Postpartum University® Podcast

The Link Between Labor & Birth Medications and Postpartum Depression EP 226

• Maranda Bower, Postpartum Nutrition Specialist

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This episode cuts straight to the core, revealing how common birth medications—Pitocin, epidurals, and antibiotics—are directly connected to this surge in postpartum mental health crises. 

Postpartum providers and advocates: You know the reality. More new moms are struggling with postpartum depression (PPD), anxiety, and autoimmune conditions. This isn't just "normal." The evidence is undeniable: these birth medications and interventions disrupt hormonal feedback loops, alter the nervous system, and damage the crucial gut-brain axis. For any professional dedicated to maternal wellness, this is critical. Understand these links to offer holistic care practices and deliver lasting solutions in postpartum recovery.

Check out this episode on the blog HERE. 

Key time stamps: 

  • 0:02 Birth Meds & PPD: Unpacking the undeniable link.
  • 2:19 Informed Consent: Why this conversation is crucial, not about blame.
  • 3:26 Overlooked Impacts: How labor meds affect mood, hormones, and healing.
  • 6:03 Compelling Research: The science behind interventions and postpartum mental health.
  • 8:54 Epidurals & Gut-Brain: Understanding nervous system and gut disruption.
  • 10:16 Pitocin's Risks: Synthetic oxytocin's impact on emotional well-being.
  • 11:19 Antibiotics & Microbiome: How gut disruption contributes to PPD.
  • 12:27 The "Trifecta": Compounded effects of multiple interventions.
  • 18:32 Routine Recovery: The urgent need for post-intervention healing protocols.
  • 19:49 Healing Protocol: Key strategies for nervous system, gut, nutrients, and rest.
  • 28:03 Empowering Moms: Community support, education, and sovereignty in postpartum care.
  • 29:38 Call to Action: Your role as a provider in leading change.




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Speaker 1:

The postpartum care system is failing, leaving countless mothers struggling with depression, anxiety and autoimmune conditions. I'm Miranda Bauer and I've helped thousands of providers use holistic care practices to heal their clients at the root. Subscribe now and join us in addressing what modern medicine overlooks, so that you can give your clients real, lasting solutions for lifelong well-being. Hey friends, welcome back to the podcast Miranda Bauer. Here and today we're going to dive into a topic that has been stirring up a lot of heat, and for a very good reason. A few weeks ago, I posted a quick thread online and just a few sentences really about how common birth medications like Pitocin and epidurals and antibiotics are being linked to increased rates of postpartum depression. And let me tell you, the backlash came fast because people don't want to believe that something so routine, so normalized in birth could actually be doing them harm. But the truth is, the research is undeniable. We now have multiple studies that show consistent patterns of synthetic oxytocin disrupting hormonal feedback loops, epidurals altering the nervous systems, natural pain processing mechanisms and antibiotics wrecking the gut and, by extension, the brain. So none of this is speculation, it's absolute science. And thankfully I was like no, no, no, no, we have to talk about this I posted again on Instagram laying out all of the facts and details. Well, I won't say all of that. That's what this episode is here for, and the love was overwhelming. People were like thank you so much for sharing. But there was also so many questions for that, because for many people, this was the very first time that they were hearing this information. It's probably the first time that you're hearing it, and that's why I want to bring this episode to you today. Here's the part that you need to hear.

Speaker 1:

This episode is not about fear. This is not about shame. This is not about blaming someone for how their birth unfolded. It is about informed consent. This is about making sure providers know how to support recovery from birth medications. And this is finally telling the whole truth so that we can prevent, not just react to, postpartum mental health crises, because right now and I say crises right Because I want to emphasize it's not just crisis there's so much there and right now, the most common you know, quote unquote care a mother receives after birth is a six week checkup and a prescription for birth control, which, again, if you've been following along with our newsletter, we dived into all of the science behind why that's also causing postpartum depression and definitely linked to depression, and we actually have a podcast episode on that too, so we'll link that in the show notes.

Speaker 1:

But moms are not told how these medications that she received during labor and birth may be affecting her mood, her hormones or her ability to heal. Providers are not taught this either, so oftentimes that you know a level of support that she needs for gut repair and detoxing or even simple nutritional replenishment is just not there. Instead, what happens is depression, and then some of us act surprised and some of us have normalized it for so long. It's like, yeah, whatever, this is just the way it is, because that's how we've been treating motherhood lately and it's awful. So today we are going to dig in. We're going to walk you through the data how these medications impact the brain and the body, and what providers and mothers have to understand about how to support healing after birth, because postpartum depression isn't always a mysterious, mystical chemical imbalance. It's not that way at all. It's never that way, actually, and oftentimes it's completely predictable, and medical interventions, when left unaddressed, is a huge component to that. So let's talk about that, let's tell the truth, let's start this conversation that should have been started a long time ago.

Speaker 1:

So, first off, why this matters? Because understanding the connection between birth medications and postpartum depression isn't, again, about stirring fear. It's not about, you know, filling our heads with more fear. It's about filling in the massive gaps to our current postpartum care model. These medications are often administered without a full picture of their downstream effects on the nervous system and the gut, health and the hormone regulation and maternal mental health. So most mothers receive these interventions as routine, without informed discussion about the risks or any support for how to recover from their impact. And again, I'm not talking about those who need this in emergency scenarios. I'm talking about the routine of it, and we'll get a little bit more into that. So we want to reduce the rising rates of postpartum depression and truly support healing. So how do we do that, especially when you know this is a routine? And what happens when we need it beyond routine? What happens when there is an emergency? And what happens when we need it beyond routine? What happens when there is an emergency and we need these medications? And so I'm gonna give you all of these powerful tools and all of the information so that we can understand this fully and know how to address the needs of a mother when she does receive this.

Speaker 1:

Okay, so let's dive into the fun stuff, the research. We have known for a long time that postpartum bodies are incredibly vulnerable biologically, neurologically, immunologically but recently we didn't have any large scale conclusive data showing how deeply interventions during labor and birth can affect a mother's mental health. Actually a fun fact for everyone listening in it was actually illegal for any studies to be conducted on women until 1977, when an act that made that illegal was reversed. Isn't that insane? Because birth control has been around since like the 50s, but it was illegal to actually test women. Because women are of childbearing age and years, it didn't matter any of that. They just forebode it from women in general not having any studies. So those medication studies, those nutrient studies I've been telling you all this for a long time birth control studies, medicaid, like all of this, again, never studied on human females. Okay, that's, that's pretty sobering, right? So now we have to look at deeper into this.

Speaker 1:

So what we know about all of this? We know that there's compelling evidence that birth interventions play a significant role in the onset of postpartum depression. We're only scratching the surface here. There was a large study done with JAMA Network in 2024 and JAMA Network Open showed that hormonal contraceptive use and postpartum increased the risk of developing depression by 49% within the first year. Right, so not labor medication in the least bit, but it speaks volumes to the immense vulnerability of the postpartum brain to synthetic hormonal shifts. So when a layer of drugs like Pitocin and antibiotics and anesthesia all of which interfere with the natural hormonal cascades happen, right, we begin to see this perfect storm. There was a study done in depression and anxiety in 2017 that revealed that women who receive synthetic oxytocin, ie pitocin, during labor were significantly more likely to experience both depression and anxiety disorders and postpartum. The issue isn't just the synthetic hormone, which is often like the first and foremost that we just blame. It's how it disrupts the oxytocin feedback loop, which is crucial for bonding, emotional regulation and physiological recovery after birth.

Speaker 1:

Okay, so let's start with epidurals and postpartum depression. Let's start here, because it's one of the most common interventions. The BMC Public Health did a study in 2024 and looked over at over like 12,000 women, so this was a fairly large study, and they found that epidural anesthesia during labor was significantly associated with a higher risk of postpartum depression, particularly when women reported negative birth experiences or poor pain management afterward. So why? Why is this happening? So, the theory because there's so much more that needs to be studied in this. Now we know that it happens. Now there has to be more studies that show why it happens. Right, but the main theory around this is the gut brain disruption, hormonal interference and nervous system dysregulation. So epidurals don't just numb pain, they alter how the body manages stress. Slow labor can lead to more interventions, which also is really pertinent to viewing the birth experience as negative, and then it also influences oxytocin release. Okay, so all of that contribute to a more difficult recovery and an increased emotional validity.

Speaker 1:

Then we have pitocin. So we have synthetic oxytocin, which has real, real risks. Right, pitocin is synthetic oxytocin. It's not the same thing. Okay, it is not the same thing. Those two are not interchangeable. Natural oxytocin is released in pulses. It's co-regulated by feedback from the body, the brain and the environment. It promotes bonding, calm, emotional regulation, and pitocin, on the other hand, is delivered in a continuous drip. It floods the system in ways that override the body's natural signals. And 2017, there was a study published in Depression and Anxiety that found that exposure to synthetic oxytocin during labor increased the risk of postpartum depression and anxiety disorders. So let that sink in. We're literally giving women a drug meant to mimic love and connection and it's contributing to emotional breakdown. And then we have antibiotics, right.

Speaker 1:

Antibiotics during labor, often given for a group B, strep or C-sections, are routinely prescribed, and for very good reasons, right, we know why. I'm not saying that this is something that we should never do or anything along those lines, but it's really discussed like a single course of antibiotics can alter the gut microbiome for months or even years. And what do we know about the microbiome? It produces neurotransmitters like serotonin and GABA. It regulates inflammation. It plays a huge role in mental health. So disrupt the microbiome and you disrupt the brain.

Speaker 1:

In fact, gut dysbiosis is now considered a central contributor to postpartum depression. We have all the studies for that, and maternal antibiotic use during birth is one of the biggest risk factors to the disruption and contribution of gut dysbiosis and therefore postpartum depression. Amazing, right. And then weum depression Amazing right. And then we have compounded effects, right? This is the kicker.

Speaker 1:

Most mothers don't get just one of these. They get the epidural, they get Pitocin and then they get antibiotics all within the same labor. Sometimes that's what's needed, but but at what cost? They get the epidural, their birth slows. Now they need the Pitocin right. That goes crazy and oftentimes lead to other interventions. And now they have to have antibiotics. They go in for a cesarean. Antibiotics are necessary. It's like the trifecta of interventions, and it floods the body with synthetic hormones, it disrupts the gut brain axis and increases inflammatory load, all in a system that is already inflamed, nutrient depleted and exhausted. It's like a perfect storm.

Speaker 1:

And now, for the first time, a growing body of evidence is connecting the dots between these medications and the explosion of postpartum mental health challenges that we're seeing today. Why is no one talking about this? This latest research is the first of its kind to lay the foundation for understanding these connections at scale right. Until now, it has been largely anecdotal, it's buried in smaller observational studies or completely dismissed altogether, and so this study is representing a long overdue shift in how we think about routine birth interventions, and not just this one study. I'm actually going to link you several different studies so you can see that all in the show notes. And this is really just the beginning.

Speaker 1:

There's no longitudinal studies tracking the compound impact of multiple medications over time. There's no standard of care for mitigating these effects. There's no guidance for postpartum providers to screen or support mothers with this in mind, and the silence is costing women dearly. So the next time somebody says these meds are safe or this is exactly what I want, I want you to ask yourself safe, for whom, under what conditions is this safe? Because it's not, again, not about blame, it's about awareness, informed consent and then advocating for a system that sees the mother as more than a vessel for birth. She is a whole person and she deserves the whole truth. Okay, so let's talk about this a little bit deeper because, let's be honest, most of these medications are not inherently bad. I'm not saying that these medications are bad.

Speaker 1:

Pitocin, antibiotics and epidurals can be life-saving when used appropriately. The issue isn't always the medication itself. It's the frequency, the blanket application, the lack of informed consent that surrounds them. Today, over 60% of laborers in the United States involve Pitocin, not for emergencies but, to quote-unquote, move things along for hospital timing, for policy, et cetera, et cetera. Epidurals are offered so casually that they become a rite of passage, and antibiotics are routinely given without fully assessing individualized risk.

Speaker 1:

This is not precision medicine. It's protocol driven, it's system first care. Are there cases where these interventions are absolutely needed. A thousand percent right. Pitocin might be necessary during postpartum hemorrhage, when the uterus isn't contracting and mom's life is at risk. Antibiotics can be life-saving for moms diagnosed with uterine infections or a baby who's showing signs of sepsis. The epidurals might offer a relief and calm and really long, exhausting labors where the nervous system is shutting down and adrenaline is just too high to allow for dilation and progress. So these are not the problem, you know, allow for dilation and progress. So these are not the problem.

Speaker 1:

But the reality is most women don't receive these medications because of emergencies. They receive them because they become routine or they are subjected to routine interventions that make these necessary. Okay, and oftentimes we call this a snowball effect, especially when we're talking about childbirth education and how many of these things, or even things that happened beforehand, like lying down on your back rather than being active and moving around just the very idea of being admitted into the hospital creates a white coat effect. Right, all of those things are real, things that happen that make these kinds of medications seem like they are necessary, when indeed they are not. It's because we've interrupted the natural process and progress of birth. Progress of birth. So the routine intervention and interventions that lead to these routine interventions without routine recovery is where harm begins.

Speaker 1:

Okay, this is key. This is, first and foremost, routine recovery. That is what we need to talk about. So let's get into it. Okay, again, no shame.

Speaker 1:

Everybody, at some point in their lives, unfortunately, need medical support. This is what happens after birth. It just, it just is right. Sometimes it happens in birth. That's just the way it goes. Sometimes medications are necessary. They're routine, sometimes they're forced. Right, the care must continue, no matter what the situation is, even if you know and I'm speaking of myself there was many things that I was not educated in in the birth process or until it happened. So, whatever it is, wherever you are in your journey either postpartum or providing care to moms women need help. Women are left to recover from physical and emotionally intense events and nothing but a pat on the back is given or a birth control prescription at six weeks, which is also linked to postpartum depression. So nobody's talking about the ripple effects on her brain and her body and her gut and her nervous system and her sense of self. So here's what she actually needs. Here's a healing protocol that everybody needs right now.

Speaker 1:

Okay, we need to address the nervous system, especially after trauma. Birth is intense and when medications like Pitocin or epidurals are involved, especially without consent or adequate support, the nervous system can become overwhelmed and these moments leave mom feeling out of control, unheard, violated. That is trauma, and trauma doesn't always come from emergencies. It often comes from how a woman was treated, not necessarily what was done. So, and also, we're talking about over 50% of births are deemed traumatic here in the United States. It's sickening the number and it's skyrocketing. It's rising. Back in 2010, if I remember correctly, the statistic was less than 30%. It's rising significantly.

Speaker 1:

Okay, even if trauma is not a part of the birth story, the nervous system needs help, okay, so begin with somatic-based support like breath work, grounding, vagus, nerve stimulation, gentle movement. Again, these are not like woo practices. I hear that often, especially in the medical world. These are strategies that are, in clinical studies, proven to be effective in the postpartum period. Okay, encourage mom to retell her birth story in a very safe space. Witnessing it without trying to fix it is incredibly healing. You can offer herbal support for the nervous system, like oat straw, skullcap, lemon balm, chamomile. All of those are safe during the postpartum period.

Speaker 1:

Educate about postpartum PTSD symptoms so they recognize them and they're not misdiagnosed as anxiety or depression, because PTSD is very, very different in how we treat that than how we treat anxiety and depression, and how we treat that than how we treat anxiety and depression. And so, if this is something of concern, mom needs to be seeing somebody who is absolutely trained in postpartum mental health. So if you're going to go see a counselor or a therapist or a mental health provider, it needs to be somebody who has specific training in it. You can't just go see somebody who practices general, you know, mental health medicine. That's not going to be effective, it's not going to be healthy, it's not going to be enough guaranteed. Okay, somebody who has specialized training in this area, okay. So that's nervous system support.

Speaker 1:

Two is gut healing and detox support. So both epidurals and antibiotics are known to disrupt the microbiome and liver pathways. Gut inflammation is linked directly to mood, hormonal imbalances and poor nutrient absorption and disruption. And also it's not just moms that experience this. Can I just say that it's also baby who experiences this, because whatever a mom receives in labor, it it goes through the placenta we know this, um and it also impacts the baby and we see this often and baby skin Um, it's one of those surefire ways, because a baby's liver is not fully formed in the months after birth. It relies solely on the mom's liver to help detoxify their body. The only detoxification pathway of a baby that's fully developed is through the skin, which is oftentimes why we see babies who have skin issues, and I will tell you if that's something that is part of your story or you know somebody. Lymph massage is one of the best things that you can do to support that, and that can be a beautiful thing for mom as well. Okay, back to gut healing.

Speaker 1:

Use probiotics and prebiotics. Those will help restore the microbiome. Encourage bone broth and vegetables in broth foods, ginger tea, bitter greens for liver and gut support dandelion root. All of those are absolutely incredible for supporting gut health and detoxing naturally in a safe way, especially with breastfeeding. Limit processed foods and sugar. That can increase inflammation and make it even extra difficult, and it also feeds the not-so-great gut bugs that live in your gut, so to speak, your gut microbiome gut bugs that live in your gut, so to speak, your gut microbiome. And then again you can consider natural detox herbs, milk, thistle, dandelion those are really great ones Also do things like rebounding. They have rebounding machines that are really amazing for lymph flow and detoxing. Also, dry brushing those are amazing getting into the sauna.

Speaker 1:

I have an entire detox uh support tool that I love using with moms and I haven't um uh offered that program in a long time. Maybe I'll, maybe I'll do that. If that's something that you want, you can message me, let me know on social social media and I'll see about returning it to the public for sale. Okay, replenish nutrient stores. So we've got nervous system, we got gut healing and detoxing and, of course, this would not be a conversation without nutrient repletion. Nutrient repletion has to go along with nervous system and detoxing, so you can't just be like operating these in steps. This is my protocol, this is what I do. You know many of you who have been following me for a long time already know all of this.

Speaker 1:

The repleting nutrients has to go along with nervous system. It has to go along with detoxing. You can't just do step one I'm going to only focus on nervous system and step two I'm only going to work on replenishing nutrient stores. They all work hand in hand. So why are we focusing on nutrient stores? Because medications increase nutrient burn and depletion, and when you combine that with postpartum bleeding and stress and sleep deprivation, and the nutritional tank is just empty. So we have to focus on nutrient-dense foods organ meats, eggs, oily fish, leafy greens, root vegetables which are cooked okay so that we can absorb them better. Because it's not just about nutrient-dense foods, it's also about absorbability, and so we wanna make sure that we are getting the best out of our foods. If they're not absorbing, it's not going to do us any good to eat them. So make sure that you're getting all of that. Avoid synthetic supplements. They're gonna be poor absorption and often they can cause extra toxicity in the body.

Speaker 1:

Deep rest, recovery time. Recovery is not linear. Interventions can disrupt the body's natural healing rhythm and women need real time to repair. So encourage restorative rest during the day, even if it's in a short burst. Try to get as much naps as possible. You know, sleep is not about sleeping in an eight hour period anymore. It's about getting eight hours in at minimum and a you know a 24 hour period. So in order to do that, we have to have some sleep strategies. We have to have support in place reduce stimulation, lower lights, reduce noise, avoid overscheduling, create practical plans for rest, get household support, all of those things. Who's watching the other kids, like? Make a plan. Help mom make a plan to get this in place.

Speaker 1:

Sometimes it's about finding community support. This is the next one that I highly recommend, even for those who have, you know quote, unquote the perfect birth. Even with interventions or not, it can still leave emotional wounds, and when those feelings are dismissed, shame builds. So it's really important to find a group that maybe is full of trauma-informed providers who actually listen, or a mom's group focused on real talk, not toxic positivity, and not toxic like bashing either, because oftentimes both of those will just be very unhelpful. And then postpartum coaches or doulas trained in emotional support or trauma integration. Those are amazing places to really look for that emotional and community support that's so necessary in postpartum. Women should not be doing that alone.

Speaker 1:

And then, of course, educate, empower, encourage her sovereignty. One of the most healing tools that you can offer is information. Help her understand what's happening in birth and the interventions that may have been done and what she can do to support her body now, like, let her feel informed and in charge, because birth can oftentimes take all of that away in a moment of seconds and lead us disoriented and confused and then allow this to be like the new standard of care. As providers, we get to help rebuild all of this and, honestly, we get to help prevent it from happening in the first place as well. Okay. So if you've made it this far in the episode, I know your heart is in the first place as well. Okay. So if you've made it this far in the episode, I know your heart is in the right place.

Speaker 1:

All of you who are listening, thank you so much because you are here. You care deeply and maybe, like many of us, you were never taught this. You were never given the postpartum education you deserved. You weren't trained on how pitocin alters oxytocin pathways, or how epidurals affect the gut-brain axis, or how antibiotics deplete nutrient-critical and mood stability and nutrient depletion and all of that. None of that is your fault, but now that you know, it becomes your responsibility, because women deserve more than standard care. They deserve informed consent. Because women deserve more than standard care. They deserved informed consent. They deserve to know the full story, not just the benefits but the risks, not just immediate impact but the aftershocks, the body and the brain and the emotional wellbeing. And they deserve support to heal from the very system that was meant to help them.

Speaker 1:

You don't have to become like a pharmacologist. You don't have to become like a pharmacologist. You don't have to reject medicine, but you do have to ask these really good questions. You do have to stay curious. You do have to listen to when your clients say I don't feel like myself to look beyond the surface and start connecting the dots, because when we do that, when we lead with truth and compassionate education, everything changes. Everything changes. If this episode stirred something in you, good, it means that you're awake, it means you are ready to lead the change, and I'm so, so grateful that you are here.

Speaker 1:

If this episode resonates with you, please let us know. Leave a comment, share that comment with us, leave a review. That would mean the world to us, because it's time to reclaim postpartum care, and that starts with acknowledging what we have here and helping us make it better. And all of that, all of that, starts with you. Thanks so much for being a part of this crucial conversation. I know you're dedicated to advancing postpartum care and if you're ready to dig deeper, come join us on our newsletter, where I share exclusive insights, resources and the latest tools to help you make a lasting impact on postpartum health. Sign up at postpartumu the letter ucom, which is in the show notes and if you found today's episode valuable, please leave a review to help us reach more providers like you. Together, we're building a future where mothers are fully supported and thriving.

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Maranda Bower

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