PPD support

When I became a mother, I hadn’t felt more alone and isolated in my entire life. It floored me. I had postpartum depression and anxiety but didn’t know it. I was on maternity leave, recovering slowly and painfully from a C-section. Add to that the approaching brutal Northeast winter, and isolation was unavoidable.

After the longest, hardest winter, literally and metaphorically, I found Postpartum Progress and Living Self-Care. Then I discovered #ppdchat on Twitter. I started reading blogs written by women like me, only they weren’t afraid to share their stories and I was. I didn’t know I would soon be blogging myself and how much that would influence my recovery and change my life.

Reading about PPD from those women’s viewpoints corrected the course of my PPD journey. Each day, the isolation and loneliness melted away and I headed in a new, better direction. I found solace in those voices, belonging to women I didn’t know but to whom I felt so connected. Those women described the same things I’d been feeling—things I thought were happening to only me.

From the bottom of my heart, if you’re blogging about your perinatal mood or anxiety disorder, thank you. If you’re sharing it with your family, friends, neighbors, doctors, thank you. If you’re reading this blog, thank you. It might not seem like much but sharing your story changes lives. You’re creating awareness. You’re creating a village where women can find refuge.

Today’s author is Jamie Harker. Follow her at www.jamesandjax.com.

Recently, I wrote about having attended the Southern New Jersey Perinatal Cooperative’s conference on perinatal mood disorders. A few weeks later, I am still carrying in my heart everything I felt that day, which ranged from nervous anticipation to love, respect, encouragement, and support.

I drove to the conference in the pouring rain, excited to be in the same room with Katherine Stone, Diane Sanford, and my therapist, Michelle. Those three women helped me so much when I had postpartum depression and anxiety for nearly 2 years. I credit Katherine and Diane with giving me the courage and strength to seek help in the first place, and I credit Michelle with providing me the exact compassionate care I needed but almost didn’t reach out for.

But you know who else I credit? All of the women I’ve come to know online who are creating with me a village just by opening up and talking about what we’ve gone through (or are still going through). This journey isn’t easy, and if you’re reading this, you surely know that already. It is long and grueling and, at first, so very lonely. But you aren’t alone. You have a village. You just need directions to it. And websites like this one provide a map.

Today’s guest author is Jamie of www.jamesandjax.com. One of the true heroes who’s building a village of support for PPD moms through her courage and honesty.

For info about PPD, listen to the Sept.9 podcast @mamasonbedrest with Diane Sanford.

Part 2:

Tag: PPD support

One Hero’s Journey-Part 2

One Hero’s Journey-Part 1

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