Post-natal Depression

Eleshia - posted on 01/02/2010

i used to have post-natal depression when my son was 3months old til he was 5months old the signs that i had was
i wouldnt go near him
i was down in the dumps all the time
i would leave him to cry all the time
i would sit and cry all the time
i thort i wasn't a good mother to him
go to the doctors for more advice and to get tretment it helps loads

Angela - posted on 12/26/2009

I had it with all 3 of my children. It started the minute i would get home, I think maybe because all the excitement and commotion of the whole experience was over. My mind was occupied with family and friends and lots of help, then i was all of a sudden on my own (even though my husband was right by my side doing everything to help.)
all I wanted to do was lay in bed and have my husband do everything. It seemed way to over-whelming to do anything myself. I wanted to see the baby (same symptoms for all my babies), I loved them, thought they were precious, but was like....okay I need my alone time now...you do it. I cried so hard and was so sick to my stomach. thinking about the day ahead of me was just to over-whemling. My husband had to take a month off to help me, pretty much do it all, because it just seemsed to hard for me to do. I went on an anti-depressent as soon as they were each born ( I have been on them for years for reg. depression) and within a month I felt better and my husband could go back to work. But talking to your Dr. is the very 1st step to feeling better!!! Talk to someone who has had similar experiences or someone who will understand and give support. If you want to ever chat, add me, i sooooooo know how it feels and know how important it is to talk to someone who has experienced it. :) Let me know how it works out for you!

Valerie - posted on 12/26/2009

call your doctor...you need a professional to evaluate...when you are depressed you may not even see or know it as your ability to see and judge yourself may be out of whack...call the doctor...report what mom said...answer their questions with as much detail and honesty as possible...

Marissa - posted on 12/23/2009

If you think you might have this, GO TALK TO A DOCTOR!
This is very serious and the best thing you can do for you, your partner and your baby is to take good care of yourself.
We all mean very well, but this is too serious to postpone treating or self diagnose.
Please do yourself a favor and GO TALK TO A PROFESSIONAL !!!

Shay - posted on 12/22/2009

I'm currently being treated for PND. I've suffered from depression for a large part of my life but PND is very different, it's more than just feeling a bit low and tearful. For me, I found all of my depression was centred around my Daughter; I felt I couldn't cope with her, I didn't want to be a Mummy, I wanted to run away or leave her and I found it very hard to care for her. I seeked medical help when I started getting thoughts about hurting my Daughter.

If you think you might have it, or even if you just feel a bit depressed, I'd definately go and see your Doctor, Midwife or Health Visitor. They gave me a quick questionnaire to fill out and had a chat about how I was feeling so they could give me the right kind of help.

Out of curiousity, how old is your baby? I felt very tearful for the 1st month or so until my hormones settled down and then around 8wks PND set in.

Take care :) x

Christie - posted on 12/22/2009

I'm being treated for PND as well. I had it with my first, and had hoped so much that I wouldn't with my second, but I started crying for no reason at all, that was the first sign for me. I decided to wait a few days after that first crying bit to see where it would go. After another two days of crying and getting angry at my daughter, feeling like I wanted to shake her and totally blowing up at my 3 year old son, I knew it was time to get help. I called my doctor that same day and went on anti depressants. I haven't been on them for very long, but already feel a little bit better. I've also requested for more help from family and friends. I also remember feeling like my heart was breaking every night and thought in passing about how things would be better if I were dead. I say don't let it get bad, just call your doctor, it won't hurt anything.

Sarah - posted on 12/22/2009

Starting from my daughters birth, I would get the most HORRIBLE depression and feelings of hopelessness every night from around 11 pm to 12 am. It was weird... It was the most horrible feeling ever, like I had nothing left to live for... or as if everyone I loved had died or something. Thankfully I didn't have bad feelings against the BABY, just in general. It got much better after the first 2 weeks, and after that I would just get basic general mood swings every once in a while. So hang in there!!!! It helped that I had my mom with me to make me smile and let me know that I'd get through it.

Charlotte - posted on 12/22/2009

I'm currently being treated for PND. For me I was rather emotional, which is SO not me, lethargic, couldn't be bothered to do even the simplest things (go into town), felt like I wasn't good enough for my daughter, that I wasn't doing anything right, that my fiance would be better off with someone else, I got frustrated when she cried and felt like I couldn't do anything to stop it. I must admit that I even left her to cry for up to 30 minutes, which I do still feel guilty about.

I've been on pills to treat my PND for about 3-4 months and have started to feel that I am ready to come off of them. So I have been to my Doctors and we have worked out a plan for me to slowly come off of them.

To be honest I am worried about how I will be after I've come off of the medication. But, hopefully I will be able to cope better than I had been doing.

Even if you are unsure as to whether or not you have PND I would definitely advise you to go to see your Doctor.

Lisa - posted on 12/22/2009

Mine started as my little boy was an irritated baby and would cry all the time and i was so exhausted from lack of sleep his cry just made me feel angry and i would keep wanting to shake him, i wouldnt shake him but i would have to walk out of the room to stop myself then i would feel like the worlds worst as i was leaving him cry! but he is a year old now and showing massive signs of improvement im even bonding with him properly now which is great! it will get better but if you feel you have it you need to speak to a doctor about it!

Vanessa - posted on 12/22/2009

Your most obvious symptoms of PND are crying bouts (for no apparent reason) lethargy, lack of interest in your baby or your life and general feelings of hopelessness. Almost everyone feels it differently which often makes it harder to diagnose so regardless of whether you think you may or may not have PND you should seek dr's advice immediately. Talking about your feelings and being honest is the best start towards healing. Never, never feel ashamed for reaching out for help. Good luck =]

Amanda - posted on 12/22/2009

I'm currently being medicated for PND... It differs from Person to Person, for me it was not being able to breastfeed that set it off, I felt like I couldn't feed my baby the best food their was, that I had failed her, my self and my husband, that I wasn't good enough mother, I felt hopeless because I didn't know what she wanted when she cried, I was frustrated, and angry when she cried for ages and wouldn't settle, I even got to the horrible point of shaking my little girl, it breaks my heart to say that I did that,and I will carried that guilt every day of my life, even now Kaitlyn is 5.5 months and isn't rolling and I keep thinking what if it is beacuse of what I did . Even if you don't think you have PND please go and speak to your doctor anyway to your mind at ease and your mums mind too, that is the best thing I can suggest.