Post Partum Depression : our hidden foe

Just the other day a friend of mine called, she was hyperventilating on the phone, all the crying had made her voice croaky that I was having a hard time comprehending what she was trying to say. She was a couple of blocks away so I told her to calm down and that I would be there in a couple of minutes. It was 5 am in the morning and everyone at home was still asleep. 

I told my husband the state of affairs and that I would be back before the sun came up. I rang the bell and my friend opened the door, she looked like she hadn’t bathed in days or combed her hair. Her clothes were as disheveled as the house was and she was crying loudly like a banshee. I tried to ask her what had happened, if she had had a fight with her husband But she just kept crying inconsolably. 

I couldn't wrap myself around what was happening? Her husband was travelling and her in laws were in another city, she had recently had a baby girl who sleeping  in her cot. I made her a cup of tea and told her to sit down. I gently massaged her back and combed her hair which I had a hard time doing as it was matted with god knows what. I forced her to go bathe and helped her change into fresh clothes. She smelled a lot better now and wasn’t crying anymore. Then I gathered the courage to ask her once more what had happened and she told me she could put her finger on it. 

She told she just felt like crying all the time, didn’t want to bathe, get dressed or take care of her baby. Initially I thought that the lack of sleep and the new role as a mommy was making her behave like this. I told her maybe her new lifestyle had made her overwhelmed and that we should go see a doctor. But as I delved further, her symptoms and behavior matched what I had read many years ago. The symptoms all matched but I wasn’t sure.

 I took an appointment for the doctor the very same day and he examined her and spent 15 minutes asking her all sorts of question and he said it ,”Ma’am, you have post partum depression but you needn’t worry, 11-12% new mothers suffer from it  .” He said he would put her on anti- depressants and all would be under control. She felt reassured and she began her treatment. The effect of the medication wasn’t instantaneous, it would take a while for the medication to have it affect but I could already she that she was feeling a lot better.

There are so many women who suffer from post partum depression and they don’t even know it. But there are signs and symptom all around us which we chose to ignore, it could affect anyone of us. If you feel any of the symptoms mentioned below you need to get help.

·        Feeling that you can’t care for your baby or do chores

·        Trouble bonding with your baby

·        Feeling sad, empty and lonely

·        Loss of interest in romance , food or anything which did interest you in the past

·        Crying for no reason

·        Sleeping too much

If you have been diagnosed with post partum depression you can do the following to help to handle the symptoms:

·        Exercise daily

·        Surround yourself with people who care

·        Do the things which make you happy

·        If you are able to then breast feed your child

·        Take a break

·        There is no harm in asking for help

Post partum depression happens about three weeks after to give birth to your baby, but the best part is that treatment helps almost everyone suffering from this form of depression. Don’t hide and help yourself by going to a doctor. Don’t be afraid to ask for help!

We need more women willing to say “I’ve been there and I’m here, you can always talk to me without judgment - anon