Case study: Cognitive behavioral therapy for postnatal depression

Abstract

The high prevalence and negative consequences of postnatal depression (PND) are well-reported in the literature. Although there are effective psychological interventions for reducing depressive symptoms in the perinatal period, such as cognitive behavioral therapy, there are still some barriers to care reported both by women and healthcare professionals, leading to an increased interest in the development of new treatment delivery formats. The present chapter describes a CBT blended intervention (i.e., combining seven face-to-face with six online sessions) that was provided in a case of a women with PND. After the 13 sessions, a significant reduction was observed in depressive (RCIEPDS = 10.20) and anxiety symptoms (RCIHADS = 2.65). The positive results found in this work suggest that a CBT intervention, delivered in a blended format, seems to be effective in PND treatment, and they encourage the development of new treatment formats for PND that may address the barriers to seeking professional help.