Background

Many studies on postpartum depression (PPD) in the field of public health focus on the epidemiology and etiology of postpartum depression. Few, however, have focused on PPD from an anthropological perspective. The way that women experience, understand, and speak about mental health varies across cultures, making it difficult to diagnose using standard methods developed with Western definitions and constructions of depression (Andajani-Sutjahjo, 2007). In many cultures, terminology around PPD and mental health has not been fully operationalized so the concept may be unfamiliar to women or even care providers within the culture (Tobin et. al, 2015). Therefore, it is crucial that social diseases such as PPD and mental health are studied within the context of the local population before making any attempts to diagnose prevalence rates using methods developed by and for western understandings of depression. 

This study used an anthropological approach to understand constructions of maternal mental health and PPD in the context of Nepal in order to 1) address and contextualize the discrepancies in previous research surrounding postnatal depression, 2) identify the nuanced and colloquial idioms of distress and suffering used to experience and express mental health among women and between healthcare providers Nepal.