Pregnancy and Depression

[alicia9178]

Anyone else dealing with this? I am having a horrible time and it is really effecting how I feel about what kind of mom I am going to be to this baby. I am having a lot of feelings of inadeguacy right now. I have had a history of post-partum depression years and years ago, and I am terrified to have these feelings already.

[understars]

I've been having some depression issues. I've struggled for years with moderate to severe depression. Lately, I've just been feeling so sick, I haven't been getting enough sleep and I'm hungry but don't feel like eating. All these little things are adding up and making me tired and depressed. I'm feeling like my life is over and feeling tired and depressed is how it's going to be from now on. I haven't seen my friends in months because they don't want to hang out with the moody, nauseous pregnant lady. I'm trying to remind myself that being a mom is my dream and I can't wait to meet my child but then I worry that it won't be at all like I imagined and I'll be a big let-down as a mom. I'm prepared for postpartum depression and I'm thinking I'm going to get a postpartum doula to help me cope with the stress and make a smoother transition.
You're not alone Give one of your little ones a hug and remember that you made it through before and you can do it again. *hugs*

[babybirkel]

yes.

i have struggled with depression off and on since high school. this pregnancy i was really struggling with anxiety and insomnia and depression. i weighed the risks and benefits and i am on 5 mg of lexapro a day. it has helped tremendously. i am not one to just jump for meds especially while pregnant but none of the natural things were working for me and i felt i couldn't adequately take care of myself, my unborn child, and my toddler. i wasn't sleeping at all and i wasn't hungry. so in the end, after talking to my midwives and my regular doc, i decided to try the lexapro. i am glad i did.

i hope you find some relief soon. depression is hard no matter what, but i think it's even harder being pregnant or postpartum.

[alicia9178]

I was on Prozac and Lamictal....it was working wonderfully. However my prescription ran out and no one will prescribe it being pregnant. It is really difficult. I just want to feel better. I just don't want to spend my time thinking about how inadequate I am going to be with this baby. I want to enjoy my pregnancy and not feel like a failure.

[mcs]

this pregnancy has been mostly ok, but with my last dd, it was a very hard time. i felt like all of my senses were heightened and i could never get a hold of my emotions. it was a roller coaster for my whole family. and, i did end up with ppd.

have you thought about trying counseling? it might help you look at things with more open eyes for right now and hopefully ward off the (much dreaded) ppd too.

hugs. i know it is really hard.

[alicia9178]

Originally Posted by mcs

have you thought about trying counseling? it might help you look at things with more open eyes for right now and hopefully ward off the (much dreaded) ppd too.

hugs. i know it is really hard.

I actually have my first appointment scheduled for Monday, hoping it will help. I also switched MDs and am hoping that the new Perinatologist will consider prescribing the meds.

[rainbow_mandala]

You might also want to look into acupuncture. If done specifically for treating depression, it's been known to create some really good results (while avoiding the side effects of meds).

[ComplexOphelia]

Yes over here, too. I've had depression all my life with severe anxiety. I'm sure it's compounded by PTSD after the way my last pregnancy went (baby born at 28 weeks and 2 months in a NICU an hour and a half from our home, 2 weeks in the ICU for me, and thank god, we're all right now, but it was so hard and scary and I never ever ever want to have to do that again).

I've been doing fish oil (about 2 grams daily, 1 gram in the morning and 1 at night), vitamin D, and as much exercise and sunshine as I can - but it hasn't really kicked it. I'm having terrible nightmares where I have pre-e again, require a c-section, and am begging the doctors to just get me two more weeks so that the baby is viable. I'm so, so, so scared sometimes, despite the fact that my blood pressure is fine and I'm feeling great physically.

I have an OB appointment tomorrow and will be talking to them again about prescription antidepressants, because I can't continue feeling like I'm going to lose him all the time. I know there are risks, but I am of the belief that being under this kind of stress will have risks for the baby, too.

Hugs, love and light to all of you, Mamas. I'm hoping so hard that this gets better for all of us.

[Brownie~]

I, too, have had depression and anxiety off and on since college...I haven't been sleeping well and I saw a counselor last week for the first time during this pregnancy. I also have been getting acupuncture for about 2 months now. My midwife wants me to go on Zoloft, but I have been on it twice before and the second time it didn't really work, so I am super-skeptical about it working a third time. She gave me a prescription for Ambien but I have been afraid to take it so far. I don't want to really consider a SSRI until I give the Ambien a fair shake though.
Tonight I think I am finally going to bite the bullet and take it, though. I am afraid I am going to do crazy things on it. (One of my major anxieties is losing control.)
Funny, I don't think I am in a depression right now--it's just the sleep that's wreaking havoc with my life and making me feel low. This pregnancy has been so crappy and I am so sick of feeling crappy. It makes me crabby and irritable and emotional. I think that's what people misinterpret as depressed. Anyhoo.

Best of luck to all of you. I am glad we can commiserate!

[portlandmama]

I second the acupuncture. I do no currently have depression but I could see where I could go down that road. I have been dealing with chronic pain and severe insomnia.

acupuncture has always worked well for me...I. attribute it's use for helping me get pregnant with my last monkey as well as stimming my labor when I was confronted with induction. I just started again and once again it has really helped with my sleep and pain. I have to go a couplle of times owe week to get my body to do for itself.

if nothing else, it is super relaxing and it is time I get to myself.

[baggybears]

I'm there too. Made it through my first pregnancy fine, but did have to go on meds for a little bit during my second pregnancy because I was to the point where I couldn't take care of myself let alone my toddler. This time around I have just been trying to make it through. Been super anxious and not sleeping and feeling like crap cuz I am too tired to do anything. This whole pregnancy has been different because I've been working full time all the way through and then come home and have two kids under the age of four to take care of as well. It's exhausting.

[3xMama]

Oh I'm here, too. I was diagnosed w/ PPD after my son was born and never really had a chance to get over it completely before I was pregnant again. Its been a hard pregnancy. Its not so bad all the time, but I have days-like today-where its overwhelming. I've been very irritable and my temper has been out of whack. I'm just waiting on some insurance things to get cleared up and then I'm going to start a low level of Zoloft. I'll continue through a good year post partum. I've had PPD after both prior pregnancies and considering I'm depressed now, its fair to assume it will just continue for at least that length. I've put off antidepressants for nearly a year now, but natural methods just aren't doing it for me.

Anyway, yo uaren't alone! *hugs*

[ComplexOphelia]

Went on Zoloft two weeks ago, and I'm hoping that I'm starting to feel the effects. I'm having a slightly easier time accepting the things I cannot change and enjoying the things that I am in control of instead of feeling overwhelmed and scared all the time. Today I actually thought, "I have permission to enjoy today, I don't have to feel scared of preeclampsia all the time," and it was really nice.

I'm planning on weaning off at 30 or 32 weeks.

[AngelBee]

I am having issues as well.

[trekkingirl]

I haven't had any depression but I definately haven't been my normal self. My firt tri I got sent home from work once because I had a severe panic attack and just couldn't settle down. That was a first for me.

I have had a bit of social anxiety that started around the time I injured my back last year and was put on pain meds. I have been off of them since the end of my first tri and I expected things to get better but they have actually gotten worse.

I am really nervous talking to people about anything. Everything makes me feel like an idiot or embarrassed. It's been torture at work because I work with the public and always feel like I am in the spotlight. I really wish I knew how to get past this anxiety. I spend so much time wondering what people think of me or how I was percieved. Random people approach me and I just get so embarrassed. It even happened with DH the other day. WTH!

[smeep]

I'm bipolar. I have been able to manage it pretty well, but then when ex decided to do just absolutely horrible things to me, it got pretty hard to control (but still better in the past). The depression part of it has always been situational, and I find days where I feel a little (or a lot) down because I'm still in a really crappy situation. But taking evening primrose oil (for the omegas) helped me a LOT...I would still feel down, but not as bad, and it helps with the frustration (my main bipolar symptom). I did get a script for a new bipolar med (lamotrigine) and so far I can't really tell a difference but it hasn't quite been a week yet and it'll take around a month to get to a proper dose (slow increase), so we'll see.

At any rate... Try the omegas and see if that helps...exercise and diet as well, obviously.

[smeep]

Originally Posted by alicia9178

I was on Prozac and Lamictal....it was working wonderfully. However my prescription ran out and no one will prescribe it being pregnant. It is really difficult. I just want to feel better. I just don't want to spend my time thinking about how inadequate I am going to be with this baby. I want to enjoy my pregnancy and not feel like a failure.

I just got on lamictal (aka lamotrigine). Keep calling around, surely you'll find someone who's willing to prescribe it.

The first guy I saw (at the after hours clinic, so because of insurance crap, I couldn't get the Rx right then anyway) was a little hesitant and wasn't exactly gung ho on it...but, since he couldn't do it then anyway, it didn't matter. But the woman I ended up seeing a couple days later was AMAZING! I told her I did some research and came up with two meds I was most comfortable with, lamictal being my first choice. She just nodded. I told her I'd already done the research, the main concern was palatal issues and I'm past that stage in development, and she just agreed with me. No problem whatsoever. She actually THANKED me for doing my own research and actually trusted that I knew what I was talking about.

So, point is... keep looking! you'll find someone who will prescribe it.