Childbirth and Mental Health -- More to Ponder

—We love women! That's why we're fighting to ban abortion.
—You say that now, but will you still love me in nine months?

The National Institute of Mental health says postpartum depression affects 15% of women after giving birth. Now add to that the risk of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD):

The incidence of childbirth-related PTSD hasn't been widely studied. But a new survey suggests the disorder could be more widespread than previously believed. Of more than 900 U.S. mothers surveyed, 9% screened positive for meeting all of the formal criteria for PTSD set out in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, or DSM-IV, a handbook of mental-health conditions. And 18% of respondents had some signs of the disorder. The survey, which included an established PTSD screening tool, was conducted by Harris Interactive for Childbirth Connection, a nonprofit maternity-care organization in New York. Separate earlier studies outside the U.S. had estimated the prevalence of childbirth-related PTSD at between 1.5% and 5.9% [Rachel Zimmerman, "Birth Trauma: Stress Disorder Afflicts Moms," Wall Street Journal, 2008.08.05, p. D1].

The source of this information, the New Mothers Speak Out survey, finds that "African-American women, those without private health insurance and women with unplanned pregnancies were more likely to have PTSD symptoms."

So I understand that supporters of Initiated Measure 11 are worried about women's mental health. Are they willing then to stick around to help women who choose not to have abortions and then experience the mental health problems that can arise from giving birth? Will they devote any extra resources to helping those groups identified as being at higher risk of PTSD symptoms? Are they willing to support government action like the Melanie Blocker Stokes Mothers Act, which WSJ reports would authorize a study on the benefits of mental health screening for mothers-to-be? Or will we see a convergence of Leslee Unruh's "Big Pharma" spin lines with Amy Philo's campaign trying to portray this legislation to help mothers as part of a plot by the "Big Pharma Gestapo"? (Amy Philo's blog posts get some play on various pro-life feed aggregators; I can't help thinking the parallel language is no coincidence.)

Just seems like more evidence that the abortion banners will co-opt language about women's mental health when it serves their purposes, but they drop that language fast when it comes time to help real women with real babies and real problems.

Update 13:00 CDT: The New Mothers Speak Out survey "Quick Facts" sheet (PDF alert... and registration required) lists other details on how women could use some more support after givign birth:

• 63% of new mothers experience "some degree of depressive symptoms."
• Over a quarter of new moms experience at least one of 15 specific health problems after giving birth.
• Almost half of working women felt they couldn't stay home after giving birth as long as they wanted. Main reason for heading back to work sooner than their maternal instincts told them they should: financial pressures.
• "Mothers who were employed or on maternity leave indicated on average that 7 months of paid maternity leave would be ideal, in line with guaranteed benefits in many other affluent nations, yet just 1% who had been employed outside the home during pregnancy actually had 4 or more months of fully paid leave."

Hmmm... so maybe being pro-life is about supporting women who give birth with economic policies that let them give their babies the mothering they think is best?