Postpartum, up close
The weeks after
The weeks after birth are some of the most talked about and least explained. Here is the science, and the stories we tell about it.
Social commentary
Beneath the Skin: The Horror in Silence
Postpartum depression has long been misread through a distorted lens on women's pain and bodies.
This essay pulls apart the artistic, cultural, and clinical stories we tell about it, and asks what those stories cost mothers.
Read the essayThe science
What shifts in the body
Postpartum depression is a medical condition, not a character flaw, and it has real biology behind it.
Cortisol rises through pregnancy to help mature the baby's lungs, then drops sharply after delivery, a shift linked to postpartum mood. Oxytocin, which drives labor, also shapes the let-down reflex and the bond that follows.
Risk and access
Why it isn't equal
Who is most at risk
In the U.S., Black women are nearly three times more likely to die from pregnancy-related causes than white women.
WebMD, Inside the Black Maternal Mortality Crisis →Who gets the treatment, and when
Magnesium sulfate is used to prevent seizures in preeclampsia. Black patients are treated with it inconsistently, and often later, than white patients presenting the same symptoms.
More on magnesium →Where people live
Communities living closest to industry carry the heaviest burden of toxic exposure and maternal health harm.
Johnston & Cushing (2020) →Coming soon
Doula Diaries
Notes from my path toward becoming a doula. First entries on the way!