First signs you recognized

Tsurrel

How did you know that you had/have ppd? What were the signs for you? From what I've read, I'm a little predisposed to ppd. I just want to make sure that I am arming myself with the knowledge I will need.

SaraMaeHeinick

I had the baby blues, crying at anything, etc. But I started to get extremely sad and I couldn't pin point why. I was also anxious. I couldn't leave the house without someone and even then I would be a mess the whole time. I was afraid to sleep because I though something would happen to my LO.

I got really agitated and irritated at everything. I also felt VERY detatched from my husband and even my LO.

I'm so glad to hear that you are educating yourself since you are predisposed. I only wish I would have gotten help sooner because there is help and no one has to suffer! Good luck to you!

nmmsest06

How soon did you realize it was more than just the baby blues?

Mich411

I was a text book case that was predisposed as well.  Attempted suicide as a teen after losing my own Mom.  However, as an adult I have not had ANY depression issues.  I also know my trigger points and when to call for help.

For me on day 4 (which was the morning after coming home) I woke at 2am shaking, couldn't talk and was having a hard time breathing.  My hubby packed our little girl and we went to the ER.  I had a severe anxiety attack.  Docs gave me Ativan in the hospital to chill me out.  That was one thing I never planned for.  I prepared for the possiblity of PPD but did not factor in anxiety which many times goes along with it. 

My doc put me on a very low dose of Lexapro and it seems to have helped.

One thing I will suggest is to have that extra help for the first week when you come home so all you have to do is sleep.  Your hormones will be wacked and day 3 to 6 were the hardest.  It gets easier after that.  Good Luck and Congrats!

 

SaraMaeHeinick

I knew it was more than the baby blues after about the two week mark. Things weren't just "baby blues" sad anymore, there was a definite increase in sadness and depression, etc.

julybaby23

I was definitely crying and all that, but for me I was expecting PPD and had PPA instead. Like PP, once out of the hospital was when it hit. I needed help and I could not sleep. I kept trying to sleep and would wake up within 20 minutes franticlly worried about the baby. I agree with others to have help in place and have a plan in place. I started prozac 4 days post partum and was feeling like myself about a week later.

ElwenLassriel

I really wish I had been more honest with myself in the beginning. Looking back I've probably had ppd for several months now. I remember back I my 6 week pp appointment and so much wanting my ob to specifically ask if I had any ppd symptoms, but she didn't so I didn't bring it up. After that I convinced myself that I just had baby blues. In my mind ppd meant that you didn't feel connected with your baby had had symptoms so sever that it interfered with caring for them. I thought I knew what ppd was, so I didn't look into it further. I also didn't think the symptoms I was having were even related to each other or to having the baby. DH had been worried about me and we finally had a long talk about and it finally hit me that I really did have a problem when I was getting a bit of an anxiety attack at idea of forcing myself to reach out of my isolation and even do little things like start posting fb and twitter statues. I knew that regardless of how I rationalized any of my other symptoms, that wasn't normal. I starting doing research and found that ppd doesn't always mean you have problems connecting with you baby, sometimes it's the rest of the world you end up shutting out. 

kryssy

My PPD was late developing - DS was about 4mo old.  I was a little anxious and feeling down and having some sleeping issues, but I chalked it up to stress from the new position I moved into at work.  It wasn't until I started having panic attacks over ridiculous stuff that I realized I had a problem.

GPGIRLY

Tsurrel:

How did you know that you had/have ppd? What were the signs for you? From what I've read, I'm a little predisposed to ppd. I just want to make sure that I am arming myself with the knowledge I will need.

 

I love your siggy first off...:)

I guess I knew I had it when I was angry all the time. I tried to pretend like it wasn't there and one night I just blew up and I called the doctor the following Monday. I cried for hours and went driving aimlessly while DH stayed home with DS. I feel SO much better now. I am on Prozac and the best part is it works very well and is only $4 a month.  

Lindsey7521

getting extremely frustrated, always feeling sad, crying for no reason, being so angry at everyone for no reason. what sent me over the edge, and forced me to get help was when I started getting angry and frsutrated at my daughter. I knew then that something wasnt right...

BlairWaldorf

I didn't have baby blues at all...I was in absolute heaven the first week or so.

By 10ish weeks, I was completely agitated at everything.  I was manic to keep a clean house, lose baby weight, etc.  I was frustrated, short-tempered.  I rarely cried, but I felt no connection to my son.  I had no desire to feed him, interact with him, be present in his life.  I let that get too far out of control until I started Googling adoption agencies, & that was when I knew I needed help.

jenny1980

Intrusive, obsessive "scary thoughts." Lots of anxiety. Lots of crying spells. It got worse instead of better.

I have dealt with anxiety periodically my whole life, so this was not a "new" experience for me (though it was worse than I previously experienced). I knew it wasn't the typical baby blues. Incidentally, like Blair, the first few weeks were actually great. I was expecting to feel super emotional/weepy and that didn't come until later.

Being proactive is a fabulous plan. My suggestion is to talk to your OB now about your concerns and have a potential plan in place should you need it. It's very hard to navigate finding appropriate care while recovering from birth and dealing with significant depression and/or anxiety.