[Joie Chen, Cnn Anchor:] First up in the news today, we've all been talking about it, and he calls it an incomprehensible tragedy. Still, the husband of the woman accused of drowning her five children says he supports her. Russell Yates' 36-year-old wife Andrea is jailed on multiple murder accounts, accused of killing the couple's children yesterday at the family home near Houston. Their house has become something of a heart-breaking memorial, with neighbors leaving flowers, notes and stuffed animals in the yard. Yates says that his wife had gotten help for the postpartum depression she suffered after the birth of their fourth child two years ago, but that the illness had come back with the birth of a fifth child, a daughter who was just six months old when she was killed yesterday. Yates says the woman accused of the murders isn't the wife and mother he knows.
[Russell Yates, Victims' Father:] She obviously wasn't herself, and I think that will come out, you know, that she's everyone who knows her knows that she loves the kids, and she's a kind, gentle person and what what you see here and what you saw yesterday, you know, it's not her. Yesterday, it was hard for me, you know, I was like, I don't understand this. Why did do you this? You know, but and I got to remember that, you know, she she wasn't herself. I mean, she is thinking irrationally and, you know, Andrea, if you see this, I love you, you know. I am primarily concerned with right now, you know, attending to my kids and, you know, making sure they get a good burial and, you know, and are treated good and my wife, I am supportive of her, you know. It's hard, because on one hand I know that she she killed our children, you know, but on the other I know that, you know, that the woman here is not the woman that killed my children.
[Chen:] Andrea Yates could face the death penalty if she's convicted of capital murder. She's set to be arraigned tomorrow. Joining us now with more insight into this tragedy is Fernando Guel. He's a neighbor of the Yates family. We appreciate you're being with us, Mr. Guel. We have got a question for you from our live Web chat audience. Right off the top, MariGrace Centofante: "Was Andrea's depression known to you, or was she hiding it?" What did you know about this woman and the family?
[Fernando Guel, Neighbor Of Yates Family:] About two-and-a-half years ago, they purchased the house at a corner, two houses away, which I desired that house to purchase at the time, but I didn't get it because I was short on finances, and we began to know them from a distance and hello this, and we walked by and drove by. We we noticed some things about them, and for example, some things that's the children playing outside with a father quite a bit, which was that was real neat to us, because every time the father had a chance to play with the children, he would like basketball.
[Chen:] What about the mother?
[Guel:] ... and some things and...
[Chen:] What about the mother, what did you notice?
[Guel:] We noticed that she was very different. She was kept to herself. She was a person who didn't say anything, she just kept to herself, very quiet person, very reserved. I notice because I've been a pastor of a church, I have noticed that certain look that they have about them when they are disturbed, and we knew that for two-and- a-half years that she wasn't all all there.
[Chen:] Mr. Guel, we've another question now from the Web chat. Let's take a look at that. Michelle Rogers' question: "Did you noticed any change in Mrs. Yates yesterday?" You've probably seen some of the videotape of her being led out of the house.
[Guel:] She went into a yesterday when she came out of the house, she went into a very very into herself. She was very, very different, quiet. Well, you saw the pictures of when she came out, and it was a quite quite a drastic change, yes it was.
[Chen:] You say, though, that she had been a quiet person before that. What do you mean by a change?
[Guel:] Yes, this time she was completely what I saw was a completely, completely into herself, withdrawn, more than before. Quite a bit more than before.
[Chen:] Now, I understand that have you some grandchildren who have played with the Yates' children?
[Guel:] Yes, they played around the area with them, they would drive their bikes up to them, and they knew the children, especially one of my older grandsons.
[Chen:] Knew one of the one of the older Yates' children, I understand, played with your grandson, right?
[Guel:] Yes, yes.
[Chen:] Did he ever mention anything about the problems at home, asking to stay away from his house, asking if he could be with you, anything of that nature?
[Guel:] No, no. As a matter of fact, it was quite the contrary. They were very seemed to be very joyful children. Never any complains, nothing like that, nothing negative. Nothing, not one bit.
[Chen:] What do you tell your grandkids now? Given all that's happened, obviously they will see some of the news coverage about all of this, and certainly see the commotion in your neighborhood. What will you tell your grandchildren?
[Guel:] I have a 9-year-old granddaughter, Deborah. She came to me this morning, and said: "Papa, would you do something like that to us?" And I I saw in her a hurt in her voice, and I saw her concern about her concern about the adults doing such a thing, such a horrible, morbid thing like that to their children. So a 9-year-old, affected her so much that she would say something like that to me. But I answered her properly, I said: "No, no, I would never do something like that." So, we can see how it affected the children.
[Chen:] All you can do is offer your assurance, Mr. Guel. Fernando Guel out there in Texas, helping us out with a little insight on what's going on in his community. We appreciate you being with us, sir.
[Guel:] You are quite welcome.
[Chen:] Some of the symptoms now of postpartum depression: look for severe mood swings, high expectations, acting in an overly demanding way, having difficulty making sense of things and feeling trapped. That's a clinical sort of definition Joining us now to talk more about this type of illness is Dr. Paul Friday. He's the chief of clinical psychology at the University of Pittsburgh, and he's also the author of a book called "Friday's Law: How to Become Normal When You're Not and How to Stay Normal When You Are." We appreciate you're being with us from Pittsburgh today. We want to bring you a question right way from our live Web chat audience. Let's take a look at that. Steve Mason asking: "How often has postpartum depression led to actual murder in the past?" Is there much of a history on this?
[Dr. Paul Friday, Clinical Psychologist:] I think it's very important, Ms. Chen, that we differentiate between postpartum depression and postpartum psychosis. We are dealing with postpartum psychosis. The statistics show only two in 1,000 births have postpartum psychosis, and the number of people in that state that hurt their children are infinitesimal. I think it's very, very important that we get across to the millions of people out there who have postpartum depression that you are not going to hurt your children. You are going to be OK. There are treatments for you. Talk to people. But don't be concerned because of this one incident in Houston. As tragic as it is, it's not going to be seen again. It's a once-in- a-century thing. It certainly peeks the part of our brain that is looking for fight flight and raises concerns, but statistically it does not happen very often at all.
[Chen:] Let me talk to you, though, about some of the symptoms and what people see in postpartum depression, and what it might mean. You know, I can understand that you might have a depression which would lead to you say to yourself, "I hate myself, you know, I don't want to live with myself anymore." Maybe if you were having postpartum feelings, you would be angry at your husband, but I think it's awfully hard for us to understand how a postpartum depression might lead to anger at children.
[Friday:] You are exactly right, Ms. Chen, and this is such an exceptional thing. What we are dealing with is an anomaly. Postpartum depression has is a crisis. When you have a child, your life is changed forever. And the beginning part of that, especially when you have the expectations leading into it, and what you take out of it, is very different. The anger is expressed far more to self and then to your spouse. It very seldom is expressed toward your children. What's very important is that you talk to the people who love you and support you. Those people who are close to you have to be aware that the chances of a mother hurting a child are negligible. It's not going to be there. Part of the depression is that fear that you could, not that you would ever act on it.
[Chen:] Right, and I have heard that. I mean, that you don't feel that you can do enough to help your child, and you might hurt him.
[Friday:] Right. And that's why you feel so depressed, because you think that you should be able to do more.
[Chen:] To do everything.
[Friday:] It's that idea of the myth of the perfect mother, the perfect child, and I should be feeling all of these wonderful things, and we don't feel those things. What we feel are sense of desperateness, that I'm not going to be able to fill these expectations that are developed throughout the gestation of the child. It's for the vast majority of people, it's over with in about three months. It starts about 10 days in and again, it only happens, postpartum depression is only 8 to 26 percent of the population, and it's treatable. You can talk to people.
[Chen:] But people need to know about it if...
[Friday:] They need to know, right.
[Chen:] Paul Friday, I am afraid we're going to have to leave it there. From Pittsburgh today, Paul Friday, psychologist and author of "Friday's Laws" some good advice there. Thanks.
[Friday:] Thank you.