline CG192. https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/cg192/chapter/recommendations
5. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. Depression in adults: treatment and management. NICE guideline NG222. https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng222/chapter/Recommendations
6. American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. Screening and Diagnosis of Mental Health Conditions During Pregnancy and Postpartum. Clinical Practice Guideline No. 4. 2023. https://www.acog.org/clinical/clinical-guidance/clinical-practice-guideline/articles/2023/06/screening-and-diagnosis-of-mental-health-conditions-during-pregnancy-and-postpartum
7. American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. Treatment and Management of Mental Health Conditions During Pregnancy and Postpartum. Clinical Practice Guideline No. 5. 2023. https://www.acog.org/clinical/clinical-guidance/clinical-practice-guideline/articles/2023/06/treatment-and-management-of-mental-health-conditions-during-pregnancy-and-postpartum
8. ACOG. Perinatal Mental Health: Patient Screening. https://www.acog.org/programs/perinatal-mental-health/patient-screening
9. US Preventive Services Task Force. Screening for Depression and Suicide Risk in Adults. 20 June 2023. https://www.uspreventiveservicestaskforce.org/uspstf/recommendation/screening-depression-suicide-risk-adults
10. World Health Organization. Maternal mental health. https://www.who.int/teams/mental-health-and-substance-use/promotion-prevention/perinatal-mental-health
11. Fairbrother N, et al. Maternal unwanted and intrusive thoughts of infant-related harm, obsessive-compulsive disorder and depression in the perinatal period: study protocol. BMC Psychiatry. 2019. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12888-019-2067-x
12. Prevalence of postpartum depression among women in Saudi Arabia: a systematic review and meta-analysis. 2025. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40868656/
13. US Food and Drug Administration. FDA Approves First Oral Treatment for Postpartum Depression. 4 August 2023. https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/fda-approves-first-oral-treatment-postpartum-depression
14. US Food and Drug Administration. Zurzuvae prescribing information. 2023. https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/drugsatfda_docs/label/2023/217369s000lbl.pdf
15. US Food and Drug Administration. Zulresso prescribing information. 2019. https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/drugsatfda_docs/label/2019/211371lbl.pdf
16. Saudi Food and Drug Authority. Overview. https://www.sfda.gov.sa/en/overview
17. GOV.SA. Emergency Contact Numbers. https://my.gov.sa/en/emergency-contact
18. Saudi Red Crescent Authority. Contact Us. https://www.srca.org.sa/en/contact-us/
19. Saudi Ministry of Health. Contact Us and 937 Services. https://www.moh.gov.sa/en/ministry/about/pages/contactus.aspx and https://www.moh.gov.sa/en/937/pages/default.aspx
20. Saudi Ministry of Health. MOH and Psychiatric Patient. https://www.moh.gov.sa/en/ministry/information-and-services/pages/psychiatry.aspx
21. GOV.SA. Qareboon service. https://my.gov.sa/ar/services/116567
22. Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development. Reporting domestic violence. https://www.hrsd.gov.sa/en/ministry-services/services/%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A5%D8%A8%D9%84%D8%A7%D8%BA-%D8%B9%D9%86-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%B9%D9%86%D9%81-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A3%D8%B3%D8%B1%D9%8A
23. NHS. Iron deficiency anaemia. https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/iron-deficiency-anaemia/