More than just the “baby blues“, the severe low moods and anxious thoughts of postpartum depression (PPD) affect one in eight women after giving birth — including actress Jennifer Lawrence.
Until recently, PPD has often been treated much like other forms of depression, with antidepressants, therapy and lifestyle changes — which can all take quite a bit of time to make a difference.
But a fast-acting treatment pill can help new moms turn things around in just a couple of weeks — and it’s so new, many women don’t know it exists.
Lawrence, 35, may be changing that: The mother of two just opened up about the 14-day treatment that “really helped” when it “felt like a tiger was chasing [her] every day.”
“I had so much anxiety,” Lawrence told The New York Times about her experience after welcoming her second son with husband Cooke Maroney in March.
“I had nonstop intrusive thoughts that I was at the whim of. They controlled me. Just picturing every worst-case scenario and then just doubting everything I was doing.”
She eventually found relief with Zurzuvae — which, she noted, doesn’t pay her to talk it up.
What is Zurzuvae and how does it work?
Approved by the FDA in August 2023, Zurzuvae — the brand name for zuranolone — is the first pill to treat postpartum depression. It first hit the market in the fall of that year.
It works similarly to antidepressants by increasing chemicals in the brain that regulate mood and behavior. Specifically, the drug ups the amount of GABA (or Gamma-Aminobutyric Acid).
“When a woman has postpartum depression, she doesn’t have enough allopregnanolone and her GABA-A receptors aren’t firing right, which is what makes her irritable, anxious, and depressed, among other symptoms,” Yale School of Medicine psychiatrist Dr. Katrina Furey said.
Studies have shown it can reduce PPD symptoms in as little as three days. A full treatment plan is 14 days.
“The clinical trial results for zuranolone for postpartum depression showed a significant drop in the rating scale used to gauge depressive symptoms and saw improvement within three days of treatment, which is astounding,” Furley added.
What about side effects?
Before this medication came along, the only medication made specifically for PPD was an IV injection called brexanolone, which has be given in a hospital and takes up to 60 hours to administer. It also comes with some serious risks, including excessive sedation and sudden loss of consciousness.
Traditional antidepressants are also frequently prescribed — though they can take up to two months to start working and carry their own risks, such as affecting breast milk or adverse effects on the mother.
Zurzuvae also has some potential side effects, the most common of which include sleepiness, diarrhea, fatigue, dizziness and UTIs — but it’s considered safe enough to be taken at home.
Healthy mom, healthy baby
In the two years since it’s become available, Lawrence isn’t the only new mother who’s found respite.
One North Texas mom felt like she was in a fog of postpartum depression for nearly a year — and has held on to her now-empty box of Zurzuvae as a reminder of what got her through.
“It’s just, again, our daily reminder of how blessed I was to be able to take this medication,” Kristina Leos told NBC Dallas-Fort Worth back in May of 2025.
Other mothers say they felt immediate relief when taking the drug, finding a new lease on life.
“I woke up the day after, and I’m like, OK, I’ve got things to do,” Sahar McMahon explained in an interview with Today. “I felt like myself. I felt clearer.”
Many women go through these mental changes due to the extreme hormonal changes during pregnancy and after childbirth.
But even moms having their second or third children can undergo the emotional turmoil of PPD, something that surprises many, including Lawrence.
“I just expected to feel the way I did with my first,” she said. “I feel like it should just be said, postpartum is just a physical experience that happens to everybody.”
