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1st Trimester
Depression...sadness about pregnancy. Is it hormones?
When I was pregnant with my son 3 years ago I felt great the whole pregnancy. Soon after his birth I suffered from postpartum depression.I felt better after a year. After 2 and 1/2 years we decided to try for baby number 2 and it wasn't so easy. I had 2 miscarriages. After the last miscarriage I kind of broke down and had to go on an antidepressant. After two months of the anitdepressant WHAM.... I got pregnant and had to quickly go off the meds. About a week after being off the meds, I am beginning to feel depressed again. I just feel the lack of joy that I know I should be feeling. I am hoping it is just hormones and will pass. I am wondering if anyone else experiences anything like this during their pregnancy. It is hard to admit as I know this should the happiest time in my life. Thinking of a new little one helps some but most days I'm feeling joyless. I just want to fully feel the joy of this gift.
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Re: Depression...sadness about pregnancy. Is it hormones?
I haven't dealt with postpartum depression, but I have dealt with depression many, many times. I have been lucky so far with this pregnancy, but I do worry a little bit about hormonal fluctuations to come. I wish I had a magic answer for you, but as we both know, there isn't really one. I would really recommend getting some time in with a therapist if you can. They can help you process through your feelings, wade through your fears, and you won't have to worry about any judgement from them. Sometimes, just saying it aloud helps release a little bit of the veil depression puts on us.
I would also say, please don't pressure yourself to automatically feel happy! I know it's hard. You feel like you should be this glowing, happy pregnant woman, but life isn't perfect and neither are we. Use this time to work through your feelings. Try not to get trapped in the negative thinking. Therapists can be great at guiding you on how to change your own mind when you start getting bogged down with the bad stuff. And as much as I hate when I am told this, make sure to keep active. Even a light walk a few times a week really helps your mood and energy levels. I always want to tell someone to "stick it" when I feel like doing nothing but crawling in a ball and they tell me to go exercise, so feel free to say the same to me!
Good karma going your way! Happy to chat further if you need it.
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I just wanted to tell you that you're not alone in this. I don't know if it's only hormones or if there are other factors but I have been feeling the same way. Even though this pregnancy was planned and the news sent me over the moon I've been feeling very depressed about the whole thing.
Have you talked to your SO about this? I was very afraid to mention it but once I did I felt much better. Also, please talk to you doctor about it as well. Mine is working with me to correct things now and if we can't then we will discuss all of our options.
I really thought I was alone in this when I realized what I was going through but after I blogged about it I found that I wasn't. Unfortunately pregnancy related depression is widely spoken about so those of us who suffer feel even more isolated. If you need to talk or anything send me an email at randomarmywife at gmail dot com. (That goes for anyone, even if you don't want to post about it publicly)
(hugs)
Is it possible you went off the meds too quickly or too soon? I know some mothers prefer not to, but it is possible to be on some anti-depressants while pregnant.
I also dealt with PPD/A and went on meds after waiting for it to go away from 6 months. I weaned off of the meds after another 6 months and while I dealt with some mood swings at first, overall, I was ready. I know I've definitely had some more mood swings since becoming pregnant, but I haven't experienced anything lasting longer than an hour or so.
Either way, whether it's hormones or lingering depression, I would talk to your Dr about going on a safe for pregnancy anti-depressant for a little while longer. Feeling that sad and depressed isn't considered normal pregnancy symptoms, so no matter the cause, I think it should be looked at.
HTH!
Thanks so much!! Good advice and reminders!!
I am taking an ssri and plan to throughout my pregnancy. I talked with my doctors extensively about it, did my research, spoke with DH, and the consensus was that if it will cause me distress to go off the ssri, then it's not worth it.
Stress hormones from things like depression are also not good for growing baby.
Some ssris, like Prozac, have been around for decades and there is no strong evidence against them. Millions of people take them. I would talk with my doctor if I were you about your recurring symptoms; you and baby shouldn't have to feel them.
If you had asthma and you needed to take some medicine to stay well, they would keep you on the safest one they could during pg. This shouldn't be any different. Please pm me if you want to talk more.
DD #1: 2012; MMC: 2014; DD #2: 2015; It's a boy! 3/31/2018
Malakai - 8.3.09
Ezra - 12.1.11 ASD
Late to this... 100% perfect... a lil daredevil, but perfect.
I've had depression for yers.
Malakai - 8.3.09
Ezra - 12.1.11 ASD