# RO: Mom kills kid. Eats brain **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [July 27, 2009, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-mom-kills-kid-eats-brain/504471 "2009-07-27T19:27:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2009, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-mom-kills-kid-eats-brain/504471/41 "2009-07-28T14:50:49Z")
> [@Kalhoun](#): > > I’m pretty sure The Crazy got into her head. This goes far beyond what a Really Bad Parent Who Shouldn’t Have Kids does. This is beyond the outer limits of Garden Variety post-partum depression. Post-partum psychosis. [http://www.cmha.ca/bins/content\_page.asp?cid=3-86-87-88](http://www.cmha.ca/bins/content_page.asp?cid=3-86-87-88) > [@](#): > > Postpartum depression is more debilitating than the “blues.” Women with this condition suffer despondency, tearfulness, feelings of inadequacy, guilt, anxiety, irritability and fatigue. Physical symptoms include headaches, numbness, chest pain and hyperventilation. A woman with postpartum depression may regard her child with ambivalence, negativity or disinterest. An adverse effect on the bonding between mother and child may result. Because this syndrome is still poorly defined and under studied, it tends to be under reported. Estimates of its occurrence range from 3% to 20% of births. The depression can begin at any time between delivery and 6 months post-birth, and may last up to several months or even a year. > > Postpartum psychosis is a relatively rare disorder. The symptoms include extreme confusion, fatigue, agitation, alterations in mood, feelings of hopelessness and shame, hallucinations and rapid speech or mania. Studies indicate that it affects only one in 1000 births. And: > **[Postpartum psychosis](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Postpartum_psychosis)** > > Postpartum psychosis (PPP), also known as puerperal psychosis or peripartum psychosis, involves the abrupt onset of psychotic symptoms shortly following childbirth, typically within two weeks of delivery but less than 4 weeks postpartum. PPP is a condition currently represented under "Brief Psychotic Disorder" in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Volume V (DSM-V). Symptoms may include delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech (e.g., incoherent speech), and/or a The c... ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2009, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-mom-kills-kid-eats-brain/504471/42 "2009-07-28T14:57:52Z")
Curious that the mothers keep blaming the devil. Is there some sort of connection between the symptoms of postpartum psychosis and god-figures? ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2009, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-mom-kills-kid-eats-brain/504471/43 "2009-07-28T15:00:32Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > Curious that the mothers keep blaming the devil. Is there some sort of connection between the symptoms of postpartum psychosis and god-figures? I imagine that it isn’t a big leap to make; if you are immersed in a particular culture that has a mythology containing demonic forces, when you start hearing voices in your head ordering you to do bad stuff, to assume that the mythology is in fact true. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2009, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-mom-kills-kid-eats-brain/504471/44 "2009-07-28T15:05:05Z")
> [@Malthus](#): > > I imagine that it isn’t a big leap to make; if you are immersed in a particular culture that has a mythology containing demonic forces, when you start hearing voices in your head ordering you to do bad stuff, to assume that the mythology is in fact true. Sure, but there are no stories about conspiracy theorist mothers disembowelling their babies and telling the cops the CIA made them do it. Are there? ---
**Author:** ![PoorYorick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ecccb3/32.png) [@PoorYorick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PoorYorick)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2009, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-mom-kills-kid-eats-brain/504471/45 "2009-07-28T15:06:02Z")
My mother was diagnosed with post partum psychosis. Whatever the cause, she was howing-at-the-moon crazy and saw the devil in the living room curtains. Not a trivial disorder. ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2009, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-mom-kills-kid-eats-brain/504471/46 "2009-07-28T15:14:17Z")
Hey. It doesnt do much good to warn that there is disturbing shit in the post when the damn title is disturbing enough. I considered avoiding this, but title alone provided enough visual imagery. No biggie, but could you folks be a little more careful next time? “Mom kills kid, then things get REALLY bad” woulda been enough. ---
**Author:** ![WotNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e19b73/32.png) [@WotNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WotNot)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2009, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-mom-kills-kid-eats-brain/504471/47 "2009-07-28T15:14:22Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > Sure, but there are no stories about conspiracy theorist mothers disembowelling their babies and telling the cops the CIA made them do it. > > Are there? Quite possibly. Bear in mind that the cases mentioned in the article were explicitly chosen for their similarity to the present one. I don’t have a cite handy, but I remember reading of mothers killing their children while under the delusion that they were aliens, or that a nuclear war was imminent, among others. ---
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2009, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-mom-kills-kid-eats-brain/504471/48 "2009-07-28T15:27:01Z")
> [@WotNot](#): > > From the article: > > So that’s three in nine years (though the word “several” suggests there may be more). The cases do seem similar, but given the time span and the fact that Texas is, I’m given to understand, a largish state, I wouldn’t be inclined to speculate about any kind of trend. It also seems like post-partum depression is probably not the cause of the nasty. Post-partum depression might be a trigger for the batshit insane that’s lurking in there, but trying to say that it’s post-partum depression causing these things is pretty fucking disingenuous. ---
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2009, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-mom-kills-kid-eats-brain/504471/49 "2009-07-28T15:28:21Z")
> [@eleanorigby](#): > > This may sound a bit odd, but my stomach turns and my sympathies are for the 5 and 7 year old that were present in the house when this occurred. That poor baby is beyond my help or caring (not that it doesn’t make me sick to think about him), but truly, how in hell did this occur with those little people there? I remember well how curious my kids were at that age–they would just walk into rooms (except the bathroom) etc. > > How does one counsel a child after they witness something like this? ☹ > I really want to vomit after reading that article. I didn’t even read that article. Fuck that’s pretty bad. Those kids are going to be messed up. ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2009, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-mom-kills-kid-eats-brain/504471/50 "2009-07-28T15:30:48Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > Sure, but there are no stories about conspiracy theorist mothers disembowelling their babies and telling the cops the CIA made them do it. > > Are there? This article tends to indicate it could happen: [http://bipolar.about.com/od/relateddisorders/a/postpartumpsych.htm](http://bipolar.about.com/od/relateddisorders/a/postpartumpsych.htm) > [@](#): > > Symptoms > Symptoms of postpartum psychosis are consistent with those of a bipolar I psychotic episode but have some special “twists” specifically related to motherhood. They include, but are not limited to: > > Hallucinations > Delusions > Periods of delirium or mania > Thoughts of harming the baby or oneself > Irrational feelings of guilt > Refusing to eat > **Thought insertion - the notion that other beings or forces (God, aliens, the CIA, etc.) can put thoughts or ideas into one’s mind** > Insomnia - although studies are beginning to show that insomnia may be a cause rather than an effect > Reluctance to tell anyone about the symptoms Emphasis added. ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2009, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-mom-kills-kid-eats-brain/504471/51 "2009-07-28T15:32:23Z")
> [@mswas](#): > > It also seems like post-partum depression is probably not the cause of the nasty. Post-partum depression might be a trigger for the batshit insane that’s lurking in there, but trying to say that it’s post-partum depression causing these things is pretty fucking disingenuous. Post-partum psychosis is a different, and much more serious, condition than post-partum depression. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2009, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-mom-kills-kid-eats-brain/504471/52 "2009-07-28T15:33:46Z")
Thanks, **Malthus**. That fits… well, perfectly. ---
**Author:** ![Lobohan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobohan/32/79_2.png) [@Lobohan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobohan)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2009, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-mom-kills-kid-eats-brain/504471/53 "2009-07-28T15:34:58Z")
One thing to consider is there are way, way more Christians than conspiracy theorists. If there are 99 Jesus fans for every moon landing denier, you’re not likely to get a lot of the second category murdering their children considering that only a handful of cases has made the media. ---
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2009, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-mom-kills-kid-eats-brain/504471/54 "2009-07-28T15:40:42Z")
> [@Lobohan](#): > > One thing to consider is there are way, way more Christians than conspiracy theorists. If there are 99 Jesus fans for every moon landing denier, you’re not likely to get a lot of the second category murdering their children considering that only a handful of cases has made the media. Trying to find any statistical significance out of a few isolated cases is a losing game regardless. **Malthus** Fair enough. I’ll have to make sure my wife drinks Valerian tea before going to bed and gets her proper rest then. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2009, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-mom-kills-kid-eats-brain/504471/55 "2009-07-28T15:44:32Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > Thanks, **Malthus**. That fits… well, perfectly. No prob. To me, brain-eating mom appears, at first glance at least, to be a textbook case of post-partum psychosis: of course an actual professional diagnosis will follow, as she will undoubtedly be tested for her competency hearing (or whatever the procedure is called in her state). An additional horrible aspect to this tragedy (if any were needed) is that, from what I can gather, post-partum psychosis is not permanent. Imagine ‘waking up sane’ to discover you did this. Truly, from my perspective at least death or permanent insanity would be better (if it were me and that was my child). ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2009, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-mom-kills-kid-eats-brain/504471/56 "2009-07-28T15:54:29Z")
> [@PoorYorick](#): > > My mother was diagnosed with post partum psychosis. Whatever the cause, she was howing-at-the-moon crazy and saw the devil in the living room curtains. Not a trivial disorder. Right. It’s often confused with post-partum depression, except for those who have witnessed someone who’s immersed in the psychosis. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2009, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-mom-kills-kid-eats-brain/504471/57 "2009-07-28T16:00:49Z")
> [@Malthus](#): > > An additional horrible aspect to this tragedy (if any were needed) is that, from what I can gather, post-partum psychosis is not permanent. Imagine ‘waking up sane’ to discover you did this. Truly, from my perspective at least death or permanent insanity would be better (if it were me and that was my child). The realization might render some people _permanently_ insane. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2009, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-mom-kills-kid-eats-brain/504471/58 "2009-07-28T16:40:39Z")
These incidents always make me flash to Elaine’s obnoxious pregnant girlfriend on _Seinfeld_ who had a C-section scheduled because, she said, her doctor told her that going into labor might cause her to become psychotic. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2009, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-mom-kills-kid-eats-brain/504471/59 "2009-07-28T18:48:22Z")
[Waneta Hoyt](http://www.nurseweek.com/features/bkreview/sids.html) didn’t want anything, not even their children, taking her husband’s attention away from her. So she killed the kids. This was drawn out over six years so nobody knew it was happening at the time, they thought she just had post-partum depression and that the kids were victims of what is now considered SIDS. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2009, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-mom-kills-kid-eats-brain/504471/60 "2009-07-28T18:58:09Z")
One of my aunts had very bad post-partum psychosis after the birth of her fourth child. She was fairly cut off from reality in many ways, but fortunately wasn’t violent. She’s recovered now, but has no recollection of that period of her life. Hopefully, this other woman will also forget what she did . . . and I hope she never finds out about the details. I don’t know how she could live with that memory. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-mom-kills-kid-eats-brain/504471.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-mom-kills-kid-eats-brain/504471.md?page=4)