What works for me

[katmann]

So I'm 11 mos postpartum (almost a year) and I was really struggling for the first 8 months or so with moderate ppd (I know some here have it much worse, so I want to be honest about my condition). I wasn't enjoying motherhood, I was awful to DH, and just in a foul mood like 90% of the time.

These are some things that I think helped me get better:
Exercise - as often as possible. long walks during the summer and fall, treadmill when I can get to it (roughly 3x a week for 20 min)
Supplements - B-complex with inositol (Solgar), fish oil (Nordic naturals cod liver oil capsules)
Cutting back on sugar - this is the hardest part b/c when I feel bad I want cookies and chocolate!
Motherwort tincture- a recent addition to my regimen. A few drops a day under the tongue really helps to take the edge off. I think it's supposed to facilitate menstruation, so if preggers, ask HCP first. My MW gave me some homemade stuff.
Pumping breastmilk so DH can take over occasionally. I was very stubborn about this, but it helped take the pressure off tremendously. I'm not good at asking for help, but DH was persistent in offering it, so he gets credit there.
Working - I went back to an old part time job I had had, just filling in here and there. My boss is very bf friendly, so I'm able to pump at work. Just getting out of the house and feeling productive in a new way has been wonderful.

I'm not totally okay now, just much, much better. DH and I are more amorous, I'm actually having fun with my son, and that big ball of anxiety in my chest has lifted a little bit. I thought these tips might help someone else. Like I said above, I know some women are in worse boats than I am, and I am not trying to make it sound like PPD is easy to get over. This only reflects my experience.

[K-Mom3]

Thanks for sharing. Exercise helps me a lot, too.

I'm 13 mo pp and feeling much better also. It is great to not be in the worst of it but I still get discouraged that it is not completely gone. I guess what I'm sayin' is I can relate.

[agoldenlife]

[QUOTE=katmann;14811901]So I'm 11 mos postpartum (almost a year) and I was really struggling for the first 8 months or so with moderate ppd (I know some here have it much worse, so I want to be honest about my condition). I wasn't enjoying motherhood, I was awful to DH, and just in a foul mood like 90% of the time.

These are some things that I think helped me get better:
Exercise - as often as possible. long walks during the summer and fall, treadmill when I can get to it (roughly 3x a week for 20 min)
Supplements - B-complex with inositol (Solgar), fish oil (Nordic naturals cod liver oil capsules)
Cutting back on sugar - this is the hardest part b/c when I feel bad I want cookies and chocolate!
Motherwort tincture- a recent addition to my regimen. A few drops a day under the tongue really helps to take the edge off. I think it's supposed to facilitate menstruation, so if preggers, ask HCP first. My MW gave me some homemade stuff.
Pumping breastmilk so DH can take over occasionally. I was very stubborn about this, but it helped take the pressure off tremendously. I'm not good at asking for help, but DH was persistent in offering it, so he gets credit there.
Working - I went back to an old part time job I had had, just filling in here and there. My boss is very bf friendly, so I'm able to pump at work. Just getting out of the house and feeling productive in a new way has been wonderful.

Thanks for these tips. I agree with you that these are very helpful. Exercise is definitely super important to me. Especially during those days when I am feeling so low and have barely any energy to leave the house. After a walk with my lo, I usually return more calm and am able to handle things much better.
As for cutting out the sugar, ugh what a difficult thing to do because I can be so addicted to it! I crave it so much, especially when I am in a low mood but I know that for me it just adds to my extreme mood swings and interferes with my sleep. It never helps anything. Although, I must say that when I do exercise, this tends to lead to my eating more balanced and to a point where I can, on occasion, treat myself to a small piece of chocolate without depriving myself.
I haven't gone back to work yet and don't plan on it very soon but can see how this too would help. I know that getting out of the house on an occasional evening and leaving my dd at home with my dh is so helpful in dealing with feeling overwhelmed. All mama's deserve some time to themselves and doing with it whatever they find necessary to feed the soul.
Lastly, I know from my own experience that there are those days when it just seems like nothing will help. I still have them from time to time. But I also know that getting better begins with small steps. Whatever this means to you in that moment.
Big hug to all the mama's dealing with PPD. It can be so hard. Please hang in there, it gets better.