Rubina Ashraf urges husbands, in-laws to be compassionate to postpartum women

Veteran actor calls for greater understanding of pregnancy blues, postpartum mental health

Veteran actor Rubina Ashraf urged husbands and in-laws to be more compassionate and understanding towards postpartum women. She also urged support for women dealing with postpartum depression, pregnancy blues and the emotional challenges that often accompanied motherhood.

“I feel those who are around her, especially her in-laws and husband, should be more compassionate. Being alone in that span of time and after is difficult,” the actor said during an interview.

Discussing the emotional struggles mothers faced, Rubina stressed that society needed to understand the experiences rather than dismiss them or offer unsolicited advice. “We should understand these things instead of preaching to them. Pregnancy, postpartum, pregnancy blues, these are very real things. Before, there was no concept of these things and others would say, ‘So what? We all have had children?’” she noted.

According to the actor, the absence of awareness around postpartum mental health in previous generations meant that many women had to deal with their struggles alone and silently. Rubina reflected, “This has been going on throughout the past generations and we don’t know what hardships mothers went through and especially by whom."

She also discussed the physical and emotional changes women experience during pregnancy, noting that the transformation could be overwhelming and may contribute to anxiety and mixed emotions. “When a woman goes through pregnancy, from her hair to her body to her skin, everything is changing. That can be a heavy feeling with lots of anxiety,” Rubina stated.

She highlighted how marriage, too, could be a major transition for women, particularly when they move away from familiar surroundings and begin living with a new family. “Everything changes for women when they get married, starting from moving to another house and being with completely new people too, then getting an attitude or different reactions from people you expect to be there with you during your hardest times,” the actor said.

She encouraged women to recognise that asking for help was not weakness, particularly when navigating motherhood for the first time. “Women should know that they can always ask for help,” Rubina noted, emphasising that becoming a parent for the first time was a major life change and that no woman should have to handle it alone.

Besides Rubina, actors including Zara Noor Abbas and Sarwat Gilani have also spoken publicly about postpartum depression, as well as the emotional realities of pregnancy and motherhood. Zara and Sarwat previously shared their own pregnancy experiences, including the challenges they faced.

Women in the public eye discussing issues such as postpartum depression underscore the importance of creating a supportive environment for new mothers, particularly within families.