Blue - by Rachel Louise Moran (Hardcover)

About the Book

"Postpartum depression and mental illness were long considered unfit for the public, psychological, or political discussion. Women were typically told their "baby blues" weren't important-or that they were failing as mothers. As Rachel Louise Moran shows, bringing these serious and common challenges into the open didn't just happen. It took activists, medical professionals, and countless everyday mothers to speak the unspeakable: motherhood is hard, and its burdens are often both heavy and unfair. Moran's groundbreaking work situates the changing cultural understanding of postpartum within larger women's health movements in America--a discussion that has constantly shifted amid the country's broader cultural and political transformations"--

Book Synopsis

A powerful look at the changing cultural understanding of postpartum depression in America.

New motherhood is often seen as a joyful moment in a woman's life; for some women, it is also their lowest moment. For much of the twentieth century, popular and medical voices blamed women who had emotional and mental distress after childbirth for their own suffering. By the end of the century, though, women with postpartum mental illnesses sought to take charge of this narrative. In Blue: A History of Postpartum Depression in America, Rachel Louise Moran explores the history of the naming and mainstreaming of postpartum depression. Coalitions of maverick psychiatrists, psychologists, and women who themselves had survived substantial postpartum distress fought to legitimize and normalize women's experiences. They argued that postpartum depression is an objective and real illness and fought to avoid it being politicized alongside other fraught medical and political battles over women's health.

Based on insightful oral histories and in-depth archival research, Blue reveals a secret history of American motherhood, women's political activism, and the rise of postpartum depression advocacy amid an often-censorious conservative culture. By breaking new ground with the first book-length history of postpartum mental illness in the twentieth century, Moran brings mothers' battles with postpartum depression out of the shadows and into the light.

Review Quotes

"In this well-written and engaging monograph, Rachel Moran captures the struggles and triumphs to define, diagnose, and raise awareness about postpartum depression in the United States. Though a certain percentage of new mothers have undoubtedly experienced mood fluctuations since the ancient times, the term "baby blues" emerged during the postwar baby boom era, when motherhood was celebrated as the ultimate goal of womanhood . . . Moran traces the condition's evolution from the 1950s to the present, as various stakeholders attempted to frame the baby blues as a legitimate medical condition worthy of research and treatment."-- "Journal of Social History"

"Relying heavily on oral history interviews and archival material, Moran paints a vivid picture of postpartum depression and the even more severe condition--finally defined after decades of advocacy, often by former sufferers--known as postpartum psychosis. . . . Moran concludes by stressing that while 'women's health politics in the US are a volatile landscape, ' nonetheless, there is still an ongoing fight to have 'women's pain be taken seriously' (p. 234). . . . Recommended."-- "Choice"

"In the 1980s and 1990s, activists were determined to ditch the dismissive and demeaning 'baby blues' lingo. They eventually settled on the term postpartum depression . . . [incorporating] anxiety, OCD, and in rarer cases, psychosis. In Blue: A History of Postpartum Depression in America [Moran], an associate professor of history at the University of North Texas, explores how this catchall language came to be. [Moran's] book tells the story of the activists who fought for the suffering of those experiencing postpartum mental illness to be recognized and made legible to legal and medical authorities."-- "The Baffler"

"Rachel Louise Moran has written a magnificent, comprehensive, and long-overdue history of postpartum depression in the US . . . This book powerfully contributes to US intellectual history by demonstrating that even though discourse as power is ahistorical (for which Foucault has been heavily critiqued), discourse evolves through history, across different subjects."-- "Society for U.S. Intellectual History"

"The success of Blue lies in Moran's talent for narrative; it is at once a scholarly work of history and a beautiful example of storytelling."-- "Current"

"An important book with much to offer readers about the public recognition of PPMDs and the evolving categories of pathology and mental illness."-- "Science"

"Moran's deeply researched and well-written examination of postpartum depression in the United States reveals how both the medical profession and society's understanding changed over the past century from a dismissive depiction of it as "baby blues" to the current awareness of it as a medical condition that can be treated . . . Moran breaks new ground with this invaluable first-of-its-kind history."-- "Library Journal"

"I would like to encourage listeners to read the book. I found it fascinating anyway. I always enjoy political history, but it also made me reflect a lot on my own postpartum experiences and the expansive definition of what depression can mean. . . . [Moran], thank you so much for speaking with me today, and thank you for writing this book now."-- "Unsung History"

"There was a real need for this book, and we are lucky that Moran has answered it so ably. Written with clarity and flair, Blue uses a wide range of sources, moving deftly between the changing medical science, shifting political landscapes, and popular culture. Moran resists the impulse to simplify complex stories. As she teases out the ambiguities, she also makes those stories vivid, as the human faces of clinicians, patients, and activists are always kept in view."--Jonathan Sadowsky, Case Western Reserve University

"Rachel Moran's powerful and groundbreaking book explores how women's activism and professional advocacy brought about increased recognition of postpartum mental illness in post-war America. Drawing on a wealth of research, particularly oral history, it highlights the complexities of this process against a backdrop of changing ideas of motherhood and family values, diagnostic confusion, and tensions between biomedical and social explanations and responses. This study is indispensable not just for historians but for anyone interested in women's health today."--Hilary Marland, author of 'Dangerous Motherhood: Insanity and Childbirth in Victorian Britain'

"In a narrative that sparkles with vivid oral histories, Moran offers a nuanced, perceptive and empathetic history of postpartum mental health activism. Analyzing the delicate and savvy balancing act of activists working to rally broad support for women's mental health in a polarized culture, Blue offers a case study critical to our current moment."--Lara Freidenfelds, author of 'The Myth of the Perfect Pregnancy: A History of Miscarriage in America'

"Dr. Rachel Moran has written the first all-encompassing account of the complexities and long history of postpartum mental illness. It is monumental, definitive and accurate. I recommend it as required reading for everyone." --Jane Honikman, author of 'Postpartum is Forever: Social Support from Conception through Grandparenthood'

About the Author

Rachel Louise Moran is an associate professor of history at the University of North Texas. She is the author of Governing Bodies: American Politics and the Shaping of the Modern Physique.