title: Peripartum Depression, Traditional Culture, and Israeli Society.
abstract: Although it is known that culture affects psychopathology, the nature of the relationship between culture and peripartum depression (PPD) is not fully understood. Here we report on 2 cases of Israeli women who are affiliated with traditional cultural groups that emphasize reproduction but developed PPD after childbirth. The first woman is an ultra-Orthodox Israeli Jew and the second is an Israeli Arab. The 2 cases illustrate the effect of cultural beliefs and rituals on the conceptualization, treatment, and trajectory of PPD. The cases suggest a complex relationship between traditional cultures and PPD, including the possibility that cultural factors may have both adaptive and maladaptive consequences. Future qualitative and quantitative studies are needed to further clarify this relationship.
authors.affiliation: Massachusetts General Hospital. sdekel@mgh.harvard.edu.|Harvard Medical School. sdekel@mgh.harvard.edu.
authors.forename: Sharon
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Dekel
authors.affiliation: Sheba Medical Center.|Bar Ilan University.
authors.forename: Varda
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Stanger
authors.affiliation: Massachusetts General Hospital.|Boston University.
authors.forename: Emily R
authors.initials: ER
authors.lastname: Georgakopoulos
authors.affiliation: Massachusetts General Hospital.|Boston University.
authors.forename: Caren M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Stuebe
authors.affiliation: Massachusetts General Hospital.
authors.forename: Gabriella A
authors.initials: GA
authors.lastname: Dishy
mesh_terms: D019052:Depression, Postpartum / Q000208:ethnology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007557:Israel / Q000208:ethnology; D012069:Religion and Psychology
keywords: Israel; peripartum depression; posttraumatic stress symptoms; traditional culture; ultra-Orthodox