For my research paper, I will be discussing the thought that mental illness, specifically postpartum depression, has cause for blame in a person. Assigning blame to a mental illness such as postpartum depression as a method of reasoning does nothing but worsen possible symptoms and negative feelings that one may be experiencing. It does not make sense that a serious illness that is most often caused by traumatic events or biological hormonal changes can be one’s “fault” for having. The lack of knowledge that many have of the illness causes a stigma that those with postpartum depression are “crazy” and looking for attention. In addition, many women with the illness are assigned blame for their feelings, which may cause them to assign blame onto themselves as well. However, such thoughts are backwards and entirely counterintuitive. To be frank, the idea of depression as a whole makes people uncomfortable because it is not well understood. In response to this uneasiness, society attempts to “justify” depressive feelings on the basis of them being insincere. Depression, which includes postpartum depression, is not brought upon willingly or intentionally by any person, so it is counterintuitive that people feel the need to assign blame for the disorder. Therefore, my proposal is as follows: assigning blame for postpartum depression does nothing but worsen heavily stigmatized thoughts on the disorder as a whole.
Resource 1: http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/01612840701748698
“Stigma Towards Mental Illness: A Concept Analysis Using Postpartum Depression as an Exemplar”
Essential Content of the Article:
Stigmas are a large issue related to mental illness. The impact that negative stigmas have on a person is sometimes severe. People often do not seek treatment for serious health concerns, such as postpartum depression, due to the fear of being judged or accused of having self-inflicted their issues. The author discloses statistics and historical background related to the negative stigmas regarding mental illness and how people are affected by them.
What it Proves:
This article will assist me by providing statistical research that has been conducted regarding the social effects of stigmas against mental illness. I can apply this data to women that suffer from postpartum depression and how negative stigmas affect them and their health.
Resource 2: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0033318298713556
“Hormonal Changes in the Postpartum and Implications for Postpartum Depression”
Essential Content of the Article:
Biological factors could lead to the possible development of postpartum depression in a woman. Preexisting factors such as genetic history or a predisposition to depression could lead to postpartum upon delivery of a child. However, in addition to this, there are dramatic hormonal fluctuations when a woman gives birth that could have a significant effect on mood, which could also cause postpartum depression.
What it Proves:
This article will provide concrete, quantitative evidence that postpartum depression is not entirely “in a person’s head,” as many believe. Therefore, if there is biological evidence supporting the cause of postpartum depression, a person cannot be blamed for inducing it. This argument supports my thesis well.
Resource 3: http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.3109/09540269609037816
“Rates and risk of postpartum depression—a meta-analysis”
Essential Content of the Article:
This article provides evidence of psychological factors that could lead to postpartum depression. It explains that traumatic and/or stressful life events can often be a cause for postpartum depression in women. Other causal factors could include socioeconomic status, marital life, and disturbance during pregnancy, all of which are related to high levels of stress.
What it Proves:
This article supports the claim that postpartum depression can develop due to traumatic events that occur in one’s life. This information supports the idea that women are not looking for attention by displaying feelings of sadness and emptiness. Moreover, the stress and psychological trauma on the body proved too powerful, leading to these justified feelings.
Resource 4: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0306453098000225
“HORMONAL ASPECTS OF POSTPARTUM DEPRESSION”
Essential Content of the Article:
This article goes into specific detail about the hormonal changes that a woman goes through during pregnancy and delivery. The large fluctuation in hormonal levels during this time period have been known to cause postpartum depression in some women. The article chronicles this idea in a variety of ways through the use of detailed statistics and clinical experiments on test subjects over a vast time span.
What it Proves:
This articles gives my argument further support regarding biological factors that could lead to postpartum depression. The research gathered in this document will help to provide detailed information about hormonal fluctuations that are known to be a possible cause for postpartum depression. This idea proves that it is invalid to believe that women with postpartum depression are “faking” or looking for attention.
“The Nature of Postpartum Depressive Disorders”
Essential Content of the Article:
This article provides general information about postpartum depression, including what the disorder is and symptoms that come with the illness. It provides the reader with information about a variety of different aspects of the disorder and how it can affect women initially and over time.
What it Proves:
I think that it is important to provide my reader with a general understanding of what postpartum depression is. It is not smart to assume that the reader has a background on the topic. Therefore, this article will help me to further my knowledge about the disorder and everything that it entails in order to provide detailed and accurate information to the reader.
Rowan Counterintuitive 
Nice work.
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