Thoughts from Mary's sister Elizabeth

[RJNorton]

(02-15-2017 11:16 PM)kerry Wrote:  Her daughter's symptoms sound like post-partum psychosis

In The Mary Lincoln Enigma, Dr. James R. Brust, a psychiatrist, writes:

"Mary Lincoln's full sister, Elizabeth Edwards, once again proves to be a helpful informant, by revealing that her daughter Julia (Mary's niece) first showed signs of 'insanity' at age thirteen, and 'at the birth of each child the same symptoms were shown, and severely felt.' Since the niece's symptoms were described as 'insanity,' they must have been severe. The picture described sounds consistent with full-blown postpartum psychosis, rather than milder postpartum depression, and women with such episodes in their childbearing years often turn out to be bipolar with spells of illness later in life. The likelihood that niece Julia Edwards Baker suffered from bipolar disorder is strengthened by knowledge that she engaged in 'risqué' behavior in 1864 and was involved in a scandal in 1872. While details are not known, it seems quite possible these events involved sexual indiscretion, and hypersexual behavior is another sign of a manic state."