New York – A new book “Delivery From Darkness: A Jewish Guide to Prevention, Detection and Treatment of Postpartum Depression,” (Feldheim, 2009 ), is hitting the book shelves this week. the Book is authored by Rabbi Baruch Finkelstein and his wife, Michal Finkelstein, a certified nurse-midwife, along with therapist Doreen Winter, who are all Jerusalem-based.
They say its’ the first book about postpartum depression written for a Jewish audience and, and when it comes out in Hebrew next week in Israel, will be the first book ever published on the topic there.
The book has been written specifically for an Orthodox readership and is, essentially, a primer on the disorder and its treatments, along with Orthodox Jewish cultural context and the relevant parts of halacha, or Jewish law
PPD, like any other condition, knows no denomination. It affects women in the frum community just as it does Jewish women who identify as Conservative, Reform, independent, secular…you get the idea.
But the response to PPD differs, particularly in the fervently Orthodox community, where the conventional response to all things that could be described as psychological or psychiatric problems is generally to turn to a rav, a rabbi who provides advice on personal and Jewish legal matters, rather than a doctor.
And let’s be honest – most of these rabbeim have no idea of how to approach serious mental-health disorders, and few have training in the area.
Read the full story at the Forward.com
Tags: Jewish Women, Postpartum