Post Partem Depression

I had it, though mine was undiagnosed. I will say it gets better and I wish I had been given help/gotten help. I was just soooo dysfunctional at the time that even asking for help was too much.

its so sad that you feel ashamed, you should not! more women should talk honestly to each other about these things. its a myth that its all hearts and flowers after having a baby. its wonderful and amazing, and its also very big and scary. it is soooooo common, i think most women experience it to some degree, whether or not they say so. hormones are a powerful powerful force. i wish that i had known with my first baby. i clearly remember sobbing on the bathroom floor after having him for no reason whatsoever, and i was terrified that something was horribly wrong with me. i wish someone had told me that it could happen and that its normal, and most importantly, that IT WILL PASS. you will be ok. good for you for getting help! you will be ok. one of the most important things i learned was to walk away from things that i knew were a trigger for me. i did so much better with my next 2 kids just because of that, and mostly because i knew it would pass and that i would be myself again. you will be yourself again :)

Please don't feel ashamed, it happens to some of us. My sister went through this with her first, not second. She is the most happy, positive, upbeat person on earth - and had this experience. She said it "sucked" but she got through it. Make sure you have support in family and friends and most importantly be patient with yourself. Take good care.

Yes it does get better. Please dont feel ashamed, this is very normal. When I had my second daughter, I had P.P.D. so bad that when I got home from the hospital, I didnt want to have anything to do with my baby. I had a c-cection and I just layed in the bed for a couple of weeks, and cried all the time. I thought there was something wrong with me! My husband took care of the baby and our 4 year old daughter. Then, he called his mother, and she came and stayed with us for a while to help me take care of the new baby. She was a Godsend. I dont think I would have made it without her and my husband. As time went by, I started to feel like my old self again. So, have patience. It WILL get better. God Bless You!

I felt that way after my 5th baby and the doctor said it was baby blues and would last only for a few weeks... and it did. She said that PPD will usually lasts a lot longer and starts later. If your baby is young, it may pass sooner. Good luck!

Don't be ashamed, Love!!! You got help! I pray your family will be supportive, give you some breaks as you recover. Be kind and loving to yourself. You love your baby, bonding will happen! And, yes, from what I know about PPD, you will recover. :) Hang in there!! Write to us mamas when you need some extra love. :)

I wanted to share with you that my daughter is expecting in April. This is our first grandchild. I have already shared with her that I experienced PPD after all three of my children were born and that we would certainly watch for signs in her as well. I didn't want her to be frightened if she experienced this. It truly is a common condition as your hormones are in such a state of unbalance after giving birth. Everyone's body is different. I had my first baby 27 years ago and had ABSOLUTELY no idea what was happening to me. I was in my early 20's and just felt so overwhelmed and trapped. I cried a lot. I didn't even know to ask anyone for help. I called a helpline of some sort and some guy answered and told me basically I was an unfit mother in so many words. I felt so alone and ashamed. PPD is much more well known now and doctor's are well aware of the condition. And too, as a celebrity, Brooke Shields was a great spokesperson for the condition. Perhaps she has written a book or you can google what she shared about her own experience. I'm so happy for you that you went to your doctor and you have medication to help you. If you feel balanced and happier, so will your baby and your family. I would like to suggest that if you needed medication for any other medical condition, you certainly would take it. This is the same thing. I hope in time you will be able to see that and not feel shameful. I admire you for what you are doing. I'm sorry I don't have any advice on the medication but I sure wish I would have had something like that when I experienced PPD.
Good luck and god bless. Ask for support and help from your family too and try and get as much rest as possible. That also helps too!

I had PPD with all 3 of my kids. The first I didn't know that's what I had, my mom said she had the "baby blues" so I figured that was what it was and it would pass, which it did. With my second child I had it the worst and was miserable but suffered through it. I cried a lot (which for me was not normal, I am so not a crier) was over all lethargic and was not excited about anything. It was the toughest on my family...that coupled with the fact that my second son was colicky made for a wreched time for all of us. With my third child I was strong enough to speak up and tell my Dr. he put me on a low dose of Zoloft and it made all the difference in the world! It takes a week or two to start feeling back to normal, but you will get there. I almost stopped taking the pills after day 3 or 4 because they made me feel strange, almost like there was a severe disconnect between my brain and my mouth and getting things out (just regular everyday talking) seemed really hard but it passed and all was right with the world again.

Don't feel bad for needing help or medication...lots of us need it! The medicine will work and it will get better sis, promise!

~ I only took the medicine for about 8 months, then slowly took myself off it, cutting back nice and slow, like you are supposed to.

You are brave for speaking up, if I had done it with my first child I would have saved myself, my babies and my hubby lots if grief!

I had delayed PPD that hit after I went back to work. I thought I was coping fine with having 2 kiddos and I felt like things were slowly getting back to "normal" and we found out I was expecting our 3rd. It threw my world into the worse tailspin possible. I ended up seeking advice and seeing a professional.

Apparently, PPD is not uncommon and delayed cases, like mine, occur too.

You are normal.

The one thing that I am surprised about is the question about medication. I have not needed any, just cognative sessions to discuss feelings and coping skills and such. Is medicine the only route being offered or is it being coupled with therapy?

Just food for thought.
~C.

1st DO NOT FEEL ASHAMED!!!

Chemicals in your brain are just not working well together right now. Take your medication, it will get better! TAKE THEM PLEASE! IT WORKS!!! They are worth every dime you spend!

You will be thankful you had them one day! I PROMISE!

This is so common - more common than you think. I went through it with both of my children. It will get better. It's your hormones and you have no control over them. The medicine will work wonders, but you must be patient. It can take about 1 month before you start to feel better. Hang in there! Don't beat yourself up over this. It's not something you can control. This too shall pass.

I know you have a ton of answers already but wanted to add mine.

I also suffered and was so ashamed (and couldn't talk to my OB) I suffered for over 6mo before getting help. (I've written about it here: http://www.peanutbutterinmyhair.com/search/label/PPD )

I wanted to let you know about an amazing website run by a really amazing women: Postpartum Progress: http://postpartumprogress.typepad.com/

she offers so much information, support and hope. She even has an email: Daily Hope (found in right sidebar) to help you get through each days with stories and encouragement.

It gets better. There are hundreds of us as proof.

HUGS

Oh my goodness, do not be ashamed. It is a wonderful time in your life and a wonderful time to experience this. When I had children there wasn't much information on this, and I spent twenty something years w/post partem depression. Oh just kidding, but was very up and down for a long time and was told all sorts of things, not that I had something that we could do something about. Of course it gets better and goes away. There is one thing I used to do (not knowing if I had something curable) and I exercised my brains out. If there is something you like to do once you are up to it like dancing, do it. You will get better and enjoy your little one.

Please, the last thing you should feel is ashamed. You have so many hormones raging, having a baby is stressful, and its winter. You aren't a bad person, a bad mother or anything else like that.

I think one of the best things you can do for yourself is get out of the house and go somewhere to walk. Every single day get up and go to the mall for a walk or somewhere that you can push a stroller around.

Every single day, get up and take a shower and get dressed in clean clothes. Do a little makeup, do your hair. Take care of yourself.

Get lots of rest, take breaks--have someone watch the baby so you can run out for 45 minutes or an hour.

If you have On Demand on your cable TV, look for the exercise/fitness channel and pull up a yoga video and do that. It will help get your blood flowing and make you feel more energized.

Play music, HAPPY music. TV can be so depressing, so turn that off and make yourself a playlist of really happy songs. Dance and sing, even if you don't feel like it.

SMILE. Smile until you feel like smiling. It may seem stupid and fake and ridiculous, but it will change the way you feel.

Get involved in a moms group. Check out meetup.com and see if you can find any groups for moms in the area or MOPs...ask your church or local community center about any moms groups. Alot of hospitals know about new moms support groups, check those out.

Medication should help the lows and might also dampen the highs a bit too (though if you are spending a good deal of time in the lows, you probably won't notice that.)

The key is to do things you don't feel like doing because the things you feel like doing aren't conducive to you feeling better so you have to work against your own impulses in that regard and do something to switch up your brain chemistry.

The good news is, you will feel better. Hang in there.

You are definitely not alone. Do NOT feel ashamed! (if you do, don't feel bad about that either :) )
I have been through it, still have some depression issues (different and varied). Feel that there is support out there for you. If only to take solace in knowing we are out there too!
A good blogger is dooce.com. She has blogged VERY openly about all aspects of her life, but most importantly I think was her very real struggle with pre-post-and during depression and how she and her family deal with it daily. Heather/Dooce is a great writer and person.
hugs to you and yours

OMG, Please don't feel ashamed, your body is giving you a mixed-up signal but it is totally natural! Take your medication and feel better! You are awesome for seeking help!

I had it, too, absolutely nothing to be ashamed about. I attributed it to my brother being in a life/death situation in the hospital at the same time that I gave birth, but now I know that it was PPD. Yes, it will get better. I eventually went on meds for three months and started feeling more like myself after that. Good luck, take care of yourself and remember: No Shame! It's so common!