Do you tell others about your PPD/PPA?
I've been lurking on this board for a while. I had twins 5 months ago and haven't been feeling well for quite a while, but I thought I just had to "power through it" and these feelings of sadness, hopelessness and anger would go away. I finally decided to ask for help a few weeks ago and have been taking Celexa for the past 2 weeks. It's made a world of difference and things are slowly getting better.
Yesterday was one of the first times I opened up to anyone (other than DH) about my struggle with PPD and being on medication. I was talking to 3 other women at church (all 4 of us work with a church youth group) and were talking about one of the girls who has been struggling with depression for the past year. One of the ladies was very outspoken about the fact that she believes people should not take anti-depressants. In her opinion, they fry your brain and make irreparable damage; they basically do more harm than good. I felt I had to speak up and tell her that in my case, taking anti-depressants has been a lifesaver, She maintained her opinion and I maintained mine. At the end of our conversation, she hugged me and said "I'm glad your pills are working for you," but I sort of sensed a little bit of sarcasm in that statement. Maybe I'm being a little too sensitive
Have you ladies run into people like that?
Re: Do you tell others about your PPD/PPA?
I had a friend who opened up to people at her church about taking medication for her PPD/PPA. They told her she wasn't praying hard enough and she needed to "give it all to God" and it would get better. So she went off her meds and had to be hospitalized for postpartum psychosis.
I also had a boyfriend break up with me in college because I couldn't "just get over" my anxiety problems and had to take medication.
I don't talk to anyone else about it anymore.
OP and PPs, I am so, so sorry that people react that way to you all! How awful to treat someone that way, especially since some of these people are claiming to be religious.
I am very open with people, and always have been. I mean, I don't go around telling everyone I meet or anything, but all of my close friends and family know that I have had issues with depression and anxiety, and that it has been exacerbated PP.
I have had only 2 negative responses, but they were short lived. My father was "embarrassed" for me to go to counseling, but that only lasted a few weeks and he got over it. Another was a friend who was not aware of my situation and started badmouthing anti-depressants and counseling, but has come around a lot since we started a dialogue.
I do think, like PP said, there are regional and cultural differences for sure. But I cannot even believe how ignorant people can be, and how anyone could treat a new mother who is suffering with malice instead of caring and understanding.
Yes, I talk to family and some friends regarding my PPD and PPA. Also, while I was working, my immidiate supervisor was aware of it because in a high stress situation, he needed to know if I was loosing control.
I have only ever had 1 person get stupid about me being on meds for my PPD with DD#1. And i dont talk to them anymore due to their idiotic, uneducated, ignorant and prejudiced attitude. I have a permanant chemical imbalance that causes anxiety and depression in a mild form. After my first and now again with this newborn, the hormones push it to an extreme.
As a mental health therapist and person who deals with her own mood disorder, I know first hand the stigma that is attached to mental health issues. I, for one, believe that medication is sometimes an vital component to healing. Not one to take medication unnecessarily, I had put off going on meds at a particularly rough period in my life. However when I started having panic attacks while driving, I knew it was time for me to take medication. Luckily, I did not need to be on it long term but when I needed it...I needed it. As with any medication, risk vs. benefits need to be assessed. Postpartum depression frequently gets to the point of needing medication as a component to treatment.
In general, I don't hide the fact that I have my own struggles. I hope to open people's minds about their preconceived ideas of what mental health looks like. Unfortunately, there are going to always be people who have little empathy and understanding of what depression and anxiety is like.
I have run into many, many people like that, which is why I don't tell most people I am on medication. With most people I have met, when the topic is broached, they seem to think that mental health is a fictional issue. No one is really sick, they're just looking for an easy out or attention. And that taking a pill will suddenly make you happy. Of course, as you, PPers and I know, this isn't the case at all.
My husband knows, of course. I have had depression before PPD and we've been together ten years so he has lived through a lot of dark times in my life. He thinks I should be open with more of our friends, I don't. My childhood friend knows, since she was diagnosed with schizophrenia and understands the judgement people pass. My parents pretend they don't know, so I don't talk about it with them. That's it.
It depends who it is. Many people asked if I had ppd, but I had a traumatic c section, so people expect I would.
It wasn't generally information I volunteered, but I wouldn't hide it.
Mom to Carter (6), and Calianne (1).
Proud VBAC, natural birth, breastfeeding, cloth diapering momma!